Carolina Trust is committed to providing financial education to our members and the community. We frequently include informative articles in our monthly member newsletter and encourage you to read about ways to save money and protect yourself from fraud and identity theft. Our member service representatives and loan officers are always ready to help you identify your best loan and savings options and insurance and investment resources.
Youth - Carolina Trust encourages parents to teach wise money management habits and financial responsibility to children of all ages. It's never too late or too early. To assist in this effort, we offer the Goal Club youth account.
Adults - We also offer accounts for adults who may have wandered away from sound financial decision making, only to realize how those decisions would impact their overall financial well being. Products like our VISA® Secured Credit Card, Encore Checking, and Fresh Start Home Loan program are there to help consumers who are ready to bounce back from their less than perfect credit history.
Financial Counseling - Our partner in providing free financial planning and counseling services for our membership is BALANCE™ Financial Fitness. Members may contact a BALANCE representative to receive free and personal financial counseling for home buying, college preparation, debt consolidation, retirement planning, and more. BALANCE will also help members interpret their credit reports, develop a debt repayment strategy, set up reliable payment schedules, negotiate with creditors to reduce payments, and much more. To speak with a BALANCE representative, call 1-888-456-2227 toll free or click on the BALANCE logo to access their website.
High School Educators and Students - Our partner in providing free financial education to high school students, teachers, and parents is the National Endowment for Financial Education (NEFE) program. The NEFE high school curriculum is a free and ready-to-use resource for teachers wanting to instruct their students on matters of practical personal finance and wise money management. The student guides incorporate real-world scenarios and focus on important life skills such as the relationship between career and money, the fundamentals of spending and saving, and using credit wisely. Free materials are available upon request by contacting Carolina Trust Federal Credit Union at (843) 448-2133 ext. 414.
Protect Your Information - The key to making sound financial decisions and building a healthy financial future is educating yourself about your options and safeguarding your personal and financial information from would-be identity thieves and scam artists. If you think your personal or financial account information has been compromised, contact your financial institution(s) and creditors right away. BALANCE also provides some excellent tips and insights for avoiding Identity theft and how to approach the recovery process. Click on their Identity Theft Solutions logo for more information.
For more helpful member information, be sure to check out the Link & Learn page.
It's a smart idea to check your credit report from each of the three major credit bureaus for fraudulent activity at least once a year. Equifax, Experian, and TransUnion will provide you with a free copy of your credit report, at your request, once every 12 months.
These three national credit reporting agencies have established one central website, phone number, and mailing address to use for ordering your report. The credit bureaus will only provide the free annual reports through this central location and not through their individual websites, telephone numbers, or web addresses. Since you do not need to go through third party providers, be cautious of websites offering "free" credit reports.
For your free credit report, contact the Annual Credit Report Request Service:
| Web: |
www.annualcreditreport.com |
| Toll Free Telephone: |
1-877-322-8228 |
| Mail: |
Annual Credit Report Request Service
P.O. Box 105281
Atlanta, GA 30348-5281 |
Since you are entitled to one free annual report from each of the three bureaus, you can get them all at one time or stagger the requests throughout the year. If you request the report online, you should be able to view it immediately. Requests made by phone or mail will take approximately 15 days to process.
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