Fixing Your Credit
Fixing credit reports is the responsibility of the credit reporting agencies. There are three major credit reporting agencies, Experian (TRW), Trans Union, and Equifax. Under the Fair Credit Reporting Act, consumers have the right to request an investigation of any information that they believe is incomplete or inaccurate in their credit report. Also, creditors can assist in fixing credit reports.
You should always check your credit report before you apply for credit. Ideally, you should request credit reports from all three credit reporting agencies because they don't always have the same information on the same individuals. If you applied for credit and were turned down, it may have resulted from incorrect or incomplete information contained in your credit report. Thus, it is of paramount importance that you check your credit report periodically.
If you find any errors in your credit report, you should immediately request an investigation in writing from all three credit reporting agencies. The credit reporting agency must verify errors in your credit report with the creditor. If the creditor does not respond in a reasonable period of time (usually 30 days) or the error is not verifiable, fixing your credit report will be required by the credit reporting agency. However, if the creditor responds and the information is correct, it can be put back on your credit report at a later time. After the credit agencies have made their investigations, they will notify you in writing if your file was changed accordingly.
If the credit reporting agencies respond, but the matter is not resolved to your satisfaction, you can submit a statement up to 100 words explaining any inaccurate entry in your credit report. According to the Fair Credit Reporting Act, the reporting agency must include the statement in your credit reports. Thus, the statement will appear on all subsequent reports to your credit grantors.
Creditors can become involved in fixing credit reports. You may contact the creditor directly, identifying the errors in your credit report in writing. If the creditor fixes the error, you should request again in writing that the creditor contact the reporting agency to clear your credit report of the errors. Also, you should obtain a copy of the creditor's correspondence with the credit reporting agency. You should request a copy of your credit report from all three credit reporting agencies to make sure all corrections were made or a statement made by you explaining an inaccuracy was included.
It is essential that you check your credit report at least once a year ( preferably every six months for any errors ). Any error left unchecked on your credit report can result in you being denied credit. Thus, fixing credit reports of inaccuracies is necessary for obtaining a loan or mortgage.
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