A few years ago, opening a bank account meant several trips to the bank branch and even more formalities to be completed. Visiting a nearby branch and waiting until your account could make most of us procrastinate the much-needed task. Opening a bank account is necessary and there is no way you can get away from it. But the good is that you can now open a bank account online. Well, yes. With the development in technology, several banks have begun to offer this facility.
If you wish to open a bank account online, you can do so with much ease. However, there are few challenges that people may face sometimes. Here are some reasons when you will be left with no option but have to visit the bank:
Age factor – When you try to open a bank account online, you will have to fill in details about your age. Individual who are under the legal age of 18 may not be able to go ahead with the procedure. The reason behind this is that any person who is under 18 can not open an independent bank account. One will have to start a joint account with a guardian. The guarding does not have particularly be a parent and be any adult. This procedure will require you to visit the branch of the bank.
Citizen of the country – If you are a citizen of the United States, you be able to easily open a bank account online. But this does not mean that non-Americans can not. An individual who is not a citizen may have to produce the certain document and undergo verification before the procedure is completed. For this reason, a trip to the bank will be necessary.
Unclear account history – The bank will check your past history before letting you open a bank account online. If you have an unclear history or have a past record of checks getting bounced, you request of opening a new account may not be accepted. The system will report an error and you will have no choice but to visit the bank’s nearest branch to sort out the issue.
Entity accounts – If you are opening a personal account online, there should be no hitch in the process. However, if you have to open an account for a business or specific organization that is a high chance that you have to go to the bank’s branch to carry out certain types of verifications and personally get in contact with the banking professionals.
There are companies that work on collecting and maintaining credit information of consumers. These are known as credit reporting agencies (CRAs). There are three such major CRAs in the country, namely Equifax, Experian, and TransUnion. Apart from these, there are other smaller-scale agencies too that specialize at the job. If you’re worried about “where to get my credit score?,” the larger CRAs are the most reliable bets.
These major CRAs obtain information from companies that you hold business and transactions with. People or companies that lend you money regularly report to these CRAs on your repaying status. There is also detailed information on the amount you are indebted and whether you have ever defaulted on your payments. Aside from the reports obtained from lenders, these companies also tally your general records based on certain other aspects. Some of these aspects are your public records from the local and state judiciary. These include your tax records and bankruptcy information. This information makes up an important chunk of your credit score and its report.
Equifax
Present in 24 countries, Equifax is an agency that offers consumers protection against identity theft and credit fraudulence. They also sell credit reports and credit monitoring assistance to businesses.
Experian
Experian started off in London and is now a trusted agency in 39 different countries. It provides you with a credit score, credit report, and even credit tracker on subscription. The agency uses FICO 8 system of credit score calculation. Experian was a part of Forbes’ “World’s Most Innovative Companies” in 2018.
TransUnion
Based across 30 countries with a database of over 1 billion consumers, TransUnion is another CRA giant. The agency, like the other ones, will provide you with your credit score and your credit reports. In case you decide to freeze your TransUnion credit report, it will also go the extra mile to notify Equifax and Experian, which frankly is a big help especially in case of identity theft and credit fraud.
So, the next time you are sat wondering “where to get my credit score?,” think of these three giants that provide you with an annual credit score and credit report for free once each year. However, if you are looking for more frequent updates, you can subscribe to their services and receive your monthly updates.
Did you know that you have more than a single credit score? Agencies calculate your credit score based on the data in your credit reports. If you are wondering, “where to get my credit score?,” there are three main credit reporting agencies. These can have different credit scores for you if your information on each of their credit reports is different. Also, these agencies charge a fee to reveal your credit score.
Recently, it has become easier to track and get hold of your credit score without paying any fees. You can get it from your credit card company, your loan provider, and even from a non-profit counselor. Here are a few tips you can use to check your score.