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While many consumers haven't had any problem getting their reports, others say they've
been hit with sales pitches for products and services from the credit bureaus or
were diverted to imposter sites. The FTC said the company led consumers to its www.freecredit
report.com and www.consumer info.com Web sites. Radio, TV, e-
The FTC
said consumers "were assured that: 'Your card will not be charged during the free
trial period. However, valid credit card information is required to establish your
account.' "
What the Web sites didn't adequately disclose is that consumers would
be charged the $79.95 annual fee if they didn't cancel within 30 days, the FTC said.
"ConsumerInfo billed the credit cards that it had told consumers were 'required only
to establish your account,' and, in some cases, automatically renewed memberships
by rebilling consumers without notice," the agency said.
As part of the settlement,
the FTC required ConsumerInfo.com, an Experian company, to "give up $950,000 in ill-
Experian also has agreed to provide refunds to consumers who purchased credit-
"It's unfair and deceptive to promise consumers something for free and then trick
them into paying for products they didn't want in the first place," said Lydia Parnes,
director of the FTC's Bureau of Consumer Protection.
"It wasn't an attempt to mislead
at all," said Peg Smith, an Experian executive vice president. "We absolutely deny
any wrongdoing." She does acknowledge that consumers may have been confused.
"To
the effect that our product offering has caused that confusion, we certainly regret
that," Ms. Smith said. "We encourage consumers to read the language in any disclosure
on any Web site, including our own."
The FTC also requires ConsumerInfo.com to state
clearly that its free credit report offer isn't related to the federal program."
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The reality is that no one credit report or combination of three credit reports by and of themselves is sufficient to educate oneself about where you stand as a consumer in the eyes of a lender. Imagine a high speed race boat zooming across a lake at top speed without a steering wheel. Where it is going is a complete mystery but one thing is for sure, it will crash and crash quickly unless you get control. That's right, you. Because without your credit scores and the knowledge about what they mean, how they were calculated or how a lender views them, you are headed for a crash.
The Truth About "Free" Credit Reports USA only ctd.