The Fair Credit Reporting Act (FCRA) requires each of the Nationwide Consumer Reporting organizations (Equifax, TransUnion and Experian) to provide you with one free credit report every 12 months per your request. This means that you are entitled to three free credit reports per year, if you deem it necessary. You can stagger the requests or order all of them at the same time.

Each of the National Consumer Credit Reporting bureaus have a unique credit report format, but in essence they provide you with the same information. When you receive your free TransUnion credit report use the following guidelines to read your report:

Personal Information

This section will detail your personal information: Name, Social Security Number (SSN), phone number, current address, current employer, date hired and position. Your SSN will be masked to protect against identity theft. The file will also indicate how long you have been in the TransUnion database.

Account Information

This is a legend to help you understand the status of each account. Status range from not applicable, unknown, current, 30 days late, 60 days late, 90 days late to 120 days late.

Adverse Accounts

Any information that may lead creditors to view you as a credit risk will be listed here. The following details will be listed: name of the creditor, their address, their phone number, your account number, account balance, highest balance on account, account limit, account status, account type and the date the account was opened. It will also indicate who bears the responsibility for resolving any claims or issues against the account.

In addition, this section will list any bankruptcies, foreclosures, judgments or liens in your credit history.

Satisfactory Accounts

Hopefully all your accounts fall into this section rather than the previous section. Every account you have listed here works towards a good FICO Score. The following details will be listed: name of the creditor, their address, their phone number, your account number, account balance, highest balance on account, account limit, account status, account type and the date the account was opened.

Regular Inquiries

Any companies that have made inquiries against your credit file and have received your credit report will be listed here. Inquiries are generated when creditors with whom, you have applied for credit lines or loans (e.g. mortgage loan or credit card application) inquire about your credit history. Some inquiries may have been originated from potential employers. The request will detail the name of the requesting company, their address, the date on which they made the request and the reason for the request. The inquiry record will remain on your credit report for two years.

Inquiry Analysis

This is a list of all companies that have requested your credit report. The request will detail the name of the requesting company, their address and the date on which they made the request.

Sample TransUnion credit report

You may also find the following credit report terms helpful: