FREE Credit Report Offer - Careful, It Might Carry Hidden Charges
FREE credit checks or free credit reports. What are they all about? Why every second company on the Net is offering you a free credit report? Are they all suddenly moved into a charity business?
Don't worry about their finances. Start worrying about yours. They are offering you a FREE Credit report as a bonus. Their main offer is something else - they want to sell you "credit check monitoring services". They claim they are going to protect you from identity theft.
In order to do that, they first ask you about all the details about your credit card and your bank accounts. Talk about a cat watching over cream distributions.
Their first move is to charge you for their services. Hold on, you say, I didn't order anything from them. Yes, that is correct. Almost. Remember, at the bottom of their page they wrote in very small letters that if you don't cancel their services, they are going to provide them.
And provide they will. First they are going to charge your credit card between $80 and $120, sometimes more. And we are not talking about some fly-by-night operations.
For example, ConsumerInfo.com is owned by Experian, one of the three major credit reporting agencies in the United States. A class action suit against ConsumerInfo.com and Experian alleging 'unfair and fraudulent business practices and false advertising' had been filed in 2004. It didn't stop many others like them from following the same practices.
If you are lucky to spot those charges in time, you can attempt to file a charge-back with your credit card company. It will not be that easy. It is your word against theirs. Those companies can claim that they provided a valid service for you, and for that they are entitled to a payment.
You scream: "What service?!" They respond: "We were watching over your account". There is no point in suing them. They have much more money than you to pay for their lawyers. If you are one of many, you can try a class action suit. But that can take years, and in the meanwhile your money are gone.
It will be much easier to stay away from free credit report offers. Especially from companies you know nothing about. They are not in charity related businesses. When they offer you credit report for free, they will try to make you pay for something else. Don't disclose all your financial information to them. You never know to whom they can sell this information.
Every time, when you get an offer to give you something for free, ask yourself first: "How is this company going to make money? What else will they want from me?"
If you don't find an answer to this question, don't disclose to such a company your credit card details. Their alleged "free help" might end up costing you more money.
To learn more about financial and investment advise and retirement planning visit new Money Management Forum at Wise-Investment.info
MORE RESOURCES:
 BBC News | Former Credit Suisse broker arrested in US Swissinfo, Switzerland - A former Credit Suisse broker has been arrested for fraud and conspiracy over deceptive sales of subprime-related auction-rate debt in the United States. ... Former Credit Suisse broker charged with subprime-linked fraud in ... UPDATE 1-FBI arrests ex-Credit Suisse broker Bulgarian Wall Street broker indicted |
S&P cuts O'Charley's credit ratings CNNMoney.com - S&P on Thursday cut the company's corporate credit rating to "B+" from "BB-" and its senior secured credit facility rating to "BB" from "BB+. ... Cut north-west or bust Upstate NY water authority rated AA |
 CEP News | S&P upgrades Raytheon credit ratings 1 notch CNNMoney.com - S&P upgraded the company's long-term corporate credit rating to "A-" from "BBB+." The outlook is "Stable." The Waltham, Mass. ... S&P puts Fifth Third on credit watch Credit rating soars in District 300 Starbucks downgraded to 'BBB' on weakening credit metrics - S&P |
When the Bank Closes Your Credit Account Washington Post, United States - By Joan Goldwasser Q I received a notice from Capital One that it is closing my credit card account because of inactivity. If the company closes the account ... Capital One Spurned Mortgages For Credit Cards - CFO |
The Upcoming Technology of RFID For Contactless Access Control ... MarketWatch - This technology is now being rolled out in the UK and around the World for so called 'BioMetric passports' and credit cards because there are no physical ... |
Credit Crunch: The Sequel U.S. News & World Report, DC - And that certainly seemed to be the case in March when investment bank Bear Stearns became the highest-profile victim of the credit crisis. ... UPDATE 1-US banks' direct borrowing hits record in week UPDATE:Comml Bks Set Record For Avg Discount Window Borrowing The Market: What the Pros Are Saying |
 CBC.ca | Canada bank CEOs see more credit crisis uncertainty Reuters - By Lynne Olver CALGARY, Alberta, Sept 5 (Reuters) - Fallout from the US subprime mortgage crisis and subsequent credit crunch has left nagging regulatory ... Markets still rocky but underlying environment 'benign': Deutsche ... |
 Minyanville.com | As the Credit Strains Linger, Pimco’s Gross Calls for Intervention New York Times Blogs, NY - Banks and businesses are still having trouble raising money, according to data on Thursday that reinforced the prospect that the year-long US credit crisis ... Freaky Friday Potpourri: Help Wanted in Washington! Pimco's Bill Gross hits the panic button 'Financial Tsunami' To Engulf Markets, Says Pimco's Gross |
Credit Suisse appoints India investment banking MD Hindu Business Line, India - MUMBAI: Credit Suisse on Friday announced the appointment of Mr Pankaj Kalra as the Managing Director of its India investment banking department. ... Credit Suisse hires Merrill banker in India Credit Suisse appoints Pankaj Kalra, MD, investment banking Merrill Lynch Hires Dick Barrett and Mark Ellman to Strengthen ... |
UPDATE 2-Lehman credit spreads widen amid KDB speculation Reuters - Lehman's credit default swaps rose 20 basis points to 345 basis points, or $345000 per year for five years to insure $10 million in debt, from 325 basis ... Credit crunch: Small Korean bank in $6bn bid to rescue Lehman Southpaw: Blood now, pay later: banks get ready for bonus season Lehman nears rescue deal with KDB |
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