Homer was very upset. After reading over his credit report, he noticed there were several inclusions that shouldn't be there. He knew for a fact that there were at least two items that shouldn't be on it. Homer decided to scan the Internet to see if he had any rights as a consumer...

There are three consumer reporting agencies in operation: Equifax, Trans Union and Experian. These companies hold all the financial records of individuals who have applied for credit. However, consumers have rights that are very specific to what they put their money towards. Sadly, not many people know what these rights consists. This is a problem that can plague you later on down the road. By knowing your rights, it can keep you from carrying someone else's information in your credit file. Here are a few of these rights:

• To be told the name and address of the consumer reporting agency who prepared a consumer report that was used to deny you credit, insurance, or employment.
• To be told by a consumer reporting agency the nature, substance, and sources of the information collected about you.
• To take anyone of your choice with you when you check on your file.
• To receive all information to which you're entitled, free of charge, when you have been denied credit, insurance, or employment within thirty days of the incident. After this period, you'll have to pay a small fee to get a copy.
• To be told who has received a consumer report on you within the last two years if the report was supplied for employment purposes.
• To have incomplete or incorrect information researched, unless it's unnecessary and, if the information is found to be inaccurate, to have this information removed from the file.
• When a dispute between you and the reporting agency about information in your file can't be resolved, you have the right to state your version in the file and included in future consumer reports.
• To ask the reporting agency to send your version of the dispute to certain businesses for a fee.
• To have a consumer report withheld from anyone who under the law doesn't have a legitimate business need for it.
• To sue a reporting agency for damages if it willfully or negligently violates the law and, if successful, collect the attorney's fees and court costs.
• Not to have negative information reported after seven years except for bankruptcy.
• To be told by a business that it's seeking information about you that would constitute an investigative report.
• To request from the business that ordered an investigative report more information about the nature and range of the investigation.
• To find out the nature and substance of the information collected for an investigative report.

These rights are meant for consumers to protect themselves when it comes to their credit report. It is wise to check up on this report at least twice a year. Make sure to get a copy from all three of the credit reporting agencies. This is because all three aren't the same. What one report may say may not be in the other two. By understanding your rights as a consumer, you'll be able to fix your report yourself instead of paying someone else to do it.