Correcting credit report errors involve keeping in touch with credit reporting
agencies and your creditors, which you can do yourself. Don't be tempted to
contact a credit repair company that promises to remove bad information from
your credit report because only inaccurate, negative information can be removed.
If you have just received your credit report and it wasn't what you
expected, then you will want to know which steps you should now take to
fix the inaccuracies. The following are tips to correct mistakes on your
credit report that you can take to improve your
credit score.
Reasons to Consider Correcting Credit report
You might be contemplating why there is a need to correct your credit report. Well, if you don't have anymore plans of loaning then you can disregard it.
However, if you are still planning to start with your family as to building a house, buying a car and owing a lot then here are the two major reasons why: a clerical error in recording your payments at one of your creditors and you might be a victim of identity theft. And this wrong information will remain for about seven years in your credit record.
When credit reporting agencies such as Equifax, TransUnion and Experian, have bad information about you, this will affect lenders that will give their decisions on your loan application. And for you to
get approval with the best interest rates, you need to fix your credit report errors.
Steps to Correct Credit Report Errors
Correcting credit report errors involve reviewing your credit report. If you spot a
dozen errors along the way this simple method can help. Make a list of every
detail you consider questionable or negative. Write a letter to dispute the
errors and send it to the creditor. Here are the steps in details:
Ask for a copy of your report. Get copies of your FICO credit scores and credit
reports from any of the three bureaus to understand all your credit history.
Note that you may have to pay a small fee for this. But if you make your request
at the AnnualCreditReport.com, you can get a free copy of all of your credit
reports once every 12 months.
Check if there are mistakes. Look for some inaccuracies or errors in your credit
report. For example, your credit limit is showing as $8, 000 instead of
$10, 000. This might also happen to you: you missed one bill payment because you
moved but without informing your creditor about your new address, or, someone
might have fraudulently opened an account under your name.
Write a letter to the Credit Bureau. Indicate the items that are incorrect,
inaccurate or incomplete and explain why it is so in a letter. Enclose your
complete name, address, birth date and Social Security number and documents to prove your
claim. Via registered mail, send the letter. The agency will investigate for
thirty days to respond to your letter.
Write a letter to Your Creditor. It is also important to contact the financial institution that forwarded
wrong data to the reporting agency. You can send them a similar letter you sent
to Equifax, TransUnion or Experian. Send them your letter with copies of evidence
documents to verify your claim -- but don't send them the
original one. After a few weeks, remember to follow-up by calling them and
inquire on your status.
Correcting credit report is a learning process. You will need to find
out effective ways to raise your credit
and you will have to
consistently apply them to your life to alter your spending, saving, and
bill-paying habits.
