Why sign up for a credit report monitoring alert service?
Well, most people are not in the habit of continuously monitoring their credit reports. For many, the free credit report they receive once every twelve months from the three nationwide credit bureaus – TransUnion, Experian, and Equifax will suffice.
Unless unexplained IRS notices show up in your mail, or you start receiving mysterious unpaid bills and collection calls, would you consider signing up for credit report monitoring alert services?
That’s precisely why you should check your credit reports. Waiting to check your credit reports for free once every twelve months gives identity thieves and fraudsters more time to do their work.
At first, glance, signing up for a credit report monitoring alert service might seem like a daunting and unnecessary endeavor, but it’s surprisingly straightforward – and has incredible payoffs.
When you monitor your credit, you can look for errors and suspicious activities like credit card fraud and stop identity theft in its tracks. Overall, it’s estimated that 33% of American adults have experienced identity theft, and that’s what makes keeping your eye on your credit so important.
Don’t you think it’s high time you took charge of your credit with credit monitoring services? Choose to make a stand and demand: “You will not steal my identity and mess up my credit score on my watch!”
Credit monitoring is a service that allows you to track all activities in your credit files and score. When there’s any change, you’ll get an alert. You can then take a look at the information, confirm whether it’s accurate, erroneous, or fraudulent, and decide what action, if any, to take. Sound easy, right? That’s because it is.
For example, if you’re looking to purchase a home, your mortgage lender will run a credit check. You’ll receive an alert regarding that credit check. Similarly, you will receive an alert when someone opens a new credit account in your name.
Think of credit report monitoring alert services as an alarm system, but not as a home alarm system this time. Instead, it is a warning system that lets you know any inaccuracies or fraudulent activities in your credit reports.
There are two types of credit report monitoring alert services: Free and Paid.
When deciding between free and premium credit report monitoring services, it’s a trade-off between opting for free basic coverage or premium credit monitoring services with extensive protection. Are you still sitting on the fence wondering whether you should pay for credit monitoring services?
Here’s a look at the 7 undeniable benefits of buying credit monitoring services:
With so many credit monitoring services out there, choosing a credit report monitoring alert service can feel overwhelming.
Luckily, here are 5 tips to help you pick the best credit monitoring provider for you:
One of the biggest threats the average person faces to their financial health these days is identity theft. So many of our activities now are tied to our email addresses and social security numbers. If someone learns our 'vital statistics,' then it is possible for them to impersonate us quite quickly. The good news is that you do not need to be a computer security genius to protect yourself.
Many credit score monitoring services like MyScoreiq will help you keep an eye on your credit file so that if anything goes wrong, you will be alerted before too much damage is done. Credit score monitoring services act as an early warning system at their core, but the best ones do so much more.
The most basic features are:
These measures, alone, offer a lot of value. If you are opening a new bank account or looking for a car loan, then you would know that you were doing so, and you would not be alarmed if you got a message telling you that a lender you had approached had done a credit search on you. If you have not been shopping for financial services and an account was opened in your name, that would be a cause for concern.
Some credit score monitoring services go a step further, however. For example, IdentityIQ will offer data breach monitoring, application monitoring, identity restoration services, and identity theft insurance. If you're ever an identity theft victim, you won't be left out of pocket since they will cover the fraudulent transactions for you.
Even if credit fraud is not your primary concern at the moment, using monitoring services to help build a good credit score can be a wise move. Having a good credit rating makes so many things in life easier to cope with.
While credit reference agencies always aim to be fair in their reporting, they are not particularly sympathetic to the plights of individuals. This means that if you are the victim of fraud or identity theft, it can take time to undo that damage.
IDclub and several other credit score protection companies will work to help you avoid excessive penalties. If fraudulent activity takes place, they will address it for you. If mistakes or incorrect associations are on your credit report, they will help you get those mistakes taken off your credit file.
You can arrange protection not just for yourself but for other family members. Since many criminals use young people and build up whole fake identities hoping that the young person will not notice them (because they are not borrowing money themselves yet), it is helpful to have such a reporting service.
Once a credit score is damaged, it can take time to repair it. This can mean building up a record of well-maintained accounts. You must show that you can make timely payments and properly manage loans, credit accounts, or credit cards.
Having any accounts that have been open for a long time and have worked well will stand you in good company when building your credit score up and help you access affordable lending in the future.
Yes, you do. An “excellent” credit score or even a “good” FICO credit score opens the door to approval for a mortgage, car loan, credit card, and personal loan. Not to mention, lenders use your credit score to determine your interest rates.
Credit monitoring is an excellent way to improve your credit score and financial health. By continually monitoring your credit, you can avoid obstacles that could stand in the way of you improving your credit score.
It pays to be vigilant, and credit report monitoring alert services do that for you.