Some of us have no business writing about the three major credit bureaus, and some of us have no need for all that is involved in the 3 major credit bureaus.  (And some of us fit in both of these categories, having no real assets to work with or write about!)  In the same respect, the leading bureaus do factor into most of our lives—if we have ever purchased a home, a car, or other major item or if we use credit cards.

When we shop for autos or houses or even appliances or electrical or computer equipment, and we want to finance the items (get them on a loan to own or credit basis), the ones doing the financing will run a credit check with one of the 3 major credit bureaus: they will consult with or contact Equifax, Experian, and/or TransUnion.  Listed here in alphabetical order are some of the particulars of each of the three major credit bureaus:

Equifax – www.equifax.com – Equifax offers services and products to protect against identity theft, to manage and check credit, and to prepare for a major purchase.  Equifax also provides tools for checking the value of a property, credit ranking, and the latest in business solutions (for B2B, B2C, and direct marketing, for example) and news …featuring such valuable articles as “Small Businesses Beware: ‘Rip Me Off’ is Written all over You;” “Yo Say You Can Smell Phish in Your In-box?” “Credit Union Thwarts Phishers and Reveals How;” and “Websites Let Users Send Email to Future.”

TO CALL
For general concerns, call 1-800-685-1111
To report or investigate fraud, call 1-800-525-6285

TO WRITE
To send snail mail correspondence, write to
PO Box 740241, Atlanta, GA 30374

Experian – www.experian.com – Experian also offers products and services to protect against fraud, to check 3-credit bureau reports, to check vehicle history (with a report), and to get further educated—understanding your credit and heeding customer alerts (such as those on Experian’s Katrina victims help pages and how to beware of phishing).

TO CALL
For general concerns, or to report or investigate fraud, call
1-888-397-3742

TO WRITE
To send snail mail correspondence, write to
PO Box 2002, Allen, TX 75013

TransUnion – www.transunion.com – Like the latter two, TransUnion offers products and support services for credit monitoring, provides fraud-prevention education and help, and free credit card report disclosures.  As well, you can subscribe to the newsletter, to stay updated and get helpful credit tips; can find much information on preventing fraud or resuscitating your credit if you have been a victim of fraud; and can dispute credit card items you suspect or know to be false.

TO CALL
For general concerns, call 1-800-888-4213
To report or investigate fraud, call 1-800-680-7289

TO WRITE

To send snail mail correspondence, write to
PO Box 2000, Chester, PA 19022