A little-known report can alert you to costly problems in your banking history. And you can get a copy for free. One reason experts urge you to monitor your credit report is so you can catch identity thieves who open fraudulent credit card accounts in your name. What if a crook opens a bank account in your name, perhaps with plans to bounce checks or overdraft the account at your expense?
That account likely will not appear on your credit reports. Instead, it will show up on your checking account reports. If you don’t know to check those reports, you may not realize the fraudulent bank account exists until long after the damage is done.
Here’s what every consumer should know about checking account reports, including how to get a copy of yours for free:
Rev. Dr. Donna Taylor is the Pastor of Andrew Chapel United Methodist Church (UMC) in Montross, VA. Rev. Dr. Taylor promotes best practices by teaching financial literacy workshops and currently serves as Finance Chair in the Rappahannock River District for the UMC. In May 2015, Rev. Dr. Taylor received her Doctor of Ministry from Virginia University of Lynchburg in Lynchburg, Virginia. Rev. Dr. Taylor was born and raised in New York City and recently discovered her ancestral roots in Guinea-Bissau, West Africa. Rev. Dr. Donna Taylor is married to David Taylor and they have a son and a daughter. Their daughter is a educator and son is an Active-Duty Senior Seaman in the Navy married with three children. In her leisure time, she enjoys traveling, reading, swimming, writing poetry, crocheting and spending time with her family.