An article written by the Insurance Journal early last year stated that 1 in 20 credit reports had errors in it. That’s right…your credit report may contain some errors!

What does this mean? Well, if you don’t regularly monitor your credit report, having one or more errors in it may mean that you are paying more than you need to in some of the bigger purchases you make.

Errors in reports can mean:

• Higher interest rates
• Higher premiums for insurance
• Lower credit scores
• False information on your report
• Denial of loans or finance-purchases

So how do you know if there are errors on your credit reports?

1. Keep Track of your score. Sign up to receive your score once a month so you can keep track of its fluctuation and to see all the listed items that affect it. This will help you keep track of what is hitting your score and why.
2. Hire a credit investigator. If you have some things that you are not sure about on your score, look into hiring a credit investigator. These companies will not only research the items affecting your score, but may also get some of them removed. They will also make sure to keep everything on your credit score up-to-date and accurate.
3. Research. Read some the information out there about credit scores and how some of the major things in your life could/should affect it. If you had a late payment, for instance, listed on your score, that could be hurting your credit score and may even turn out to be able to be removed from it completely.

The main thing about credit scores is they have to be kept up with. Checking your score regularly will not only help you to catch anything that may be inaccurate , but will also help you to know what your financing capabilities you have at any given time. This can help you budget your money and plan for major purchases more effectively and keep your score where ti should be.

Did you know your credit score can help lower your insurance premium in some cases? There are other factors that can affect the insurance you get and the coverage you have. To find out what these are or to get a quote on a policy, give Debbie a call at Southern Colorado Insurance Center at (719) 329-4441 or email her at youarefirst [at] scicteam [dot] com.