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Credit repair first step - disputing credit report errors

Wed May 9, 2007 03:05PM | By Tony

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As I wrote on credit repair before, it could be time consuming and frustrating, but in today's economy, credit repair is more important than ever, as it gives you many lucrative opportunities in finance and real estate. And disputing your credit report errors is crucial.

Credit repair is normally associated with fixing bad credit, but correcting wrong information is no less important.

Credit report

You can get your report from credit reporting agencies, often called credit bureaus. The credit reporting agencies compile credit report constantly updating them with information about your where you live, work, how you pay your bills, whether you have been sued, or filed for bankruptcy. These reports are sold to businesses that use this information to evaluate your credit worthiness. So it is extremely important that your report contained accurate information, and you should check yours at least every three months. Getting free annual credit report is a good start. If it has negative records you must start credit repair process.

Getting your free credit report

If you have been denied a credit, insurance, rent or employment based on the information supplied by credit reporting agencies, Fair Credit Reporting Act (FCRA) states that the company that turned your credit application down, must give you the name, address and telephone number of the credit reporting bureau that provided your information. Check Federal Trade Commission (FTC) website in any case for your reading enjoyment. Apply within 60 days of receiving a denial notice and you should get report for free. You can get one free report a year if - you’re unemployed and plan to look for a job within 60 days - if you’re on welfare - if your report is inaccurate because of fraud, including identity theft

Other ways to get free credit report are
- visit http://www.annualcreditreport.com
- call 877-322-8228
- complete the Annual Credit Report Request Form and mail it to:
Annual Credit Report Request Service
P.O. Box 105281
Atlanta, GA
30348-5281

You should also visit FTC Credit Website for complete information and many useful tips.

Buying your credit reports

Credit reporting bureau may charge you $9.50 for another copy of your report within a 12-month period. But it is worth spending. To buy a copy of your report, contact:

Equifax-800-685-1111
http://www.equifax.com

Experian-888-EXPERIAN (888-397-3742)
http://www.experian.com

TransUnion-800-916-8800
http://www.transunion.com

If you live in Colorado, Georgia, Maine, Maryland, Massachusetts, New Jersey, and Vermont, you already have free access to your credit reports.

Fixing credit report errors - starting credit repair

Under the FCRA, both the credit reporting agency and the company or person that provides information about you to this credit reporting agency, are responsible for correcting inaccurate or incomplete information in your report. Contact the consumer reporting company and the information provider.

Write to the credit reporting agency what information you think is inaccurate. Include copies, NOT originals of documents that prove your position. Provide your complete name and address. Identify each item in your report you dispute, state the facts and explain why you dispute the information, and request that this record be removed or corrected. Circle or highlight the disputed items on a copy of your report. Send your letter by certified, register mail requesting return receipt. Keep the copy of the letter. Samples of credit dispute letters.

You should get response within 30 days - unless credit bureau finds your dispute frivolous. The information provider will receive all the relevant data, and must investigate and report the results back to the credit bureau . If the information provider finds the disputed information is inaccurate, it must notify all three nationwide credit bureau s so they can correct the information in your file.

Upon the completion of investigation, if there are changes made to you credit report, you will receive free copy.
By law, you can ask the credit reporting agency to send notices of any corrections to anyone who received your report in the past six months. You can also have a corrected copy of your report sent to anyone who received it within the past two years for employment purposes.

If your credit repair bid can't be resolved, ask that a statement of the dispute be included in your file and in future reports. For a fee, the credit reporting agency will provide your statement to anyone who has recently received a copy of your report.

Some creditors, like travel, entertainment, gasoline card companies, local retailers, and credit unions, often do not supply information to credit reporting agencies, so you may want to add some good credit records to your report.

If you were denied credit because of an “insufficient credit file” or “no credit file” and you have accounts with creditors that don’t appear in your credit file, ask the credit reporting agencies to add this information to future reports. There is no law to force them, but credit bureaus will likely do it for a fee. But if these creditors do not report to the consumer reporting company on a regular basis, the added items will not be updated in your file.

If a negative information in your report is correct, only the passage of time can assure its removal. Check bad credit time limits. Normally accurate negative information stays on your credit report for 7 years. Bankruptcy information stays for 10 years. Unpaid judgment is reported for 7 years or until the statute of limitations expires, whichever is longer.

No time limits on reporting
- for criminal convictions
- information reported in response to your application for a job that pays more than $75,000 a year
- information reported because you have applied for more than $150,000 worth of credit or life insurance

So start your credit repair project and good luck.

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