Credit Report Should Be Obtain Prior to Filing Bankruptcy

Once consumers have consulted with a bankruptcy attorney and have decided that filing a Chapter 7 or Chapter 13 bankruptcy petition is the best alternative for debt relief, they often do not have a clear assessment of their financial situation. Too often I observed clients come into the office with handwritten notes which attempted to describe their personal debts. Most of the time the client's handwritten notes only provided the creditor's name and the amount owed, or as best as an estimate they could remember. The truth is in order for a client to know the true nature of the number of creditors they owe and the amount owed, they will need to order a credit report from each credit reporting agency; Experian, TransUnion and Exquifax.

Under the Fair Credit Reporting Act (FCRA), each of the consumer reporting agencies are required to provide consumers with a free copy of their credit report each year. Once the clients reviewed their reports they often became alarmed to see what creditors they had actually owed and the amounts because in most situations the debts were old and the client had simply forgotten about them. And since it is a requirement for consumers filing for bankruptcy protection to report all their debts, obtaining a copy of the credit report prior to preparing and filing the petition is a good method to ensure all debts are included in the petition. In addition, this saves the client additional legal costs such as having to file a motion to reopen a bankruptcy case after a discharge, or amending schedules to include a forgotten creditor. Consumers can obtain a free copy of their credit reports by visiting www.annualcreditreport.com. However, they are only entitled to one free copy from each of the agencies a year, otherwise they will have to pay by calling or visiting each credit reporting agency's website below.

Consumer Reporting Agencies

Equifax 1-800-685-1111
Experian 1-888-397-3742
Transunion 1-800-916-8800

If you are an attorney, CM Paralegal Services can assist your clients with bankuptcy document collection. We will work closely with your client during this process to ensure that client has the required documents which are necessary for petition filing. Please contact us by telephone at 314-723-5633, visit our website at http://cmparalegalservicesmissouri.yolasite.com, or send us an email at cmparalegalservices@live.com.