Dispute Negative Information in Your
Credit Reports
by Lisa Phillips
March 2008
Credit Reports
by Lisa Phillips
March 2008
Your Rights To Dispute Credit Reports
The Fair Credit Reporting Act (FCRA) says that the Credit Reporting Agency (CRA) and the
credit card company must correct errors and any incorrect information in your credit file.
This must be completed within thirty (30) days from the date your dispute is made with the
credit bureau. If the creditor fails to respond within the thirty (30) day time frame, the
incorrect entry will be deleted.
Information that Can be Disputed
The good news is that most information in your credit report can be disputed, including
names, addresses, telephone numbers and employment information and the following major
entries:
Tips for Disputing Negative Information
1. Get Credit Report. Order your credit report from all three major credit reporting
agencies: Experian, Equifax and Transunion. See credit reports.
2. Look for Inaccurate Information. Review and analyze your report carefully. Start with
your personal information first such as name, address and telephone numbers. Dispute old
address, incorrect spellings of your name and telephone numbers. This can be done over
the telephone with a representative. Always document any conversation you have with a
credit reporting agency. Get the name of the person, their position, telephone extension
along with the date and time of the conversation and the nature of the call.
3. Opt-Out. The credit reporting agencies make money by selling your information. Opting
out of marketing lists protects your information. The marketing lists are not only sold to
companies wanting to send you unsolicited credit offers, they are also sold to collection
agencies and those who purchase debts. When you opt-out, your information will only be
given to someone with "Permissible Purposes". You can Opt-Out online or via telephone.
Visit optoutprescreen.com or call (888) 567-8688.
4. Identity Mistakes. Sometimes the Credit Reporting Agencys’ system will confuse people
with similar names and birth dates. They often confuse family members who have social
security numbers that are consecutively numbered. On occasion, if you can prove to the
Social Security Administration that having a number too similar to your sibling has been
detrimental to you, they may consider issuing you another number. Always dispute
variations of your name, you'd be surprised how many ways creditors can spell "John Smith".
5. Categorize Positive and Negative Entries. Review and highlight all negative entries.
Categorize your negative entries accordingly. You may want to deal with those items that are
most detrimental to your credit scores. Bankruptcy, Foreclosure, Tax Liens, Judgments,
Repossession, Defaulted Loans and Collections all rank high in damaging information. Deal
with these first. Late payments, Past due accounts and Inquiries can be dealt with on
another round of dispute letters.
6. Bankruptcy Entries. If you have a bankruptcy listing, you must deal with the creditors
first, meaning, you should challenge those “accounts listed in bankruptcy” and get those
items deleted before you actually challenge the Bankruptcy listing.
7. Request Deletions. When disputing the high ranking items always go for a full deletion.
Having an item changed from “collection” to “paid collection” will not help your credit score.
Unpaid and Paid Collection entries hold the same negative weight. See Deletions
8. Undisclosed Negative Information. If you discover any negative information your
original creditor did not notify you of, your rights have been violated. The Fair Credit
Reporting Act states that a creditor must notify you of any negative information they have
placed on your credit report. Contact the creditor and let them know they are in violation of
the FCRA and request they remove the item.
9. Dispute Letters. All dispute letters should be sent certified mail with return receipt. Keep
good records as you may need them later. The credit reporting agencies have 30 days after
receipt of dispute to conduct an investigation and resolve the matter. If you have
documentation to support your dispute include that with your dispute letter.
10. Create an Emergency. The credit bureaus receive a vast amount of disputes daily so
make sure you create an urgency so that your dispute is taken seriously. Let them know you
are in the process of obtaining a mortgage loan and the errors in your report are hurting
your chances of being approved and/or causing the lender to only offer subprime interest
rates.
11. E-Oscar Verification. Because the credit bureaus use one system of credit dispute
verification, E-Oscar, you may need to resubmit your dispute request if it comes back
verified. E-Oscar is an electronic dispute processing system of verification by which disputes
are coded from among 26 categories such as “Not His/Hers”; Claims Inaccurate Information”
“Claims Account Closed”.
Once coded, the dispute is automatically sent to the creditor without any human
intervention. It does not matter whether a consumer submits a dispute on-line, over the
telephone or through the mail, the E-Oscar method still utilizes the same method of coding
the dispute under one of the 26 categories. In fact, if you dispute on-line with a credit
bureau you are presented a limited number, usually five (5) of the dispute codes from E-
Oscar's twenty-six (26) category codes.
Read more about the E-Oscar method of verifying credit disputes here:
www.house.gov/apps/list/hearing/financialsvcs_dem/osbennett061907.pdf
Congress is aware of the problems consumers encounter when challenging inaccurate
credit reports and hopefully help is on the way. Chairman of the House Financial Services
Committee, Rep. Barney Frank, says "There needs to be some way that consumers in a
reasonable way can document the error," Below is a brief video of a hearing regarding
credit reporting agencies.
The Fair Credit Reporting Act (FCRA) says that the Credit Reporting Agency (CRA) and the
credit card company must correct errors and any incorrect information in your credit file.
This must be completed within thirty (30) days from the date your dispute is made with the
credit bureau. If the creditor fails to respond within the thirty (30) day time frame, the
incorrect entry will be deleted.
Information that Can be Disputed
The good news is that most information in your credit report can be disputed, including
names, addresses, telephone numbers and employment information and the following major
entries:
- Bankruptcies
- Foreclosures
- Tax Liens
- Defaulted Loans
- Repossessions
- Judgments
- Collections
- Late mortgage payments
- Late revolving credit payments
- Inquiries
Tips for Disputing Negative Information
1. Get Credit Report. Order your credit report from all three major credit reporting
agencies: Experian, Equifax and Transunion. See credit reports.
2. Look for Inaccurate Information. Review and analyze your report carefully. Start with
your personal information first such as name, address and telephone numbers. Dispute old
address, incorrect spellings of your name and telephone numbers. This can be done over
the telephone with a representative. Always document any conversation you have with a
credit reporting agency. Get the name of the person, their position, telephone extension
along with the date and time of the conversation and the nature of the call.
3. Opt-Out. The credit reporting agencies make money by selling your information. Opting
out of marketing lists protects your information. The marketing lists are not only sold to
companies wanting to send you unsolicited credit offers, they are also sold to collection
agencies and those who purchase debts. When you opt-out, your information will only be
given to someone with "Permissible Purposes". You can Opt-Out online or via telephone.
Visit optoutprescreen.com or call (888) 567-8688.
4. Identity Mistakes. Sometimes the Credit Reporting Agencys’ system will confuse people
with similar names and birth dates. They often confuse family members who have social
security numbers that are consecutively numbered. On occasion, if you can prove to the
Social Security Administration that having a number too similar to your sibling has been
detrimental to you, they may consider issuing you another number. Always dispute
variations of your name, you'd be surprised how many ways creditors can spell "John Smith".
5. Categorize Positive and Negative Entries. Review and highlight all negative entries.
Categorize your negative entries accordingly. You may want to deal with those items that are
most detrimental to your credit scores. Bankruptcy, Foreclosure, Tax Liens, Judgments,
Repossession, Defaulted Loans and Collections all rank high in damaging information. Deal
with these first. Late payments, Past due accounts and Inquiries can be dealt with on
another round of dispute letters.
6. Bankruptcy Entries. If you have a bankruptcy listing, you must deal with the creditors
first, meaning, you should challenge those “accounts listed in bankruptcy” and get those
items deleted before you actually challenge the Bankruptcy listing.
7. Request Deletions. When disputing the high ranking items always go for a full deletion.
Having an item changed from “collection” to “paid collection” will not help your credit score.
Unpaid and Paid Collection entries hold the same negative weight. See Deletions
8. Undisclosed Negative Information. If you discover any negative information your
original creditor did not notify you of, your rights have been violated. The Fair Credit
Reporting Act states that a creditor must notify you of any negative information they have
placed on your credit report. Contact the creditor and let them know they are in violation of
the FCRA and request they remove the item.
9. Dispute Letters. All dispute letters should be sent certified mail with return receipt. Keep
good records as you may need them later. The credit reporting agencies have 30 days after
receipt of dispute to conduct an investigation and resolve the matter. If you have
documentation to support your dispute include that with your dispute letter.
10. Create an Emergency. The credit bureaus receive a vast amount of disputes daily so
make sure you create an urgency so that your dispute is taken seriously. Let them know you
are in the process of obtaining a mortgage loan and the errors in your report are hurting
your chances of being approved and/or causing the lender to only offer subprime interest
rates.
11. E-Oscar Verification. Because the credit bureaus use one system of credit dispute
verification, E-Oscar, you may need to resubmit your dispute request if it comes back
verified. E-Oscar is an electronic dispute processing system of verification by which disputes
are coded from among 26 categories such as “Not His/Hers”; Claims Inaccurate Information”
“Claims Account Closed”.
Once coded, the dispute is automatically sent to the creditor without any human
intervention. It does not matter whether a consumer submits a dispute on-line, over the
telephone or through the mail, the E-Oscar method still utilizes the same method of coding
the dispute under one of the 26 categories. In fact, if you dispute on-line with a credit
bureau you are presented a limited number, usually five (5) of the dispute codes from E-
Oscar's twenty-six (26) category codes.
Read more about the E-Oscar method of verifying credit disputes here:
www.house.gov/apps/list/hearing/financialsvcs_dem/osbennett061907.pdf
Congress is aware of the problems consumers encounter when challenging inaccurate
credit reports and hopefully help is on the way. Chairman of the House Financial Services
Committee, Rep. Barney Frank, says "There needs to be some way that consumers in a
reasonable way can document the error," Below is a brief video of a hearing regarding
credit reporting agencies.
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12. Identifiable Information. If the creditor and credit reporting agency can match 3 pieces
of information they deem the dispute item as verified without ever viewing supporting
documentation. This is one reason why it is imperative that you rid your credit report of
incorrect spellings of names, prior names, addresses and telephone numbers. The less
identifiable information, the better.
of information they deem the dispute item as verified without ever viewing supporting
documentation. This is one reason why it is imperative that you rid your credit report of
incorrect spellings of names, prior names, addresses and telephone numbers. The less
identifiable information, the better.
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The major credit bureaus receive tons of information daily and mistakes are often made.
Disputing inaccurate items can raise your credit score if those items are deleted or corrected.
Disputing inaccurate items can raise your credit score if those items are deleted or corrected.
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It is very common for credit files to contain
errors, inaccurate, outdated and obsolete
information. Never assume this type of
information will somehow automatically
drop-off.
Sometimes you have to dispute the
outdated information in order to get it
deleted. For instance, any negative
information, over 7 years old should be
deleted, including collection accounts.
Bankruptcies over 10 years old should
also be deleted.
errors, inaccurate, outdated and obsolete
information. Never assume this type of
information will somehow automatically
drop-off.
Sometimes you have to dispute the
outdated information in order to get it
deleted. For instance, any negative
information, over 7 years old should be
deleted, including collection accounts.
Bankruptcies over 10 years old should
also be deleted.