Jim Kemish asked:


Are you under the impression that there is some relationship between the credit bureaus and the government? Credit repair expert Jim Kemish offers some insights.

Not a Friendly Service

In a recent blog entry I wrote, “Significant legislation has been enacted to protect you from the impact of the credit bureau’s inaccuracies. The right that you have to receive copies of your three credit reports for free on an annual basis is not a friendly public service by the credit bureaus. The bureaus have been required to provide this service as one of the protective measures included in the Fair and Accurate Credit Transactions Act. Your credit report can have a major impact on your financial life. Give your credit the attention that it deserves and review your reports regularly.”

A Reader Responds

A reader responded by asking, “I’ve read that the credit bureaus are regulated by the Federal Trade Commission. Doesn’t this indicate a relationship with the government?” Below is my reply along with some additional thoughts on the subject.

The Credit Bureaus are Not Government Agencies

I replied that, “The relationship between the credit bureaus and the government is the same as the relationship that you have with the government. Because your actions are conscripted by law does not in anyway suggest that you are necessarily a law abiding citizen (although I’m sure that you are!). As many people live in a constant adversarial relationship with the government, so do many large businesses. The credit bureaus happen to be constantly at odds with the law. Given the potential impact that credit reporting errors can have on your financial life, I strongly suggest that you modify your opinion of the bureaus enough to be very cautious of the content of your credit report.”

Strictly For Profit

One of the unfortunate underlying assumptions that people, like the above reader, have in their attitude towards the credit bureaus is that the bureaus have some form of official status. This could not be farther from the truth. They are strictly for profit businesses. Experian and Equifax are publicly traded companies and list their revenues in the billions of dollars. Trans Union is a privately held company with revenues estimated also in the billions. The three credit bureaus have maintained a consistently adversarial relationship with the government and consumers throughout their histories.

An Adversarial Relationship

An adversarial relationship with the public is not unusual for large businesses. All activities are chosen for the purpose of producing profits. The history of lawsuits brought against the bureaus over time paint a clear picture. The office of the Attorney General of Florida is currently pursuing action against Experian relating to misleading claims, deceptive advertising, a misleading domain name (freecreditreport.com), and failure to honor cancellations to their credit monitoring service offered through this so-called free credit report website.

A History of Conflict

The type of behavior described by the Office of the Attorney General of Florida is consistent with countless charges against the three bureaus. In the 1970s Equifax was charged with rewarding its employees for collecting negative information on consumers. This charge, which resulted in a consent decree, provides an interesting hint about the corporate culture.

Experian Gets an “F”

In 2006 a leading consumer advocate website rated the customer service offered by the three bureaus. The ratings were dismal including a grade of “F” given to Experian, who was sited for not even providing customers with a customer service telephone number. Credit repair is not on the priority list at the credit bureaus!

Nothing Has Changed

The above mentioned consumer advocate site has a current post that says, “With the 2003 amendments to the FCRA, and the introduction of the FACT Act, millions of consumers will see the quality of their credit reports degrade even further. FACT stands for Fair and Accurate Credit Transaction Act, but in reality it is just our government trying to appease millions of consumer who complain about the current credit reporting industry. But they are only appeasing us in name only…”

The Forces at Work

We have been assisting our customers with credit repair since 1989 and as such have dealt with the three bureaus on a consistent basis. There are two major forces at work that shape the behavior of the credit bureaus. The first major force is the need to maximize and protect profits which may result in decisions about operating policy that are not in the best interest of the public. The second force that conspires with the profit motive is the sheer bulk of data that the credit bureaus are trying to manage and maintain. The result has been widespread and serious errors on consumer reports combined with a horrible corporate bureaucratic resistance to fixing the problem. So check your credit reports regularly.

Copyright © 2007 James W. Kemish. All Content. All Rights Reserved.



Jose

honeyskillz asked:


I applied to work for Gap Inc. in June of 2007. Today I got a letter in the mail from them stating that 2 laptop computers from the company had been stolen and my name and social were stored in one of them. They offered credit monitoring for the next year, but as a 16 year old trying to establish credit I fear for my future credit. This applied to the times of July 2006-June 2007. Can I sue?

Claude

Richard K asked:


The Fed apparently is able to monitor the flow of credit between banks. They say it is frozen. Is this based on activity on the Fedwire? e.g. loans of fed funds between banks? repurchase agreements? Can someone tell me what data they monitor. are these data available to me somewhere on the web? Maybe a daily statistic of the Federal reserve?

Jacob

Frank Carrasco asked:


All credit cards offer many benefits and features. Some come with a few disadvantages. To convey my point I will leave the disadvantages for others to write about. All credit cards are good in their own way for their own purpose and for that specific applicant. There are many credit cards for applicants with good credit, bad credit or with no credit at all. There are the so called “bad credit cards” and the “good credit cards.” Bad credit cards fit consumers looking to build “good credit.” Good credit cards fit consumers with good credit looking to take advantage of benefits that suit their daily lives. So are all credit cards good? Yes, because in some cases you have to start somewhere and sometimes, it comes at a price.

Consumers with good credit attract the credit cards that would better suit their income, credit history, spending habits and paying habits. Many credit cards that approach consumers with good credit tend to offer great transfer rates and lower interest rates on future purchases as long as the consumer’s credit doesn’t change in the wrong direction. Everyone has their individual needs and perceptions of their credit. So the only challenging factor for someone with good credit is to maintain the good credit status and keep a close eye on your credit limit to credit debt ratio. In my opinion, your ratio should be at around 25% to 40% because it is a responsible level to be proactive in managing your credit cards. A 25% credit limit to credit debt ratio would be $250.00 balance on a $1,000.00 credit limit. Investing in a credit monitoring service also helps to keep a third eye on your credit so you can focus on your busy life.

Consumers with bad credit attract the credit cards that seem to be outrageous because of interest rate, credit line or terms of the agreement such as annual fees and processing fees. In my opinion, their is no such thing as a bad credit card as long as they report the account to Experian, Transunion and Equifax (CSC Credit Service). Instead of them being called bad credit cards they should be called credit building cards. If you cannot get over yourself by accepting a credit building card, maybe a secured credit card from your bank would be the best choice as long as they report to the credit bureau. Never think bad credit is forever or that it can’t ever improve, it can with responsible steps. If you get a so called bad credit card then make sure you fulfill your end of the agreement, and don’t make excuses for not paying on time or letting it charge off because it was only $300.00. I think one factor that makes that type of card good is that the credit lines are usually no more than $500.00. That low of a credit line is a good thing because worst case scenario your minimum payment is between $15.00 – $25.00. Not bad for establishing a credit line that will be worth dividends in the long run. Yes, it will benefit you as time is established behind the credit card. Credit building cards are only short term because once you have began to establish yourself with 2 – 3 credit building cards your score will reflect the responsible habits and your score will begin to rise. So are bad credit cards good, of course they are.

Whether you have good or bad credit cards the responsibility is the same. Make your payments on time and watch your credit limit to credit debt ratio. These two simple steps, if followed consistently, will keep your credit cards as the good benchmark for your credit score to be based from. I have only referenced your credit cards that allow minimum payments and not any other types of credit cards or other credit lines on your credit report. I have also not referenced the impact of derogatory items on your credit report that would affect the establishing of your credit. All cards have benefits and features that are advantageous to consumers or contain hidden value, even if the card does not seem very desirable. When you decide to get any credit card base it on your own financial need and on the advantages that will benefit you and your credit profile. Credit is life and life is credit, understand it wisely.



Daniel

Chris K asked:


Hi i need a new computer. My monitor is busted, i cant play online games anymore because of lag. The problem IS my computer.

Instead of replacing parts i just wanna get a Laptop for college but i want it to be powerful enough to play online games.. such as WoW. i dont want to be restricted to a certain quality, lets say a new comp game just came out. i would like the ability to play it with out constant lag. Don’t get me wrong I’m not trying to play a game with real people in it. I just want to play a game with some reliability.
To help heres what i play:World of warcraft, city of heroes.
I plan to buy Spore, and perhaps a random shooter maybe such as call of duty 4? But if a nice game came out i dont wanna be screwed because my comp will crash because its 20 feett within the box. is this too much to ask for in a laptop?

back to my title. what general credit score would i need to purchase a decent laptop from best buy on a monthly payment? rccmnd a company or a store if u dont agre

Bertha

Richard V asked:


The Guardian newspaper in London analyzed corporate pay plans that were recently drawn up by Citigroup, Goldman Sachs, Merrill Lynch, Morgan Stanley, JPMorgan Chase, and Lehman Brothers. The highest-ranking executives of these banks are to split a total of $70 billion in salaries and bonuses this year.

Bonuses? The stock prices of the firms have plummeted in the past year, Lehman Brothers has collapsed completely, the bungling executives have caused a global financial crisis, and the five remaining banks are down now down in Washington loading up their share of a $700 billion taxpayer bailout. They get bonuses for that?

The math is infuriatingly easy here: This $70 billion executive payout means that honchos in these firms will siphon off 10 percent of the bailout funds that were supposed to shore up our economy – not reward executive failure.

http://www.guardian.co.uk/business/2008/oct/17/executivesalaries-banking

http://www.guardian.co.uk/business/2008/oct/21/wall-street-bonuses

“Why is there no requirement in the bailout plan that banks must actually make loans as a condition of getting the money? Have you heard about this? America’s nine largest banks – including Bank of America, Citigroup, Goldman Sachs, and Wells Fargo – are being handed 125 billion of our tax dollars with no strings attached. The Bushites say they “hope” the bankers will use this largess to help the American economy… but that it’s up to them. Indeed, Bush’s chief bank regulator says he will not even monitor how the recipients use our money.

For their part, the Big Nine say they feel no urgency to move the funds into the credit system. After all, they sniff, we have lost a ton of profit in the past few months, so we’ll need the bulk of the handout to beef-up our own balance sheets.”
(Jim Hightower)

Aaron

John Rasor asked:


If you are already underwater with debt, it is likely that your credit score has taken a hit for the worse. When you fall behind on current credit obligations the lenders will report these defaults to the credit bureaus. When people fall way behind on their bills its often impossible to ever catch up. Debt management programs have been around for years and offer help to individuals trying to get out of debt. How do they work and how will enrolling in one of these plans affect my credit score?

They usually begin by setting up an initial consultation. Here a financial counselor will break down your income, living expenses, debts and discuss strategies to reduce spending and allocate more money to paying off your creditors. At the end of the meeting you are given a budget along with an action summary plan to help initiate your route to financial freedom. Many find that this one time meeting is enough and the advice of the counselor can be handled out on their own. Others see a benefit in actually enrolling in the debt management program.

A debt management plan is a reasonable way to resolve credit problems and get back on track financially. Your financial counselor will act as an impartial intermediary. Based on your income they will negotiate and establish a mutually accepted repayment plan with your creditors. Upon agreement, you make a single payment to the debt management company and they in turn make the monthly payments to all creditors that were enrolled in the plan. Best case scenario is that collection calls stop and ultra high interest charges and fees are reduced or every now and then eliminated altogether.

There are pitfalls to enrolling in the debt management plan. We have experienced many situations where the creditor accepted the plan, stopped collections calls and even reduced the interest but would not report the monthly payment to the credit bureaus as the minimum monthly payment. More than likely the new monthly payment to the creditor is less than what it was before as a result of the restructuring program. Each month the creditor could be reporting you 30 or more days late because of it. You’ll have no way of knowing it unless you frequently monitor your credit report.

If you are one of the many people in need of restructuring your debts be sure that you enroll in one of the credit monitoring plans available through Experian, Equifax and Transunion.



Melissa

Sean C asked:


There’s a possibility some of my personal information was stolen from a previous employer. That employer has offered me protection through consumerinfo.com. How reliable is the Triple Advantage Credit Monitoring? Any information will help!!

Roger

Tony Francis asked:


The number of people who are victimized by scammers and identity thieves vary every year. Each time scammers succeed in their attempts to take advantage of the credit system their criminal actions continue and even develop. One of the best things you should learn to do when you have started building a credit is credit monitoring.

Credit reports contain information about your credit history. Your credit history includes all the financial and credit transactions you have made in the past years. The three credit reporting agencies are required by law to provide consumers with their credit reports once each year, if the consumer asks for it. This means that every twelve months, you are given the free chance to review your credit report.

When you receive your credit report regularly, and you have already learned how to read what this document contains, you can very well do credit monitoring all by yourself. Checking your own credit activity and credit history makes it easier for you to detect suspicious activity. Since each of your financial transactions using your credit accounts get recorded on your credit history and printed on your credit report, you can determine which among them are genuine or authorized.

Of course, it follows that whenever you purchase something using your credit card, as an example, you remember the details. Credit monitoring is even more effective in identifying scams if you check your credit reports from time to time. This implies that you don’t have to wait a year to verify whether you are free from scams or not. You can certainly monitor your credit by availing credit report services from the internet.

But if you lack the time to monitor your own credit, such service is available from the government. The monitoring agency, upon your request, will take one credit report from the three credit reporting agencies and monitor the changes in your credit history. The agency will notify you, in case any suspicious items are found. On the other hand, there are also private companies that provide similar services to whoever subscribes. You can also ask for your credit history from them when the need arises and they will notify you as well when they have come up with their own findings.

Though credit monitoring is done primarily to prevent or put a stop to credit fraud, scams and identity stealing, you are guaranteed to be notified of the smallest errors found on your credit report. Some companies provide for additional services when you subscribe to credit monitoring. Such include monthly score trending and credit score elucidations. If you really want to make sure that no errors are left unnoticed, you can look for credit monitoring services that are applied daily.

One thing you should however remember before you sign up to any credit monitoring service you find, is security. Most companies would have to ask for your name, address and social security number to gain access to your credit report. Since such information should remain private, make sure that you are only working with reputable agencies for your own safety. Other than that, make sure also that the services you avail are within your budget. Do consider that credit monitoring could be costly.



Michele

joecseko asked:


NOTICE FROM FEDERAL COURT. PLEASE READ.

You may be eligible to receive a benefit from a class-action settlement if you purchased and paid for a credit score or credit monitoring from ConsumerInfo.com or an Experian Entity between June 17, 1998 and December 27, 2006.

A federal court has directed that this notice be sent to inform you of a proposed class-action settlement. Records show that you entered into an agreement over the Internet with ConsumerInfo.com or an Experian Entity to purchase any Credit Check or Credit Check Monitoring (which were formerly known as CreditCheck® Monitoring Service), Credit Manager (including Yahoo! Credit Manager), Triple Alert, or Triple Advantage credit-monitoring product, or you paid for a credit score sold on a website that also sold one of these credit-monitoring products, between June 17, 1998 and December 27, 2006. If so, you may be eligible to receive a benefit under the proposed settlement.

The settlement will resolve a lawsuit over whether Defendants violated the federal Credit Repair Organizations Act or are liable for claims where the stated basis is about improvement of a consumer’s credit record, history, or rating. Under the settlement, Defendants deny that they are liable, but have agreed not to make certain statements on particular websites and to provide all Settlement Class Members with the opportunity to obtain their choice of a settlement benefit: either (i) a credit score or (ii) 60 days of credit monitoring, as described below and on the settlement website. To see if you are a Class Member and to obtain full notice of the proposed Settlement, the required procedures, the Effective Date, the deadlines, your obligations, and your options, you must visit www.browningsettlement.com. This email is only a brief summary of the full notice that is posted on the website.

If you are an eligible Settlement Class Member, you have rights, obligations, and options under the proposed settlement. You have until May 15, 2007 to make your decision. Your legal rights are affected whether you act or not.

1. Submit A Registration Form Online Or By Mail

This is the only way to get a settlement benefit of either a credit score or 60 days of credit monitoring. You will choose your benefit, and you must keep all of your registration information updated. If you choose credit monitoring, and you don’t cancel your credit-monitoring membership after using your code to obtain the credit monitoring benefit but prior to the expiration of the 60 day, settlement benefit period, you will be billed at the then-applicable rate, which is currently $9.95, for each month that you continue your membership. Beginning on the Effective Date of the settlement, you will be able to register online or by mail. If you register online, your registration must be completed no later than sixty (60) days after the Effective Date, and submitted online by midnight Pacific Time. If you register by mail, your registration must be mailed and postmarked on or before sixty (60) days after the Effective Date. For more information on these deadlines, the Effective Date of the settlement, the registration procedures, and the settlement benefit, you must visit www.browningsettlement.com. Do not contact the Court.

2. Exclude Yourself

This is the only option that allows you to ever be part of any other lawsuit about the claims in this case. You will not be eligible for a settlement benefit. Your request for exclusion must be mailed and postmarked on or before May 15, 2007. Any request for exclusion must be mailed to the Browning Settlement Administrator. Do not contact the Court.

3. Object

Write to the Browning Settlement Administrator in order to tell the Court about why you don’t like the settlement. Your objection must be mailed and postmarked on or before May 15, 2007. Do not contact the Court.

4. Go to a Hearing

Write to the Browning Settlement Administrator to ask to speak in Court about the fairness of the settlement. Your request to speak at the hearing must be mailed and postmarked on or before May 15, 2007. The final fairness hearing is set for July 31, 2007, at which time the Court will consider whether to finally approve the settlement and a request by the lawyers representing all Class Members for no more than $2,550,000 in attorney’s fees and costs.

5. Do Nothing

You will automatically be included in the Settlement Class and give up your right to be part of any other lawsuit about the claims in this case, but you will not be eligible to receive a settlement benefit unless you submit a registration form.

To get complete information about the proposed settlement, the required procedures, the Effective Date, the deadlines, your obligations, and your options, you must visit www.browningsettlement.com. Do not contact the Court.

Please do not reply to this message. We are unable to respond to inquiries sent in reply to this email. To contact us, please access the official settlement website at www.browningsettlement.com.
You can’t tell me that it’s a scam without justifying your answer.It’s not asking me for any personal information at all!
Please keep that in mind while answering.
I was already enrolled in this service and reported them to the Federal Trade Commission three times.Does that help?
This line makes the whole thing seem more legit.
2. Exclude Yourself

This is the only option that allows you to ever be part of any other lawsuit about the claims in this case. You will not be eligible for a settlement benefit. Your request for exclusion must be mailed and postmarked on or before May 15, 2007. Any request for exclusion must be mailed to the Browning Settlement Administrator. Do not contact the Court.

Cathy