Your free copy of a credit report will help you get a handle on the condition of your credit.
And though there are various reasons for checking your report, a common situation is when
you're going through a divorce. Especially if you've never seen your credit report before, checking a
free copy of a credit report can help avoid future problems.
If you're involved in a divorce, the main area of concern when checking your free copy of
a credit report is seeing how the different accounts are set up. An account can be either an
individual account or a joint account. Although the two type can be used in similar ways, the
legal rights and responsibilities are different.
For an individual account, only one person's income, assets and credit history are looked
at by a creditor. And no matter who else uses the account, only the account holder is
responsible for paying off the debt. If it's your individual account, the credit history of the
account will appear on your free copy of a credit report. If you're married, the information for
your individual accounts may also appear on your spouse's credit report or the credit report
of other authorized users. It's important to recognize that just because an account shows up on
your credit report, it may not belong to you. It may only show up because you're an authorized
user and you have no responsibility for the debt.
Joint accounts combine the financial resources of the spouses and both are liable for any
debts. So no matter who uses the credit, they both must make sure the bills are paid. Unlike
your spouse's individual accounts which won't necessarily show up on your free copy of a
credit report, the information for joint accounts must be listed on both reports.
One problem that often comes up in a divorce, is when one spouse is given the
responsibility for paying the debt on a joint account. If the first spouse doesn't pay the bills,
the other spouse is still legally liable no matter what was determined in the divorce decree.
Unless the creditor involved agrees to change the account to an individual account, both will
remain liable. So when divorcing, either closing joint accounts or changing them to individual
accounts should be considered when checking your free copy of a credit report.
To get your free copy of a credit report and free 30 days of credit monitoring, please go to
free instant credit reports.
