Negative information on your credit report can hinder your chances of securing financing on large purchases and qualifying for loans, or make it harder for you to rent an apartment. While legitimate negative information will stay on your credit report for several years, depending on the default type, you can ask credit bureaus to remove erroneous negative information from your report.
Reporting Credit Bureaus
Even though you can order a credit report from one source, information provided by three separate credit bureaus make up this report: TransUnion, Experian and Equifax. If you find an error on the credit report that causes you to have a negative score, or you are a victim of identity theft, contact the credit bureau that shows the error, not all three bureaus. Errors that affect your credit report negatively can include claims that you went over a spending limit on a credit card, debt payment defaults, late payments and lines of credit that you did not open that resulted from identity theft.
Contacting Credit Bureaus
If you find negative information on a credit report that you want to dispute, you can file a claim through the respective credit bureau's website by filling out an online dispute form. The Federal Trade Commission recommends on its website that you write a letter to the respective credit bureau to make it aware of the negative information that you found and want to dispute. However, before you contact a credit bureau, the FTC recommends you make a list of all the negative information you wish to dispute, starting with the oldest error. According to the FTC, it can take up to a month for a credit bureau to begin an investigation regarding a dispute.
Written Requests
When you write a letter to a credit bureau, let the bureau know that you found false negative information on your credit report. Explain that you want the negative information removed and that you want to file a dispute. In the letter, list the accounts that have the negative information, the dates of the errors and a description of each error found. It is a good idea to enclose documents that support your claims and let the bureau know about the included paperwork when you write the letter, along with a copy of your credit report. In addition to mentioning the documents in the body of the letter, write "Enclosures:" a few spaces below your signature, followed by a list of the documents you provided.
Support Documents
Including support documents with your written request helps prove that you have just cause to file a claim. Documents that can help support your claim include bills, canceled checks, bank statements, and in the case of identity theft, police reports. Do not send the original versions of your support documents. Instead, provide the credit bureau with a copy of your credit reports and supporting documents. On the copy of your credit report, use a highlighter to indicate the negative information you want removed. Then, use a highlighter to mark the areas on your support documents that prove that a negative credit event did not occur.
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