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What's New
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No-cost workshop for members: Credit Reports
Credit reports and credit scores, as well as the rights and responsibilities that accompany them, are a concern to many consumers. This seminar provides an overview of credit bureaus, credit scoring and the Fair Credit Reporting Act as well as specific guidance on disputing inaccuracies, improving the credit score, and dealing with identity theft and fraud. Come to a no-cost workshop to find out more about your options: Solving the Mystery of Credit Reports:
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Date: Wednesday, May 14 Place: UCU Office, 1500 S. Sepulveda Blvd. Time: 6:00 p.m. |
Reservations are required, so find out more about our workshop and sign up!
Win a Wii or other fun prizes ... it's e-asy!
Start managing your UCU account any time, from anywhere for your chance to win:
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Wii Nintendo game system that includes five Wii Sports games
1st Prize
$50 Netflix Certificate
2nd Prize
Three $15 iTunes Gift Cards
It's easy to enter
Just sign up and use any of our 24-hour electronic access services -- FREE Home Branch online banking, FREE Web Bill Pay and eStatements. You get one entry each for:
All you need is internet access and an eBanking Personal Identification Number (PIN), formerly called Fone-Teller PIN.You'll be entered automatically for any service you're already using!
Hurry! Last day to enter is June 30, 2008.
No purchase necessary. Must be 18 years or older to enter. UCU employees, volunteers, vendors and their immediate family members are not eligible. Last day to enter: 6/30/08.One entry per member for each service: Home Branch, Web Bill Pay, eStatements. Winner will be determined in random drawing on or after 7/11/08 and need not be present to win. Cash may not be substituted for prize. Winner responsible for any taxes associated with prize and agrees to let UCU use their name and likeness in future marketing. Odds of winning depend on number of entries. Alternate entry method: Write your name, address and phone number and “Win a Wii” on a 3” x 5” card and mail to: UCU Marketing Department, 1500 S. Sepulveda Blvd., Los Angeles, CA 90025.
Free counseling available for credit union members:
Early delinquency intervention and foreclosure prevention
Sometimes, talking to someone about some difficulties is what we need to get back on track. When it comes to late payments on loans, the person to talk to might be a budget counselor.
University Credit Union provides such a service at no cost to members. Through a partnership with BALANCE, a California-based provider of financial educational services and counseling, credit union members can talk to a trained counselor, seek advice and even help come up with a repayment strategy.
So, if you're have trouble keeping up with credit card payments, loan payments, and even mortgage payments, talk to a counselor before the situation gets critical.
The best part about speaking with BALANCE is that the counselor is unbiased, will work with you by phone to get a program in place (if needed) and all they while keeping your information confidential.
More information about BALANCE is online. Read up on them, then give them a call to set up for an appointment. BALANCE counselors are ready to serve you.
Fraud Alert: Fake checks and how to spot them
Think you're too savvy to fall for a fake check scam? Don't be so sure. Since January, investigators, led by the U.S. Postal Inspection Service, have seized more than $2.1 billion in counterfeit checks bound for the U.S.
Fake check scams involve someone you don't know offering to send you a large sum of money but requesting that you wire or send a portion of the money back. Fall for this and you could be out thousands of dollars. By cashing the check, you'll be responsible for repayment once the check bounces.
As part of a public awareness campaign, the National Consumers League (NCL), a consumer advocacy group in Washington, D.C., has launched fakechecks.org to warn and educate consumers about the different types of counterfeit check scams. The site includes videos of possible scams, a quiz to see if you could be faked out, and advice about preventing scams.
The average loss is between $3,000 and $4,000--a significant amount for most people. Because consumers are responsible for the losses if the checks or money orders they deposit prove to be phony -— a fact that many people don't know until it's too late -- it's crucial to fight fake check scams with education as well as enforcement.
For more information on other crimes of fraud, click the credit union info page on fraudulent attacks.
Latest Identity Theft: Tax Refund Fraud
Tax Refund Fraud is an identity theft crime currently on the rise especially during the tax season.
This form of ID theft occurs when a scam artist files a phony tax return--in your name, with your Social Security number and other personal information--in an attempt to collect a fraudulent refund.
For more information on tax refund fraud and tips to protect yourself, click the credit union info page on fraudulent attacks.
Get a Personal Line of Credit and be ready for anything...
Affordably.
You never know when you'll need cash quickly. So keeping a UCU Personal Line of Credit handy for unexpected emergencies or opportunities is smart.
You only pay interest on what you use, so there's no reason not to be ready for anything.
Plus, with a current low rate at 5.95% APR* you can't go wrong.
So don't delay. Apply online today.
*APR=Annual Percentage Rate. Rate effective 04/01/08, is variable and subject to change. Rate based on 6-month T-Bill auction discount rate plus a margin of 4.50%. T-Bill rate set on second Monday of the month prior to each quarter. Rates subject to change the first day of each quarter. Current auction rate is 1.45%. Available only to members residing in California. Loans issued are subject to credit approval.
UCU's accounts are perfect for saving your tax refund or rebate
Are you going to be one of the many Americans to receive a tax refund or the tax rebate this year? If so, UCU is the perfect place to deposit your refund.
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UCU has a number of accounts that can help you, all with no monthly fees and interest rates that generally top the competition:
- Market Rate Account
- Regular Savings Accounts
- IRA
- MEMBERS Financial Services, located at the UCU Main Office
Start saving today! For more information, contact a UCU representative at 310-477-6628, ext. 1.
If you're traveling out of the country, contact the credit union
If you’re planning to use your UCU Visa® Check Card or UCU MasterCard while out of the country, please make sure you call UCU right before you leave to inform us of the country and dates you will be away.
We’d like to verify that the transactions that occur in these foreign countries are actually yours.
Contact a UCU Representative at 310-477-6628, ext. 1 for more information.