Equifax has been in operation for over 100 years and has provided protection services to both consumers and businesses. With over 7000 employees in 15 countries, Equifax has its headquarters in Atlanta. Equifax offers three types of consumer credit services namely the Advantage Plan, the Premier Plan and Score Watch.

The Advantage Plan is the most popular service and it offers the essentials of identity protection and credit monitoring.

Try Before You Buy

If you want to trial this product before committing to a full membership, you will be out of luck. Experian offers full memberships only.

Full Membership Benefits

For $16.95 per month, the Advantage Plan offers the following services:

• Comprehensive Monitoring of your Experian, TransUnion an Equifax credit reports along with automated alerts when key changes occur
• Customer service access 7 days a week
• Profile and credit scores for all 3 bureaus once annually
• Continual access to your Equifax credit score
• Simulate the impact of future financial decisions with Interactive Score Estimator
• Ability to correct errors on your report with the online dispute option.

For $19.95 per month, the Equifax Complete Premier Plan provides the services of the Advantage Plan plus the following:

• All inclusive protection – assistance in cancelling cards, passports, driver’s licences etc.
• Automatic Fraud Alert to help you detect possible identity theft
• Ability to lock your Equifax credit report. This blocks creditors or lenders from accessing your information until you want them to
• Web Detect – monitors Internet sites and alerts you when your information is traded online. Please note that as Internet trading sites change their addresses often, WebDetect may not be able to search every site, so there are no guarantees all traded information would be monitored.
• Fast pay plan option – this helps you reduce debts faster by using the information on your Equifax report
• Score monitoring from your Equifax information

Identity Theft Protection

Under the Advantage Plan, Equifax offers identity theft protection insurance up to $25,000. The Complete Premier Plan however offers up to $1 million identity theft insurance. This insurance reimburses you for certain losses and expenses associated with ID theft. It is best to read all the terms and conditions of the plan to ensure you know exactly what is covered.

Additional Services

Equifax offers an identity report which costs $9.95 for unlimited 30 day access. This report allows you prove your own credit worthiness or view that of others. This is particularly useful when doing private leasing, sale or purchase transactions. You are in full control of what information you share so privacy is maintained.

Support

There are several options to contact Equifax support staff. Consumers can initiate disputes, freeze credit files and log into the member center and read frequently asked questions all online. For customers who still use snail mail, post should be addressed to Equifax Credit Information Services, Inc. P.O. Box 740241. Atlanta, GA 30374.

Bottom Line

For the budget conscious who need a basic working service, the Complete Advantage plan is very adequate and is the most popular service amongst consumers. If you want to benefit from additional protection and a higher identity theft insurance payout, for $3.00 extra the Premier plan is certainly worth looking into.

Both products monitor all three bureaus which is the best option, however the final decision really depends on what consumers need.