3 Major Credit Bureaus

3 Major Credit Bureaus Related Information:

The 3 major credit bureaus that allow you to view your credit report and score are Equifax, TransUnion, and Experian. Each company has its own credit history on consumers and offers a variety of services. Generally, they collect as much information as they can from consumer financial institutions and they then sell this information to anyone who has a legally recognized reason.

They offer such information as personal income, current or previous address, number of credit cards or other accounts and a credit score based upon statistical data comparing a number of consumers. Lenders can look at this information when considering you for credit and decide whether you are creditworthy or not. That is, whether they think you will repay your debt.

Equifax has been offering services to consumers and businesses for 106 years and first started in 1899. They offer services to both consumers applying for credit and businesses who wish to check the credit of applicants.

Experian has 30 years of experience in the industry and 30000 clients in North America alone. They maintain credit information on 215 million US consumers and 15 million US businesses.

TransUnion was started in 1968 and grew over the next 30 years to recognize the potential of the consumer credit market. They have more than 3600 employees and are on 5 different continents and in 24 different countries.

It is very important that you report suspected credit fraud to either of these bureaus if you see a problem. Identity theft is a common problem these days and your credit score is important if you want to borrow from a lender.

You can purchase your credit report online from any of these 3 major credit bureaus and they also offer a unique 3 in 1 option. That report includes your credit report from all 3 of these companies and not just one.