"Check Your Credit Score for Free" Roll-out Schedule

Business owners are ever-conscious of their credit rating because it affects their ability to borrow money from banks and insurance rates.

Starting in December 2004, US citizens are eligible to receive one free consumer credit report annually.

This is a good offer to take advantage of for many reasons, especially if you've not reviewed your credit rating in awhile.

The primary driver of this is to uncover identity theft sooner and to limit the losses from this insidious crime that will affect upwards of 7 million adults in the US alone in 2005.

The one catch to the free annual credit report is that it becomes available to individuals on a set date based upon your state of residence. Here's the basic schedule in the USA:

Western States - December 2004

Midwestern States - March 2005

Southern States - June 2005

Eastern States and all US Territories - September 2005

Visit the Annual Credit Report web site to claim yours and review it carefully.

The web site has an interestign FAQ page and links to the 3 major credit bureaus if you want to act sooner and pay for your report.