How do I Correct Errors on a Credit Report?

by Jane Wickel

Increase your credit score by correcting credit report errors
If you have discovered errors in your credit report, or worse, accurate references to late payments or other negative issues that may have lowered your credit score. Take some deep breaths and calm yourself, credit report errors can be fixed. Let`s repeat that, credit report errors can be fixed! It is possible to remove a lot of negative items as well. And this can be done without help from companies that promise to repair your credit.

Do you want to know how to dispute errors on your Credit Report?

You will need to make a copy of your credit report highlight all items you believe to be incorrect.

Start by writing a letter to the reporting agency, the address should be on the credit report in question. By explaining each dispute in detail to the best of your knowledge you can request an investigation to resolve each issue. If you have old paperwork that will support your claim that will be a benifit, copy and send it along, coding all your pages to match the disputed paragraphs. You should not send the originals, make copies.

You should send your materials via certified mail and request a return receipt to verify. Send a similar letter of dispute to the creditor whose reporting statements you disagree with. Make sure to always refer to the billing statement to find the correct address to send your dispute to, most of the time it is different from the payment address. If the dispute involves personal information, like your address, you probably should send a copy of your driver's license or a bill from one of your current utilities to verify your residence.

The reporting agency will start an investigation by contacting your creditors to verify the accuracy of your information. Here is the good part, if the creditor in question cannot verify the entry is correct, they have to remove it from your credit report. When the investigation is 100% complete, the agency has to send you a free copy of your credit report if changes were made.

If the investigation uncovers an error, you have the right to ask that a corrected version of your credit report be sent to everyone who received the report during the past six months.

Here are some Tips:
Contact your creditor first, simply allow a bit of lead time, then submit the dispute to the agency in question. By this time the dispute will be verified and the creditor should have corrected the error.

Online Disputes
You can initiate an investigation from many online credit reports by following the links provided and checking the disputed items as directed. There sometimes isn't a place for remarks--you'll simply check a multiple-choice reason for each dispute.

If Changes Aren't Made
If the credit reporting agency says the original information is accurate, it must provide you with a written notice that includes the address, name, and a phone number of the person who made the report. If you still disagree, initiate a second investigation.

Unfortunately, in the real world the reporting agencies often try to sidestep that requirement, giving you standard, computer-generated information rather than the facts you need to find the person or department who made the negative report. Keep plugging away until you have the answer you're looking for.

If your attempts to correct an entry are unsuccessful, you can ask the reporting agency to insert a 100-character explanation next to it that explains your side of the story.

Sometimes You Hit a Dead End
I know from personal experience that it's sometimes difficult to have information changed, even if you can prove it is incorrect. A family member has not been able to have an incorrect employer notation corrected, even though he has not worked at the company for many years. The standard response from the credit reporting agency is that they would not have the information if he had not included it on an application for credit.

They refuse to remove the incorrect notation, even though he has provided them with a letter from his current employer and several W2s.

Why did that happen? Somoneone likely keyed-in a previous employer as a current employer. Sometimes you simply cannot get through to them that errors exist.

Negative Entries
Bankruptcies remain on your credit report for ten years, while other types of entries are generally reported for seven years. If an account that was previously past due has been brought current, and has been either paid off or kept current for at least a year, the creditor might agree to an early deletion of the past due references.

Write a letter to your creditor and request that the negative entries be removed. They'll often comply if they see you are up to date and handling your account in a positive way.

To receive a copy of your TransUnion or Equifax Credit Report, simply click on the link below and fill out a short form.

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