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View Full Version : Deceptive FreeCreditReport.com Ads To Be Curbed



bobbyw24
03-01-2010, 01:02 PM
But not till September

http://images.huffingtonpost.com/gen/67310/thumbs/s-FREECREDITREPORT-large.jpg


Among the merciful provisions of the landmark credit card reform signed into law last year is the requirement that purveyors of phony "free" credit reports put the following admission in all of their ads: "This is not the free credit report provided for by Federal law."

While credit card companies have had nine months -- from May 2009 until February 22 -- to come up with a business model less reliant on abusing customers, Experian, the credit reporting company behind FreeCreditReport.com, will have until September before it has to inject even an iota of honesty into its ubiquitous TV spots.

The ads, in case you somehow haven't seen them, say you can get a free credit report if you go to FreeCreditReport.com. You can, but only if you enroll in a $14.95-a-month credit-monitoring service and then cancel it within a week. The site for truly free credit reports is www.AnnualCreditReport.com.

The Federal Trade Commission has won more than $1 million in settlements over the years from Experian for its deceptive advertising. In February, a Wisconsin woman hit the company with a class-action lawsuit.

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2010/03/01/freecreditreportcom-comme_n_480724.html
robertwerden
03-01-2010, 01:12 PM
The only thing I want to see is my fico number. Is there a free fico number service?
tmosley
03-01-2010, 01:14 PM
They have the catchiest jingles ever written. Those guys need to cut an album.

But yeah, the commercials are very deceptive, even fraudulent. The name itself is fraudulent, as there is no way of actually getting a credit report for free there.
bobbyw24
03-01-2010, 01:19 PM
The only thing I want to see is my fico number. Is there a free fico number service?

The closest thing I know to free credit score is:

http://www.creditkarma.com/

Not FICO but kinda close
driege
03-01-2010, 01:59 PM
The closest thing I know to free credit score is:

http://www.creditkarma.com/

Not FICO but kinda close


Not true. http://www.myfico.com/ is the ONLY website on the Internet where you can your real FICO scores. You can get 2 free scores if you sign up for their 30 day free trial. It's a great website with a really good support forum for questions about credit and credit reporting.
bobbyw24
03-01-2010, 02:02 PM
Not true. http://www.myfico.com/ is the ONLY website on the Internet where you can your real FICO scores. You can get 2 free scores if you sign up for their 30 day free trial. It's a great website with a really good support forum for questions about credit and credit reporting.

That's as free as FreeCreditReport.com
Jordan
03-01-2010, 02:27 PM
http://www.AnnualCreditReport.com

That website is the ONLY place you can get a free credit report from the 3 bureaus without any costs/free trials/other bullshit.

The site is maintained by the US government and by LAW the 3 majors have to give you a free copy of your credit report once per year.
Jeez
03-01-2010, 02:51 PM
They have the catchiest jingles ever written. Those guys need to cut an album.

But yeah, the commercials are very deceptive, even fraudulent. The name itself is fraudulent, as there is no way of actually getting a credit report for free there.

But thats capitalism, whats wrong with that?