Credit Monitoring

[maat55]

I recently was signed up for credit monitoring through Chase(my CC account). They monitor, give alerts and repair if needed for 7.99 or 8.99(can't remember) per month. It monitors both I and my wifes credit.

Anyone here have this or knowledge of it?

[Broken Arrow]

Seems fishy to me.

There are legitimate services out there that will give you your credit score and detailed credit report, but none I know of will actually "repair your credit".

Please correct me if I'm wrong here.

But seriously, how can they? Perhaps they can call on your behalf to negotiate a settlement or send a letter debating a charge, but they can't do so without your express permission anyway, and truth is, that's something you can do yourself....

Perhaps that's what you mean by, "repair"?

What I do know is this: There are also scams out there that claim they can help repair your credit for monthly payments, but obviously they can't.

Say, can you please provide a link to the company that is making this claim? Also, it may be worth checking them through the BBB.

Whoever they are, I would definitely approach with caution, and not sign on until they are thoroughly checked-out.

[maat55]

Originally Posted by Broken Arrow

Seems fishy to me.

There are legitimate services out there that will give you your credit score and detailed credit report, but none I know of will actually "repair your credit".

Please correct me if I'm wrong here.

But seriously, how can they? Perhaps they can call on your behalf to negotiate a settlement or send a letter debating a charge, but they can't do so without your express permission anyway, and truth is, that's something you can do yourself....

Perhaps that's what you mean by, "repair"?

What I do know is this: There are also scams out there that claim they can help repair your credit for monthly payments, but obviously they can't.

Say, can you please provide a link to the company that is making this claim? Also, it may be worth checking them through the BBB.

Whoever they are, I would definitely approach with caution, and not sign on until they are thoroughly checked-out.

When i say repair, that means they will do the foot work to clean up the ID theft.

I'm waiting for the contract to arrive for my approval.

I'm not certain if they have different types of monitoring so I will post an site once I recieve the contract.

[disneysteve]

Why are you doing this? Have you been the victim of identity theft? $8 or $9 per month is a lot of money for a service that you most likely don't need and will never actually use. I think these companies play on fear by making people think they must have this in order to protect their credit.

[wincrasher]

I subscribe to one of these services. I can get my full credit report and score at any time as well as I get an email alert for anything that is posted to my credit report.

It may be squandered money, but it's alot of peace of mind. You can contest anything online easily. It's also interesting to see the inquiries that are made.

[maat55]

Originally Posted by disneysteve

Why are you doing this? Have you been the victim of identity theft? $8 or $9 per month is a lot of money for a service that you most likely don't need and will never actually use. I think these companies play on fear by making people think they must have this in order to protect their credit.

Only one small occurance that was checking account related. But ID theft is a growing problem and the money is worth the service, IMO. It may be a luxury, but I can live with it.

[amarowsky]

Originally Posted by maat55

I recently was signed up for credit monitoring through Chase(my CC account). They monitor, give alerts and repair if needed for 7.99 or 8.99(can't remember) per month. It monitors both I and my wifes credit.

Anyone here have this or knowledge of it?

Is the actual credit monitoring company chase? Or is there a company that they sub-contract though to monitor your credit for you?

[maat55]

Originally Posted by amarowsky

Is the actual credit monitoring company chase? Or is there a company that they sub-contract though to monitor your credit for you?

I'm waiting for my contract(which is not time sensative) to arive to get a better look at it. But it seems fairly standard compared to the ones i here advertised, example: Lifelock.

[nataliya]

Credit monitoring is a part of the majority of all credit report and creditscore services. But credit repair isn't.

[snafu]

What a lot of bumph! You say you haven't been a victim of identity theft...do you personally know anyone who has been a victim? The statistics and research all say you are at more risk from your bank, a government agency or a restaurant than by someone stealing information from any other means. Don't use a CC for restaurant meals or let the government know anything more about you. They are the ones who leak information, keep ghastly records, lose paperwork in alleys etc.

Call your local police and get the numbers for identity theft and likewise the numbers for people in your region who die from auto accidents. The likelihood of the latter is enough to keep you at home 24/7.

[LuxLiving]

I wouldn't pay for this service unless I was a busy exec CONSTANTLY putting dinners, lunches, hotels, car rentals, etc. on my CCs. Then, it might pay to have someone else helping me keep an eye on it.

Otherwise, it's a D-I-Y job for us.

I've done this - One thing that you might do is set up your CC company to send you an email if the balance goes over a set dollar point. Say, you don't think you'd ever charge over $500 a month on a card - have them tip you off if it goes over. Most likely, if it ever does it will be you, but you'll be alerted right off if it's not you, but someone else who has managed to get your identity. Of course, this only works if you keep up w/email reading!

[JackofAllDealz]

Credit card monitoring isn't worth it in my opinion. If anyone fraudulently uses your charge card the credit card company will usually just refund the money to the card when you contest it. If they don't do this, then get a new credit card.

I've had my credit card cloned and stolen before and it wasn't a big deal. I would worry more about people stealing my mail and other more sensitive financial documents.

I would recommend checking your credit report for free from the 3 major agencies at annualcreditreport.com You should stagger your 3 free checks throughout the year to make sure nothing fishy is going on.

You can also buy your credit score, but I also do not think it is necessary. You can use the free fico score estimator that bankrate has to get a fairly accurate number. (do a google search, I'm too new to leave a link) At least this the case with me. I paid for one of my credit scores and it was only off by 10 points.

Save the $100 per year and stick it in a savings account.

[BlackBash]

Actually you can, in addition, use serveral other money tools like Mint or Geezeo. Those are free and very helpful, at least that's what I think.

[Like2Plan]

maat55,
How is working out for you so far?

I think credit monitoring is a good thing to have-especially when the consequences of identity theft (that does not come to your attention right away) can be far reaching and can put your life on hold while you are sorting it all out.

I have not paid for credit monitoring because I have received it for free for more times than I care to remember. This generally happens when a website from a company with which I have done business is not properly secured.

The credit monitoring I have received is very basic and will alert me if there are any major changes to my credit report such as an address change or a credit inquiry, but I have to pay extra for a FICO rating.

[Like2Plan]

Originally Posted by JackofAllDealz

Credit card monitoring isn't worth it in my opinion. If anyone fraudulently uses your charge card the credit card company will usually just refund the money to the card when you contest it. If they don't do this, then get a new credit card.

I've had my credit card cloned and stolen before and it wasn't a big deal. I would worry more about people stealing my mail and other more sensitive financial documents.

I would recommend checking your credit report for free from the 3 major agencies at annualcreditreport.com You should stagger your 3 free checks throughout the year to make sure nothing fishy is going on.

The purpose of credit monitoring is not so much to deal with a stolen credit card. As you have mentioned, that is relatively easy to deal with your CC company (though still very aggravating). Credit monitoring is more to deal with identity theft which results in folks setting up new lines of credit without your knowledge.

While staggering your 3 free checks throughout the year will be better than nothing, it doesn't do as much for you as continuous credit monitoring will. For one thing, not all credit checks are reported to all 3 credit bureaus. If someone steals your identity and sets up a new line of credit (using another address than your own), it may not come to your attention for months.

[nataliya]

There's a reason why credit monitoring companies are springing up across the country — and why so many of us are using them. I personally think it's a money well spent just to have an "extra set of eyes." You can only check your credit report 3 times a year for free. (annualcreditreport)

[sfalexi]

I have it and will continue to have it at least until my joint debts with an ex-wife of mine are paid off. This way I have an instant alert the minute she defaults on a payment.

However once those are paid off and I'm current, I personally plan on paying (I think 5 - 10 dollars per company) to have my credit "frozen". I can still use any current credit cards and whatnot, but no NEW credit can be opened without me calling to "unfreeze" it. I think those are the terms they call it by. Not like I need to apply for credit "on impulse", so I'll have time to call and unfreeze it before I start looking around for a car, a house, etc. etc.