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EXPLANATION OF CODES:
BLUE FONT: Original post.
RED FONT: Response to post.
GREEN FONT: Editorial comment.
POST CP-(**number**): Post identification number in this topic. Posts listed in reverse chronological order. Please refer to this post number, when replying to a post.
| The following entries, submitted by area constituents, are distributed by me in this blog as a public service to increase dialog about issues of importance to Blount and Sevier County residents. I do not necessarily agree with or endorse any statement made herein. Our form of government works best, when many, differing viewpoints are heard and considered. The process is often "messy." Read, think, and offer your opinions. Most importantly, though, make up your own mind.
State Senator Raymond Finney |
POST CP-1. CREDIT BUREAU ADVERTISEMENTS:
Received: September 10, 2007. Accepted: September 11, 2007.
Experian, Trans Union, Equifax are spending big bucks to run advertisement that basically say: "Pay us 9.95 dollars a
month or we might ruin your credit rating." They are obviously making big dollars from this little side business. It appears you have rubbed elbows with them lately. Please ask why this is not extortion.
Clay, Maryville
EDITOR'S COMMENT: I did have contact with the credit bureaus in 2007, as I sponsored and passed the Credit Security Act of 2007. This law, which will go into full effect by January 1, 2008, will be a major step toward permitting consumers to protect themselves against identity theft. Identity theft is one of the fastest growing crimes in America. Armed with basic information about any person, thieves can plunder bank accounts and cause the person to be "in debt" for items he or she never purchased. Such theft can eventually be rectified, but only after considerable effort. I hope this and future laws will offer consumers greater protection.
I have seen the credit bureaus' "teaser" television commercials, and I did not quite appreciate the same message you did. I thought they were advertising a "free" credit report. I must admit, though, that I find television commercials more annoying than informative, and I do not pay rapt attention to any commercial. I will listen very carefully to credit bureaus' comemrcials now.
If there is a direct or indirect demand for payment to avoid ruining a credit report, I would agree with you that this sounds illegal. If this should be the case, I will personally refer the advertisement(s) to prosecutorial or regulatory authorities for investigation.
Incidentally, people probably should avail themselves of what I understand is the free annual credit report to which they are entitled. I periodically check my report, and I have found errors. I have a "Junior" suffix to my name. I have a son by the same name, except his name bears a "III" suffix. He lived and worked in Georgia at one time. At least one credit bureau merged our credit reports, showing that I had lived in Valdosta, Georgia for a couple of years. When I truthfully claim that I have lived in Blount County since 1976 but their records show I lived in Georgia for part of this time, I received a doubtful report. It appeared that I was lying, when, in fact, the discrepancy in records was due to their faulty data gathering. With millions of consumers engaging in innumerable purchases and loan payments each year, you can understand that the potential for error in compiling reports is always present.
State Senator Raymond Finney, September 11, 2007