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Consumer Credit Counseling Service of Greater Atlanta Tips: Proper Planning Can Reduce Post-Holiday Spending Blues

ATLANTA GA, November 7, 2007 — The average consumer plans to spend $923.36 this holiday season, according to the National Retail Federation (NRF). Challenging economic conditions and a bleak housing market will cause many consumers to be more conservative with their holiday spending, but many others will find themselves struggling to pay holiday debt well into spring and beyond.

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Lounging with a good book is a great, relaxing summer activity that many people enjoy. Consumer Credit Counseling Service (CCCS) of Atlanta suggests that consumers add a financial education book to their summer reading list. A new Book Referrals section in the Money$marts Center of the CCCS Web site lists some excellent choices.

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Your credit report is a record of your past and current credit obligations including your debts and payment history. It includes records of bankruptcies, foreclosures, liens, judgments, delinquencies and charge-offs. In general, account information, including late payments and other adverse information, is kept on your credit reports for no longer than seven years.

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Protect Yourself from Identity Theft

TIP #14 Consumer fraud is big business that poses a significant threat to consumers and to the economy. According to the Federal Trade Commission (FTC), consumers contact them with more questions and concerns about credit and credit fraud than any other topic.

"It doesn't take long for a criminal to destroy a solid credit record that has taken an honest consumer years to build," says Suzanne Boas, CCCS president. "Sometimes credit fraud is difficult to detect because transactions can be complicated and essential information may be hidden or undisclosed."

Credit fraud appears in many forms: abusive lending practices, stolen credit cards, hijacked credit identities, advance-fee loan scams, and so-called guaranteed credit repair cons.

The Identity Theft and Assumption Deterrence Act of 1998 allows victims of identity fraud the right to file police reports and to recoup damages. It also appoints the Federal Trade Commission to serve as an advocate for victims by assisting them with finding the right law enforcement agency to prosecute their case.

Other ways to protect yourself from this devastating crime:

Shred or burn any papers with financial information and identifiers, such as account numbers or your Social Security number. Tearing documents in half and throwing them in the trash is not enough protection.

Don’t put your Social Security number on any document unless it is legally required.

Check your credit report regularly (ideally, twice each year) to make sure you recognize all the entries.

Remove your name from promotional lists operated by credit reporting agencies and credit grantors.

If you find you have been victimized, immediately call the credit bureaus and put a fraud watch on your account. File a police report. You’ll need it when disputing charges with various creditors.

The Privacy Rights Clearinghouse and the California Public Interest Research Group also offer internet-based tips at www.privacyrights.org and www.pirg.org/calpirg/consumer/privacy. The “Identify Theft Survival Kit” can be ordered along with free form letters at www.identitytheft.org.

To minimize your vulnerability for fraud, CCCS suggests consumers order a copy of their credit reports each year. All consumers are eligible for one free copy each year from each of the three bureaus via the web site www.annualcreditreport.com. Consumers may also be eligible (depending on their state) for additional free copies directly from the bureaus, and of course can order additional copies from the credit bureaus.

The three credit reporting agencies are:

Equifax at 1.800.997.2493, www.equifax.com
Experian at 1.800.311.4769, www.experian.com
TransUnion at 1.800.916.8800, www.tuc.com

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