Identity Theft: Don't Become A Victim!

Moments after stepping out of the taxi, Rachel plunged through the entranceway of the hotel lobby eager to put behind what had been a terribly exhausting day. Flight delays due to weather had caused her LAX-MDW-BWI trip to take nearly eleven hours to complete. All she could think of was taking off her shoes to relieve her aching feet and dipping them into soothing, warm bath water. The line at the front desk was mercifully short. One clerk caught Rachel's attention and signaled her forward — she gave him her reservation information and then dug out her American Express card for payment. As he stepped away to verify its authenticity Rachel's eyes surveyed the lobby. "They've updated everything since I was last here", she thought. Her concentration, clouded by fatigue, was now on the mission style tables, chairs, and light fixtures, which had replaced the heavy, wooden furniture previously occupying the lobby. "Here is your card and room key, ma'am," the clerk interrupted minutes later. Quickly, Rachel stuffed her card back into her wallet, gathered her bags and whisked away to her room. Rachel was a victim of identity theft that night, but did not know it at the time. Had she kept a watchful eye on what her clerk was doing instead of studying the lobby, she might have noticed him switching cards on her. At the very least, she would have seen that the card handed to her beneath her room key was not her own. Identity theft is an exploding problem that has increased exponentially in this technological age. Particularly since the early 1990s thieves have been taking advantage of what we would consider every day transactions: writing a check at the grocery store, ordering merchandise via the internet, applying for a credit card, using your cell phone, and more. Each transaction requires you to share personal information: your bank and credit card account numbers; your income, your Social Security Number (SSN); and your name, address, and phone numbers. An identity thief will lift some piece of your personal information and appropriate it without your knowledge to commit fraud or theft. One of the most common methods is when the identity thief uses your personal information to open a credit card account in your name. The Federal Trade Commission is the arm of the federal government tasked with overseeing the problem of identity theft. A special hotline number (1-877-IDTHEFT) was created for consumers to call to place your information in a database which is accessible with other law enforcement agencies and private entities, including any companies about which you may complain. Additionally, an ID Theft Affidavit — a form you can use to alert companies where a new account was opened in your name — can be filled out and given to the company. This affidavit is available online to consumers. Identity thieves can get your personal information in a number of ways: * They steal wallets and purse containing your i.d. and credit and bank cards. * They steal your mail, including your bank and credit card statements, pre-approved credit offers, telephone calling cards and tax information. * They complete a "change of address form" to divert your mail to another location. * They rummage through your trash, or the trash of businesses, for personal data in a practice known as "dumpster diving." * They fraudulently obtain your credit report by posing as a landlord, employer or someone else who may have a legitimate need for — and a legal right to — the information. * They get your business or personnel records at work. * They find personal information in your home. * They use personal information you share on the internet. * They buy your personal information from "inside" sources. For example, an identity thief may pay a store employee for information about you that appears on an application for goods, services or credit. Identity thieves will then take the personal information they have obtained about you and use it in a number of different ways: * They will call your credit card issuer and, pretending to be you, ask to change the mailing address on your credit card account. The imposter then runs up charges on your account. Because your bills are being sent to the new address, it may take some time before you realize that there is a problem. * They open a new credit card account, using your name, date of birth and SSN. When they sue the credit card and don't pay the bills, the delinquent account is reported on your credit report. * They establish phone or wireless service in your name. * They open a bank account in your name and write bad checks on that account. * They file for bankruptcy under your name to avoid paying debts they have incurred under your name, or to avoid eviction. * They counterfeit checks or debits cards, and drain your bank account. * They buy cars by taking out auto loans in your name. Fortunately for Rachel, American Express covered her losses. Although she didn't find out about the theft until she reached her home in California, American Express suspended her account when a number of suspicious charges appeared and she couldn’t be reached by them to verify the charges. Their fraud department left a message on her phone answering machine instructing her to call them and, when she did, Rachel was notified that someone else was using her card. When she explained that she had the card in her possession, she checked her purse and found a card for someone else instead. Visa, MasterCard and American Express absorb the cost of fraud as long as they are notified by the consumer [certain restrictions may apply — check with your card issuer for specific details]. Had Rachel used a debit card, the story might have been much different. Unlike a credit card, the debit card takes a direct hit on your bank account, meaning that you will have to absorb the loss. So, all is well with Rachel, right? Sure, American Express overnighted a new card with a new account number for Rachel to use on her next trip, but the problem could very well have continued — and deepened — had she not taken three more steps recommended by the Federal Trade Commission: First, contact the fraud departments of each of the three major credit bureaus. Tell them that you are a victim of identity theft. Request that a "fraud alert" be placed in your file, as well as a victim's statement asking that creditors call you before opening any new accounts or changing your existing accounts. This can help prevent an identity thief from opening additional accounts in your name. At the same time, order copies of your credit reports from the credit bureaus. Credit bureaus must give you a free copy of your report if your report is inaccurate because of fraud, and you make that request in writing. Review your reports carefully to make sure no additional fraudulent accounts have been opened in your name or unauthorized changes made to your existing accounts. Second, contact the creditors for any accounts that have been tampered with or opened fraudulently. Creditors can include credit card companies, phone companies and other utilities, and banks and other lenders. Third, if possible, file a report with your local police or the police in the community where the identity theft took place. Get a copy of the police report in case the bank, credit card company or others need proof of the crime. Even if the police are unable to catch the thief, the report can be helpful when dealing with creditors. In summation, identity theft is a problem that is causing businesses and consumers billions of dollars per year. As a result, higher interest rates and an increase in the cost of goods and services is passed on to consumers. So, do not be a victim — protect yourself from identity theft by remaining alert especially when a third party is handling your personal information.

www.TheCreditAgency.co.uk: Online Credit Report

WHY CHECK YOUR CREDIT REPORT? If anything in your report is out of date or gives a misleading picture of your willingness or ability to repay a loan, mortgage or credit card, it can affect your chances of getting the best deals. It can even lead to outright rejection by lenders. For example, you may have separated from a partner who has since run up debts but, because you have still got a joint account, his or her payment behaviour could be affecting you. You won't see their credit data on your report but you will find a note of any financial association. Or you may have shopped around for the best offer, without realising your enquiries have been registered as multiple applications. These should show as quotation searches. If they are down as applications, lenders could think you are desperate for money, have over-extended yourself or even that a fraud is being planned. You could even discover applications and credit accounts in your name that you did not ask for. In that case, your identity may have been used fraudulently. A range of behaviours can have an effect on your credit file. Issues such as late payments or missed payments, applying for a number of credit facilities (loans, credit cards etc.) in a short space of time, moving address regularly, or not appearing on the electoral roll will have a NEGATIVE effect on your credit file. On the other hand, if you stick to managing your existing credit facilities well, you register on the electoral roll and stay at the same address for a period of time, then you will POSITIVELY effect your credit report. With a better credit record, you will be able to access cheaper sources of finance (lower APR's on loans) and will be able to obtain credit from a greater number of resources (prime lenders favour good credit scores). With access to credit becoming increasingly more difficult to many people, managing a clean credit file is increasingly beneficial. Two categories of people are going to be really affected by their credit reports following the impact of the credit crunch. 1) Home Owners: Anyone with a variable rate mortgage will have already seen interest rates rise, thus pushing up the sum of their monthly repayment. Those on a fixed rate mortgage will have thus far been untouched. However, it is the fixed rate mortgage holders that need to be most careful about managing their credit score. When their mortgage comes to an end, they are going to need to find another mortgage deal. Whatever mortgage they go for, fixed rate mortgage holders are going to find that their monthly repayments will have vastly increased. Therefore, the only way to minimise the effect of the credit crunch is to increase your appeal to lenders by enhancing your credit score. This will help widen the number of lenders happy to offer mortgage facilities, whilst also lowering the APR's on offer to you. 2) Sub Prime & Near Prime Borrowers: Anyone that has had to borrow money with high APR's (typically in excess of 35%) is now going to find funding sources more difficult to access, as many lenders have moved out of the sub prime lending market. Interest rates in the sub prime and near prime lending market have also increased. This can have a particularly harsh impact on borrowers - especially those with low incomes, as individuals may struggle to keep up with repayments. If you fall into the sub-prime category, you'll need to keep an even closer eye on your credit report so as to ensure that you can still get access to credit (some lenders are already pulling credit facilities away from non-prime borrowers). By accessing your credit file online, you'll be able to see that every aspect of your credit report is in order, thus ensuring that you can still gain access to credit. The easiest way to check your credit report is to get your credit report online. By visiting www.TheCreditAgency.co.uk you will be able to discover which credit report is best for you and then gain Free access to it, along with identity insurance and credit monitoring facilities. Use any of the web address details provided and enter them into your web browser to access your credit report.

Buying a Car and Saving Money

Aside from their home, most Americans will spend more money on their car than on anything else they will buy. And yet, when it comes time to buy that car, most people spend far more time researching the engine, the stereo and the moon roof than they will the finances of the purchase. By failing to do a little homework on the finances, many people end up spending more money for their car, truck or van than they otherwise might.

A little bit of work ahead of time can help you save quite a bit of money on your car purchase. Here are some tips that might help:

Check your credit report - A few months before you decide to buy you should check your credit report for errors. Mistakes on your report could adversely affect your credit score, which will prevent you from obtaining financing at the lowest possible interest rate. While you are checking your credit report, check your credit score, too. That way you can avoid an occasional scam where the salesman tries to trick you into paying a higher rate by falsely claiming that your credit score is too low. You can't fall for that one if you know your score.

Arrange your financing in advance - While you can sometimes get competitive financing from the dealer, you may do better at your bank, credit union, or online lender. Check with those sources ahead of time to find the best possible deal.

Watch for factory incentives - Sometimes, the manufacturer will offer inexpensive financing. In the past, such deals have gone as low as 0%. If such a deal is available, no bank or credit union will be able to match it, so keep an eye out for such incentives. Cash back bonuses are often available from the manufacturer, too, and those can be applied to your down payment.

Check the pricing - A number of Websites, such as Edmunds.com, offer information on pricing. With that information, you can negotiate the best possible deal.

Ponder the extras - Undercoat? Extended warranty? These are things you may wish to consider before the salesman asks you if you want to buy them. Whether you do or not is your own choice, but you don't want to get caught with the extra expenses if these are things you do not need.

Buying a car need not be a complicated procedure, but it works best if you know ahead of time how you intend to go about it. The better your preparation, the less harrowing your experience of buying a new car will be.

Structured Settlements - Should You Sell Yours?

In recent years, it has become more common for victims of accidental injury who accept a settlement from the at-fault party to accept a structured settlement instead of a lump-sum payment. With a structured settlement, the injured party receives payments over an agreed-upon length of time - five years, ten years, or even a lifetime, rather than receiving payment up front in a lump sum. There are advantages to this for both parties. The injured party may require constant medical care, and the regular payments of a structured settlement guarantee that income will be available to cover the medical expenses. For the paying party, the settlement can be paid by purchasing an annuity, which allows an upfront payment to accrue interest, thereby producing a larger long-term yield from a minimal investment. In many cases, a structured settlement is viewed as a win-win situation for both parties. There are restrictions on structured settlements that may not suit everyone. Once you agree to accept a structured settlement, you cannot trade it back in for a lump sum payment, nor may you use it for collateral for a loan. What if you want to buy a home and pay cash? What if some other unexpected expense comes up and you simply do not have the cash available? Under certain circumstances, you may be able to sell your structured settlement to a third party. There are companies that are interested in purchasing structured settlements for investment purposes. Perhaps one or more of these companies has already contacted you. They will agree to pay you a lump sum, in cash, in exchange for you signing over your future annuity payments to them. Be aware that any party that offers to buy your annuity is interested in doing so for investment purposes. They wish to make money on the transaction, and for them, that profit will be spread over the long time that it takes to receive all of the payments that constitute the settlement. Once you combine the factors of time, interest, inflation, and the buying party's profit, you will find that the offer made to you will seem quite small. The amount you receive will be an amount equal to the present day value of the settlement, minus whatever sum the investors require for their profit on the transaction. You should also know that some states prohibit the sale of structured settlements, that some insurance companies who handle the annuities prohibit sales to a third party, and that you will probably need to go to court to arrange the sale. In addition, there may be tax considerations involved in the sale, and the taxes due on large sums of money are not insignificant. If you are interested in selling your structured settlement, you will definitely want to discuss the sale with an attorney and a tax advisor beforehand. While structured settlements are designed to benefit those who receive them, there are times when it may be desirable or necessary to sell them. If you are considering selling your settlement, make sure that you weigh all of your options carefully. Once you agree to sell, you cannot get it back.