How to Dispute Inquiries on My Credit Report

The number of inquiries into your credit report may not seem like a big deal, but it affects your credit score. If you have too many inquiries in a short amount of time, your credit score will be lowered, because it indicates that you might be searching for loans or gathering credit lines from many sources. If you have concerns about an inquiry on your credit report, you should dispute the inquiry to protect your credit.

Instructions

1

Obtain copies of your credit report. You can request free copies of your credit report once a year from each of the three reporting agencies: Equifax, Experian and Transunion (see Resources).

2

Determine whether you initiated the inquiry. Review each inquiry carefully, paying close attention to whether you authorized the inquiry. For instance, you may see authorized inquiries, such as credit card applications or loan requests, but you may also find some unauthorized inquiries, such as promotional inquires.

3

Contact each company that made an unauthorized hard inquiry. Write the company a letter explaining that its inquiry was unauthorized and that you want the inquiry removed (see Resources). If the company believes you authorized the inquiry, ask for written proof.

4

Get confirmation. Your letter to the company that made the inquiry should include a request for written confirmation that the inquiry was removed from your credit report, but you also should verify it yourself. Request credit reports from all three credit bureaus again, and if the inquiry is still listed, contact the company and strongly request further action.

5

If the credit bureau is at fault for not removing the inquiry, file a dispute with the bureau and send documentation that the inquiry should be removed (see Resources).