Feb
History And Information About Equifax Credit Reporting Agency
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Equifax was formed in 1899 and is the oldest of all three credit reporting agencies. They handle over four million consumer credit reports and are located in Atlanta, Georgia. The credit agency has offices in fourteen countries including the UK. Starting out as Retail Credit Company, the agency became the largest credit reporting agency in the United States and Canada. |
At one time, Equifax was criticized for taking inaccurate information, collecting rumored information instead of facts and untrue statistics. Some of this information included political activities, sex life, school history and marital troubles. When the company began computerizing their records, the United States Congress started proceedings for the Fair US Credit Reporting Act. This allowed consumers to see their information and request corrections and eliminate inaccurate reporting as well as information that had nothing to do with their credit history. The company has since received fines for violating the Fair Credit Reporting Act. All three credit reporting agencies were fined over two million dollars for delaying or blocking consumers calls, requesting information about their credit history and other information. This happen as recently as the year 2000. Equifax informational services include collection management, risk management, fraud and identity management as well as marketing services. The key markets they work with are retail, insurance, healthcare, financial services, communications, collections and automotive industries. Equifax offers consumers credit monitoring and identity protection from theft, comprehensive direct marketing, marketing analytics as well as offline and online credit management solutions. Equifax provides six sections on your credit report. They have personal information, consumer statement, account histories, public records, inquires and creditor contracts. These sections are what you need to monitor yearly to make sure all the information is correct. Some facts about Equifax credit reporting agency are: In 2003, the agency was fined two hundred and fifty thousand dollars by the FTC. Consumers can dispute their credit reports via telephone, mail or online at the TransUnion website. Georgia Technology Fast 50 awarded Equifax the Phenomenal Revenue Growth award. Tata Capital, CRISIL and Equifax have the intent to establish a credit information center in India. Equifax had one and a half billion dollar operating revenue in 1994. Operating income for Equifax was two hundred and fourteen million dollars in 1994. The assets for Equifax are estimated at over one billion dollars. Equifax has databases for consumer credit, check services, CLUE, additional driver discovery, medical credential verification service, physician profiling, motor vehicle records and computerized patient record is soon to be added. Related links: |
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