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Credit freeze is your action, your
preference to control the credit bureau in handling
your
credit report. Credit report is also known as security
freeze because by implementing it you put security on
your credit report against fraud and other kinds of
identity theft. Resulting to this, a credit freeze locks
your data until you give the credit bureau permission to
gain access. Once you have done a credit freeze, no one
can check your credit report, no one can verify your
credit history, no one can steal your personal and
private information, even creditors and lenders. In
addition, no one can add, delete, or alter information
from your credit report. Credit freeze then serve as a
precautionary safekeeping method on your credit report.
Yes, by looking at it first hand, you can say, “ah, this
is the best thing that I can do with
my credit report”.
Yes, it may be true for some reasons, because there are
really great advantages in putting a credit freeze on
your credit report, but like any other thing it has some
downsides and many factors to be considered.
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You as the client who has the option to
file a credit freeze on your credit report, must take
into consideration its cost, advantages and
disadvantages.
Take into consideration the cost in filing a credit
freeze. Whenever you file a credit freeze, there is a
fee that comes with it. In the United States of America,
fee on credit freeze usually is set at $10 per credit
bureau. So if there were 3 credit bureaus that handle
your credit report and wish to put credit freeze on them
all, you need to pay $10 each, total of $30. And in
addition if you wish to unfreeze your credit report, you
also need to pay the amount equivalent to putting freeze
on it. That is every time you do to freezing and
defrosting it. Pretty much high huh? Well, to those who
have been victims of credit identity theft, the fees for
filing credit freeze are waived. But they need to
provide proof that they have been victimized by identity
theft.
Consider also that lenders might not approve or issue
you a loan or credit since they do not have your report
so they do not have basis for approving your loan.
Another is that, a credit freeze may delay the credit
that has been on process.
The primary advantage in filing credit freeze is that
you will be free from any fraudulent actions since
identity thieves wont have their chances on getting any
details from you. If you can freeze your credit, you can
unfreeze it also!
Downsides of credit freeze, will most likely be when the
time you need your credit report. Of course, you can
unfreeze it anytime you want, but the inconvenience it
will bring you. Utmost inconvenience is the primary
disadvantage of freezing your credit. Almost all things
we do require a copy or details of credit report or
credit history. Even if you don’t need credit, or plan
to obtain loan by the time you file a credit freeze,
still you will need it for some other transactions You
will need your credit report in applying for other
essential things, like utility services, a new job,
business application, business registration and other
transactions that needs credit check. More so, it could
take up to 3 days before your credit reports get
unfrozen.
Filing a credit freeze really needs a careful
examination of transactions, future shortcomings and
needs, and if not detailed planning even a fairly
planned future transaction would be helpful to avoid
such inconveniences. |
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