Why Do You Need to Question Your Credit Score?

By Joseph Ducat

I shouldn’t have to tell you how important it is to have a good credit score. A good score will make it easier for you to get loans approved, and give you privileged access to lower interest rates. And knowing how important a good credit score is, you should also be ready to question the score you get if you want to maintain a top-notch financial reputation.

In today’s information age, the problem of identity theft has become terribly prevalent, and makes it essential to develop a standard practice of questioning your credit score. In doing so, you are embarking on one of the first major steps to ensuring your credit identity is protected.

If you have paid for products and services on the Internet using a credit card, or have had a credit card stolen or lost, you should definitely make it a rule to question your credit score at least once in a year. But even if you believe your credit card information has never been compromised in any way, you should still question your score, simply on principle.

All right then, but how do you actually go about questioning your credit score? First of all, you need a copy of your credit report, which you can get in a number of ways. If you have recently applied for a loan and were denied for whatever reason, then the law states that you should receive a letter explaining why you were denied credit along with instructions on how to view your credit report. So you really shouldn’t throw away that denial letter, as it has useful information about how you can get access to your credit score. Read the letter carefully and follow its instructions. You will eventually gain access to your credit report and learn what has been said about you by various creditors.

Another way to get your credit report is through one of the three major US credit reporting agencies: Experian, Transunion, or Equifax.

Once you get to read your credit report, you may notice that it shows some odd transactions that you are certain you never made. These errors or anomalies can have a very bad effect on your credit score. They may even be indications that you have been a victim of identity theft, and someone has been using your credit identity to make illicit purchases that are billed to you.

To fix such errors and false billings, you have to file a dispute claim with the credit reporting agencies. If you are required to, you must get in touch with the creditor who reported the disputed billing and let them know that fraud is suspected.

Be vigilant about monitoring your credit report for wrong billings and you will quickly put an end to attempts to defraud you and steal your identity.

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