23 Jan 2013 9 Comments
Free Credit Report from TransUnion
One of the items on my list of Financial Things to Do was to request my free credit reports from both Equifax and TransUnion. To request your credit report form Equifax, check out my post which includes the phone number and the information that the automated system requires from you. You can also send the request through the mail as well.
Although I have requested my report from Equifax for the past couple of years, I have never used TransUnion before. To be honest, I didn’t think it would really matter; they should both have the same information, right? Not always, apparently! So there is a chance that if I go apply for credit, they may use the report from TransUnion. If that is the case, I better make sure the information on there is accurate as well!
The steps for requesting your free credit report from TransUnion is pretty similar to Equifax. The only weird thing was that I was unable to get into the automated system with my phone, but it worked fine with boy’s phone, so don’t give up if you suddenly get cut off.
Phone number: 1 (800) 663 -9980.
They will ask you for your SIN, a current credit card number, your date of birth, your house number, as well as your phone number. Once you pass the initial questions, they will also ask you questions like what type of credit card you have, what is your age range, and what company you made your most recent credit request from. Once you pass all of that, they will confirm your address, and it will let you know that it will take 3-5 business days for you to receive your report in the mail. The process itself only takes about 5-7 minutes, (yes, boy was too lazy to do this because it was such a hassle, but I set him straight!) so just get it over with!
You can also make the request by mail or you can drop by in-person at one of their locations.
I personally don’t pay for my credit score, but will consider doing so if I plan on getting a mortgage or a business loan.
Readers, how often do you check your credit reports? Have you found conflicting information between the two companies?
Thanks for reading!
Jan 23, 2013 @ 13:53:58
I did a post on this in 2012 as I think that everyone should at the least check their credit history every year. It’s free, why not. Yes you won’t get the actual score but you can see what activity has been going on and correct it if there is a problem. It’s a smart thing to do! Cheers
Jan 23, 2013 @ 13:54:50
I agree! Do you get a report from both of the companies or just one of them? Have you ever found any errors on yours?
Mr.CBB’s Personal Finance Weekly Reading List #4 Rob Ford In From The Cold, The Sandwich Generation « Canadian Budget Binder
Jan 25, 2013 @ 11:18:51
[...] Vix Money- Get Your Free Credit Report from TransUnion [...]
Jan 25, 2013 @ 11:42:08
Great post Vicky! Most people don’t realize that your credit reports from Equifax and TransUnion can be different since each lender can choose which firm to use. Since getting your annual report is free, there really isn’t any downside either so why not check out both.
Jan 25, 2013 @ 11:43:50
Thanks Jeremy. It will be interesting to see whether or not the reports are the same or not!
Thanks for dropping by!
End of January 2013 Favorite Blog Posts | Modest Money
Jan 26, 2013 @ 07:01:25
[...] Free Credit Report from TransUnion on Vix Money [...]
Jan 28, 2013 @ 17:02:52
Hi Vicky.
Great Topic. I will be doing post on this shortly on my credit blog. Typically speaking, and not all the time, clients that get credit granted and live in the eastern part of Canada will report to transunion as the primary but clients that get credit granted while living in Western part of Canada will report primary to Equifax. This does not alays apply. I have found from my findings that AMEX for instance will report to Transunion as a primary but gets filtered through to Equifax. I will go into more on a blog but these 2 bureaus will certainly be different. I have never seen both the same for 1 person yet after 8 years.
Heres a link to my post
http://credittalk.wordpress.sdiv.net/?p=127
-M
Jan 28, 2013 @ 20:51:30
Great Post Vicky.
I have put up a post on my blog about this topic.
http://credittalk.wordpress.sdiv.net/?p=147
In regards to your questions. I have personally signed up for both CRA’s update services. This will allow any changes to my bureaus to be emailed to my cell phone. This will also allow me too see if any ID Theft has taken place. Transunion will give me an update weekly. For Equifax I have chosen to use Credit Watch and can get an update Bureau as much as I like by logging into my Equifax account online. I believe that for the money it costs me to watch my credit, it would cost me alot more to not see fraud, a mistake, or a mis-report.
Great Topic once Again.
-Mark
Jan 29, 2013 @ 09:53:06
Thanks for the clarification Mark; its interesting to learn that your location on Canada affects which bureau companies may use! Definitely anxious to see what the two reports look like.