Information About the Three Credit Bureaus

Credit bureaus record, keep files on and continually update credit information about consumers. When consumers purchase anything by credit card or use other financing options, the credit bureaus record it. When payments are late, the bureaus also capture the information. The credit bureaus make money by selling credit information about consumers. Although there are hundreds of credit bureaus, the three major ones are Equifax, Transunion and Experian.

Equifax

Equifax, headquartered in Atlanta, Georgia, employs 7,000 people in 15 different countries. It is publicly traded on the New York Stock Exchange under the ticker symbol EFX. The company has been providing credit reporting services for more than 100 years. Key industries the company serves include insurance, health care, financial, mortgage, consumers, commercial, retail, human resources, auto, telecommunications, marketing services and government.

Experian

Experian, headquartered in Costa Mesa, California, and Schaumberg, Illinois, employs 5,500 people in the United States. It provides information on 215 million consumers. Some of the services it offers include credit services to rate consumers' ability to pay, decision support software for corporation, tools to assist companies in marketing to consumers based on their credit histories and online services to provide immediate access to credit information.

TransUnion

TransUnion, based in Chester, Pennsylvania, originated in 1968 as the Union Tank Car Co. This company created a parent organization called TransUnion. Part of TransUnion's growth has been through acquisition. It acquired the Credit Bureau of Cook County in 1969 and TrueCredit.com in 2002. In 1988, the company's coverage expanded to the entire United States. TransUnion now operates in 25 countries. TransUnion provides business credit reporting, residential real estate origination and closing services and decision support.

Consumer Use

Consumers should access their credit reports from these three companies once a year to check the accuracy of reports so that their credit scores are not misrepresented, especially before applying for major financing, as scores often impact the interest rate a lender offers. A consumer is legally allowed one free annual copy of her report from each of the three companies, accessibly through AnnualCreditReport.com.