Day 3: Check Your Credit Reports
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Written by
Senior Writer & Content Strategist 
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Managing Editor Welcome to the 7-Day Financial Reset, a weeklong challenge designed to help you start the new year off strong. We’ll guide you through one practical money task each day, so you can build habits that make your finances work better for you.
When was the last time you took a good, hard look at your credit reports? It’s important to check your records periodically because inaccuracies happen.
In fact, the most common complaints in the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau’s complaint database are about incorrect information on credit reports.
Errors on credit reports can harm your credit score, and may be a sign of identity theft.
Even if all of the information in your reports is correct, reviewing it is still worthwhile. Your credit reports include account details such as balances, credit limits and payment history, which can help you stay on top of debt repayment and monitor credit progress.
If you plan to apply for a new credit card or loan this year, it’s good to know what lenders will see.
Ready to check your reports? Let’s get started.
- Pull free copies of your credit reports. You can use AnnualCreditReport.com to request free credit reports from the three major credit bureaus — Equifax, Experian and TransUnion — online. You’ll need to provide some personal information for verification.
This option is the fastest, but you can also request reports by mail. NerdWallet offers a free weekly TransUnion credit report online. - Read the details carefully. Check the names, dates, addresses, accounts, balances and inquiries in each report. Review any negative information, such as collections or bankruptcies, too.
- Dispute anything that looks off. Don’t see anything wrong? Great! But if you do, make sure to dispute the errors with the relevant bureau or bureaus.
Checking your credit reports won’t affect your credit scores, but it could help you protect them.
Come back tomorrow for your next 7-Day Financial Reset challenge.
» Need to back up a bit? Day 2: Set up sinking funds
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