Credit Bureau Disputes

Credit bureau disputing is one of the fundamental steps in repairing your credit. If, after examining your credit reports, you notice any incorrect information--amounts, incorrect payment or reporting dates, misspelled names or initials--anything whatsoever that can be disputed--beginning the dispute process in writing with each of the major credit reporting agencies.

It is best to do everything in writing and not do any business of this sort on the phone. Create and keep a file of all paper correspondence when dealing with credit bureaus or creditors. Credit reporting agencies are reluctant to acknowledge mistakes in their records and they will make you work for every mistake they remove. Start with these steps and letters to initiate a dispute. If they do not produce the results you want, more advanced means of dealing with these disputes are available.

-Mistakes in credit reports come under Section 611 of the Fair Credit Reporting Act, which states that when you bring mistakes in your credit report to the attention of the credit bureaus, they have a reasonable amount of time to re investigate your record and verify their information.

If they are unable to verify information or find it is incorrect, they must remove it from your report. Many creditors do not verify information that is more than a couple years old, so the older the negative information, the easier it is to have it removed. The following information should NOT appear in your credit report:

-Negative information older than seven years, including lawsuits, judgments, paid tax liens, collection accounts, criminal convictions (excluding criminal convictions, which may be reported indefinitely), late payments, and any other adverse information about you.

-Overdue child support older than seven years.

-Credit inquiries (requests by companies for a copy of your credit report) that are older than two years.

-Bankruptcies older than ten years from the date of last activity (usually the discharge date or the date the case was dismissed, although credit bureaus sometimes start counting from the date the bankruptcy was filed).

Note that it is not advisable to simply dispute accounts as "not mine" anymore. This is because credit bureaus are likely to put a fraud alert status on your credit file which makes it difficult for you to obtain new credit and have easy access to your reports.

When disputing trade lines on your credit report, be very specific (i.e. "I did not open account XYZ on Date XX/XX/2000," or "I do not have a balance of $XXX on this account", etc.).

Be aware that some negative information regarding U.S. government insured or guaranteed student loans, or national direct student loans, may be reported on your credit report for more than seven years.

Next, look for information that is incorrect, such as:

-Incomplete or incorrect name, address, Social Security number, phone number, or employer information.

-Any account you closed that does not say "closed by consumer."

-Any closed accounts that are reported as open--this could make you look like you have too much open credit.

-Bankruptcies not identified by their specific chapter number (Chapter 7 or 13).

-Accounts that are not yours or lawsuits in which you were not involved.

-Incorrect account histories, such as a history of late or slow payments when you paid on time.

The clerks who work for the credit bureaus are time-pressed to investigate each dispute, so it is best not to simply say "not mine" when disputing with them.

Rather, say something like:

This is Not a Data Factoring account. Please remove this.

It is reported as an “Open” account, which is false. Please remove this.

It reports a One Month term which is false. Please remove this.

The Estimated date of removal for the CA does not match the date that the original creditor, reports. The Original creditor is reporting 9/2010. Please correct or remove this.

The Date of First Delinquency with the Original Creditor is not provided. Please provide this.

The Date of First Major Delinquency with the Original Creditor is not provided. Please provide this.

It has never been 120 days late. Please remove this.

It is listed as a loan. They have never provided me a loan. Please remove this.

No payment was made in 2/2007. Please remove this.

It is listed as an installment account, which is false. Please remove this.

The Balance is not correct. Please correct or remove this.

The end of the seven year reporting period should be listed as 08/2012. Please correct or remove this.

These types of dispute statements require the clerk at the credit bureau to spend more time investigating your dispute rather than simply looking for a matching address and concluding it is correct.

After looking over your credit report, complete the "request for reinvestigation" form the credit bureau sent you, or send a letter requesting an investigation of each account you believe listed as incorrect or out of date and explain exactly what you believe to be wrong with the listing or tradeline. Once the credit bureau receives your dispute, it must investigate the items you dispute and contact you within 30 days. if you let the bureau know that you're trying to obtain a car loan or mortgage, it can often do a rush investigation.

If you are found to be right (that the information is incomplete or inaccurate), or if the creditor who reported the information cannot verify it, the credit bureau is legally obligated to remove the information from your credit report or modify it based on the results of the investigation. Credit Bureaus will often delete an item on request without an investigation if rechecking the disputed item is more bother than it's worth.

If the credit bureau insists that the information is correct, contact the creditor directly and have them tell the credit bureau to remove the information. You may have to write to the Customer Service department, vice president of marketing, and the president or CEO of the company. If the information was reported by a collection agency, send the agency a copy of your letter too. Legally, creditors cannot simply ignore information they know contradicts information in their records, and cannot report incorrect data when they learn that it is, in reality, false.

Removing Personal Information

It is always a good idea to remove any previous addresses from your credit reports. Many creditors utilize the old addresses listed on your credit report to "verify" accounts you dispute as "not mine." In a nutshell, old information may be used computers in automated "verification" processes to simply match up a minimum number of data points and return your dispute results as "verified". For example, your name, SSN, and a couple of previous addresses may be all the system requires to "verify" what the data furnisher is reporting matches what's on your credit reports.

Be aware that recently the credit bureaus have been adding a "Fraud Alert" status to credit reports when addresses are disputed. Many believe this is the credit bureaus' response to the increase in consumer credit repair and the increased questioning of the accuracy of information in credit reports. Fraud Alerts make it more difficult to open new credit but only stay on the credit report for ninety days. Look at it as a necessary nuisance while you are in the process of credit repair and know they will fall off after ninety days.

Name variations present the same problem - you want to get rid of anything that isn't strictly accurate whenever possible. The theory is that less info on your report, the less likely you are to be of an automated verification system.

This is a letter to a Credit Reporting Agency to get your name listed correctly:

Include a copy of your driver's license and and two bills showing your current mailing address and name.

Dear Consumer Relations:

Going over my credit report, I have found it contains many errors. I request your investigation of the following "personal information". Please see the attached photo copy of my driver's license for your reference. For the record:

1. My name is: YOUR NAME. Please remove all other name variations IMMEDIATELY! They are not accurate!

2. My current address is: YOUR ADDRESS. Please remove all other addresses IMMEDIATELY ! They are not accurate!

Please delete these disputed items. Thirty (30) days constitutes a reasonable amount of time for investigation. Per the Fair Credit Reporting Act, send me notification that these items have been deleted, as well as an updated copy of my credit report.

Sincerely,

Your name

Address

Include two proofs of your current address and a copy of a driver's license or state-issued identification.

If you believe a credit bureau is wrongfully including information in your credit report, or you want to explain a certain entry, you have the right to include a brief personal statement in your report. The credit bureau must give a copy of your statement--or a summary--to anyone who requests your report. Be clear and concise; use as few words as possible.

Here is a form you can use to send to the credit bureaus to dispute inaccurate trade line information and start the credit repair process:

Full name: Last__________________ First ________________Middle _______Current Address__________________________________________________________Former Address_________________________________________________________Social Security #________________________ Home Phone__________________________Date of Birth___________________________ Work Phone__________________________Employer_____________________________ Spouse Name__________________________Spouse Social Security #_________________

Credit Report Dispute / Account Information Dispute SectionCompany Name__________________________ Account #____________________________ Not my account __ Was never late __Account paid in full__ Current status incorrect __ Other __DisputeExplanation________________________________________________________________

Company Name__________________________ Account #____________________________ Not my account __ Was never late __Account paid in full__ Current status incorrect __ Other __DisputeExplanation________________________________________________________________

Courthouse or Collection Agency accounts:

Courthouse or Collections agency_______________________________________________Case number for courthouse records only___________________________________________ Not Mine (explain) __ Satisfied __ Released __ Dismissed__ Discharged __ Collection was paid __ Other (explain)Explanation________________________________________________________________

I certify that all information above is true and factual.Signature____________________________________________date__________________

It is a well-known fact that many consumer credit bureau reports contain inaccuracies. Any responsible consumer will check and correct his or her credit bureau report on a regular basis.

Lexington is a law firm specializing in repairing credit reports. We have helped over 200,000 Americans repair their credit reports by removing inaccurate, misleading, or unverifiable information. From bankruptcies to charge-offs to tax liens, we have challenged virtually every credit problem under the sun — and deleted over 500,000 items this year alone. Sign Up Today!

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