Credit bureaus compile credit reports on individuals. These reports help banks and financial organizations determine the credit risk of a borrower. According to the Federal Trade Commission, your credit report determines whether or not you qualify for a loan and the interest rate on a loan. Sometimes, companies report inaccurate information to a credit bureau. Individuals have a right to fix these discrepancies under the Fair Credit Reporting Act.
Warning
Sometimes creditors make errors or identify thieves gain access to your personal information. Some people do not realize inaccurate information is on their credit report until they are denied employment or a loan. Under federal law, Americans have a right to receive a credit report within 60 days of receiving a job or loan rejection based upon their credit history. The business must provide the name, phone number and address of the credit reporting company.
Considerations
Under federal law, individuals have a right to a free credit report on an annual basis from each of the three major credit bureaus: Experian, TransUnion and Equifax. Consumers may order these free reports online in order to investigate any discrepancies in their credit history. People in Colorado, Georgia, Maine, Maryland, New Jersey and Vermont have unlimited access to credit reports with no fees.
Dispute
After finding errors in a credit report, you should write a letter to the credit bureau detailing why the information on the report is inaccurate. Include copies of documents that prove your claim. You should send the letter "return receipt request," to have proof that the letter arrived at the bureau. Credit bureaus may not charge a fee in order to resolve inaccurate information in a report.
Time Frame
According to the FTC, credit reporting companies must respond to any consumer requests within 30 days, except in the instance of frivolous claims. Resolving inaccurate information in a credit report may take some time, especially if you have to send letters back and forth with the bureau to prove your case. Credit reporting agencies will automatically remove any information from a credit report after seven years.
Resolution
If a single credit reporting company fixes an error in your credit report, it must send notices of the correction to the other credit bureaus at your request. If the reporting company decides to not correct the information, you can choose to have a note about the dispute added your credit file.
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