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| Disputing Errors in Your Credit Report |
| Written by James Chan, Dongmiao Cui |
 According to a study conducted by the NC Public Interest Research Group and the National Association of State PIRGS, 79% of people surveyed found errors in their credit reports. Unfortunately, it often relies on us as consumers to report any incomplete or inaccurate information. Some financial advisors may suggest you to review your credit reports periodically to make sure that the information is accurate and up-to-date. Depending on the type of the error, the time it takes to fix it can vary greatly, sometimes up to months. In any case, the faster you fix it, the less likely it will cause unwanted outcomes when you seek credit. Types of Error Errors often occur in the following 4 types:
Disputing Procedure Both the credit bureaus and the data furnishers (such as the person or company that reports your credit information to the credit bureaus) are responsible for investigating into and, if information is verified, the error in your credit reports. The earlier you find out and report the inaccurate information, the less harm it will do to your credit score. Here is a simple 4-step recipe you can follow to fix the errors on your credit report:  Step 1: Look for Questionable Items Review your credit reports carefully. Pay particular attention to items listed below that may cause substantial damage to your credit score. You want to make sure that all information about these 10 items is accurate, and expired records should be removed.
 Step 2: Contact the Credit Bureau Once you have found the error and verified it, you need to contact the credit bureaus immediately. You can dispute the error by mail. The investigation form can be found online, filled out and mailed to the credit bureau. However sending a mail usually takes much longer time. A faster way to reach the credit bureaus is to call them with the phone number printed on the credit report. Or better yet, you can also submit your findings online. On the phone, you will be asked for the correct information; online, you will just fill out all the categories in the investigation form. Upon your report, the credit bureau will contact the information provider or the data furnisher to verify the dispute. Each bureau should respond to you within 30 days after receiving your dispute letter. But some sources may take up to 45 days to verify your dispute. So you want to keep track of the progress, but also be patient. Step 3: Contact the Credit Issuer If you find error due to the fault of the credit issuer, such as account error (error type 3) or payment date error (error type 4), you also need to contact the credit issuers and inform them of the erroneous information. The credit issuers could be banks or credit card companies. They are responsible for researching your situation and reporting correction to the major credit bureaus. You may also ask your creditor to send you a copy of their corrections. For this step, you want to clarify with your creditors on what exactly you ask them to do: whether you request them to update old information or delete erroneous entries. Additionally, you also want to keep your communications with your creditors in part of your documentation trial. Step 4: Verify the Correction After the investigation is complete and corrections are made, you should be able to receive the written results along with a free copy of your credit report from the credit bureaus. The free report does not count as your annual free report. You can also ask the credit bureaus to send notices of the corrections to those who have received your credit report in the past 6 months. |
| Last Updated on Tuesday, 21 December 2010 17:15 |
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