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When someone applies for a loan or a new credit card account - in short, any time one applies for credit and a lender requests a copy of the credit report - this request is noted as an “inquiry” in the applicant's credit file. The average consumer has had only one inquiry on his or her accounts within the past year. Fewer than 6% had four or more inquiries resulting from a search for new credit.

Fair Isaac Corporation

Finding Out Your Credit Score

Where to go?

Online

annualcreditreport.com

This is the official website for requesting your credit reports. Unfortunately, it may not be accessible from overseas locations.

AnnualCreditReport.com website
However, you can still obtain your credit reports:
By phone:

877-322-8228

By mail:

Annual Credit Report Request Service
P.O. Box 105281
Atlanta, GA 30348-5281

Click here for the request form you will need to include when mailing.

In addition to, but distinct from your credit score, are your credit reports. There are three of them—one from each of the major financial reporting firms: Experian, Equifax, and TransUnion. Typically, prospective creditors do not look at your credit reports, but at the credit score that is derived from those reports. Even though loan or credit decisions are typically not made on the basis of your credit score alone, it is an important factor and one that can affect how much you pay for credit.

By law, you are entitled to a free copy of each of your three credit reports once every twelve months. Unfortunately, the website set up by the three reporting companies to allow you to request your free credit reports, www.annualcreditreport.com, may not be accessible from overseas locations. However, you should still be able to request your credit reports by phone or mail.

The website states that your report should be mailed to you within 15 days and to allow 2–3 weeks for delivery. That is for stateside delivery, so you may need to allow extra time for delivery to an overseas address.

Because one report may contain mistakes that don’t appear in the other two, you should check all three reports for inaccuracies. If you find a mistake, you are entitled to dispute it with that company. Do so by sending them a letter, by certified mail, that includes copies (not originals) of any documents you have that support your case. Unless they consider your claim frivolous, they are required to investigate the items in question within 30 days with whomever provided the disputed information. The reporting company must then provide you with the results of their investigation in writing. If they do not find in your favor, you may still ask that they include a statement in your file disputing the information in question.

Just as you have three credit reports, you actually have three separate scores. Each of the three reporting firms issues a credit score for you based on your report. When your reports are in agreement, as they should be, your scores will be the same. You can obtain your credit score, for a nominal fee set by the Federal Trade Commission, directly from any one of the reporting companies.