By David Pilley on August 30, 2010
.jpg.aspx?width=75&height=75) If you have an adverse credit history, it can stick with you for a long time. Judgments, liens, late credit card payments, these blemishes can stay on your credit report up to seven years. Bankruptcy can stay on your report as long as ten years! One or more of these unhealthy marks can drive your credit down into the subprime area, and you could be turned down for a lot of possible loans.
But what happens if something is incorrect on your credit report? A late payment has a wrong date or a credit card bill has an incorrect balance? It could even happen that your Social Security number is incorrect on one or more of your accounts. It happens more than you think, and having incorrect information can lower your score even further. You need to clear your credit, and you need to do it fast.
Well, you can’t clear your credit quickly. It will take a few steps, lasting a few months. Just take a deep breath and take it easy.
First, you need to examine a copy of your credit report. Remember: Equifax, Experian, and TransUnion. These are the three major credit bureaus in the country. The only way to get a free credit report is to visit www.annualcreditreport.com. When you get your credit report, view it carefully. It could be that something as simple as your Social Security number is incorrect. Make sure all of your personal information is accurate. Other information to look for includes incorrect account histories, purchases and/or accounts that are not yours, any closed account that doesn’t say “closed by consumer,” and bankruptcies not identified by their chapter number.
If you find anything inaccurate, you then need to contact each of the three credit bureaus. Write a letter explaining what piece of information you are disputing. Give your full name, date of birth, mailing address, and Social Security number. When you are describing the information in dispute, give the name of your creditor and your account number. You will also want to supply any paperwork to state your case, such as a copy of a cancelled check showing accurate payment or paperwork showing a specific account is owned by someone else, possibly your former spouse, if that is the case.
Your creditor also needs to know what’s going on, so you should also contact your creditor and explain that you are disputing information. The information the creditor has about your account(s) must be the same information being reported to the credit bureaus. Once you make contact, the creditor should provide you a notice of your dispute when it reports the information to a credit bureau.
When a credit bureau receives your report, it has 30 days to investigate the information and report back to you. If the information is proven to be incorrect, the credit bureau must remove the information from your credit report. You can then order your new credit report. (Because you are allowed only one free credit report a year, this one might cost a few dollars.) Finally, if you think you might be a victim of fraud, you can contact the National Association of Consumer Advocates to get legal assistance. In this situation, though, it could take more than a few months to get everything straight. Don’t forget to take a deep breath.
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