credit report - Help - I've Lost My Credit Card

Theft and loss are what we all have to contend with. It can happen anywhere, anytime. Wallets and purses are the easiest to pick and walk away. Most people carry everything in a wallet, all identification, cash, cards, etc. To tackle the problem of loss or theft of credit cards, most companies have a credit card policy in place. Get some information on this and a theft shouldn't be too stressful. The first thing to do is to report the theft to the company as soon as possible. A toll free number is always available for reporting loss. You can also report the loss online. Federal laws state that you are liable only for the first fifty dollars on fraudulent charges made. Report the loss fast and that gets waived as well. However, it would make sense to check as some companies are not offering this right now. Once the card is lost or stolen ensure that you are aware of all the charges run up on the card. The ones which are not yours should be reported immediately. Keep a record of the date of the complaint and send a copy of the report to the billing errors address too. Don't include your payment in the same letter. On a debit card the rules are a bit different. Report the loss immediately and the consequent use will be paid by the issuing authority but wait a bit and you end up paying five hundred dollars of any fraudulent charges incurred on the card. The liability can be absolved by reporting the loss, reviewing your bills, checking up on transactions you know are not yours and informing the bank as well, following up with a certified letter about the loss. You should protect yourself against theft by keeping the pin numbers recorded in some place safe so in case of loss you have the number to give the card company who can then hot list it. Use unique pin numbers and not obvious ones like your birthday or phone number. These are just a few points to note but they will go a long way in helping you out of a tricky situation. To find out more about Student Credit Cards and Secure Credit Cards visit http://www.yes-credit-cards.com Article Source:http://EzineArticles.com/?expert=Jill_Kane credit report - Fix It Yourself Credit Credit problems are being faced by many Americans today not because they do not want to pay but because of the economy. A lot of job cuts, lay-offs and business's closing has caused a lot of people to not pay on time and in some cases not be able to pay for six months to a year. That can totally wreck your credit report and cause a lot of anxiety. A lot of you might have already checked out different credit repair company's and found out that they can be very expensive at best and no guarantee's that you will be better off. Fix it yourself credit is the best option without much of an expensive or hassle. There is a law called the FCRA (Fair Credit Reporting Act) which was recently revised into the Fair and Accurate Credit Transaction Act (FACT ACT), and the FDCPA (Fair Debts Collection Practices Act). The government set up these two new laws in order to help you protect your credit rights. Fix it yourself credit is now very possible and easier for you to do. First of all the two laws help protect your credit rights. These two laws hold your creditors and credit bureaus responsible legally responsible for any false or misinformation. That now opens up for you a whole new take on fixing your own credit. There are certain rules that you must understand before you go into the fix it yourself credit mode and we will try to convey to you some of the things that you should be aware. First please do not deny or make a false statement about your credit responsibilities. You can be gotten for fraud and prosecuted farther if you use the mail you can also be gotten for misinformation via mail. Make sure what you are stating is accurate and true to the best of your ability. I always suggest that you have proof to back it up like receipts, statements etc. Next when you do send a letter of dispute do not put original receipts with your letters. We suggest that you make copies of all your receipts to send along while you keep the originals. Now you might be thinking, well some of the information is accurate because of my circumstances when I was laid off etc. Is their any use in even trying to fix my credit report? Yes there is because without good credit it makes it hard or even impossible to get a car or buy a home. Fix it yourself credit is a good way for you to go because you can start working on your credit problems right now and take the time you need to get your report cleaned up. How can you handle accurate derogatory information in your credit report well some times it takes time. Certain things that are derogatory stay in your report for seven years. There are certain exceptions: ? Bankruptcy information may be reported for 10 years. ? Credit information reported in response to an application for a job with more than $75,000 has no time limit. ? Information about criminal convictions has no time limit. ? Credit information reported because of an application for more that 150,000 of credit or life insurance have no time limit. ? Default information concerning U.S. Government insured or guaranteed loans can be reported for seven years after certain guarantor actions. ? Information about a lawsuit or an unpaid judgment against you can be seven years or until the statute of limitations runs out. The next step might be that you do not have enough reported credit that is good credit and need to have your credit file brought up to date. Fix it yourself credit can require you to work on the good credit you have already. It stands to reason that almost all department stores, all-purpose bank credit card accounts will be included in your file. The one's that you need to look for are entertainment card companies, local retailers, and credit unions who normally don't bother to make a report especially if your credit is good with them. Their reports can help you to show that you are a good credit risk. You can have the CRAs add them to your file if they are verifiable accounts for a fee. Just remember if these companies do file periodically then your file still will not be kept up to date. It is worth the effort to help clean up your file and maintain a good credit score.