It s important to check your credit report on a regular basis. It s especially important that you check it as you contemplate major purchases, such as a home, that could be affected by inaccuracies in your file. The terminology involved with credit bureaus is sometimes confusing. Credit grantors provide the bureaus with factual information on how you pay your bills and that is compiled into the file via computer. Your Credit Report is a confidential, written report on a consumer s payment habits provided to an individual or a company by a credit bureau.
Denials can result in the refusal to extend further credit.
If there are unauthorized inquiries, write to the credit bureau and to the company that made the inquiry informing them that you did not authorize the inquiry and to remove it from your credit file. It is important to read this entire section and make sure the information is complete and has been reported correctly. All open accounts remain on your file with payment history for an indefinite time. You can close accounts you no longer use by making a request in writing to the credit grantor. Please note that closed accounts will continue to appear on your credit report for up to 7 years from the date of the last activity.