How can a consumer obtain their free annual credit reports?

• A. Through annualcreditreport.com only
• B. Through annualcreditreport.com; also by phone or mail as permitted
• C. Only by contacting the CRAs directly by mail
• D. Only by using paid services

Answer: (B)

Consumers are entitled to one free credit report per year from each of the three nationwide credit reporting agencies. The official online access is through annualcreditreport.com, which is the standard way to obtain them. If you don’t use the web, you can also request your reports by calling or mailing the agencies, and you can get the reports free from each agency once per year. The key point is that these reports are free and accessible by multiple methods, not just online, and you don’t need to pay for them.