As of June 1, 2005, Georgia residents may obtain a copy of their credit reports free of charge once a year. Georgia is one of only seven states that currently have this option, and you may utilize one of three reporting agencies -- TransUnion, experian or EQUIFAX -- to obtain your report after you go on-line.

Those interested may visit www.annualcreditreport.com, select "Georgia" and get started. Once you've requested your report, a confirmation will be sent to you via e-mail, and you may access to the report on-line for 30 days.

Everyone is encouraged to take advantage of this opportunity, as it's a good way to check for inaccuracies in the report and close out credit cards that you may no longer be using. For a small fee, you can also obtain your credit score.

For more information or to order your report by phone, please call toll-free at (877) 322-8228.