Dispute Negative Information in Your
Credit Reports
by Lisa Phillips
March 2008
Credit Reports
by Lisa Phillips
March 2008
Tips for Disputing Negative Information
1. Get Credit Report. Order your credit report from all three major credit reporting agencies:
Experian, Equifax and Transunion.
See Credit Reports.
2. Look for Inaccurate Information. Review and analyze your report carefully. Start with your
personal information first such as name, address and telephone numbers. Dispute old address,
incorrect spellings of your name and telephone numbers. This can be done over the telephone with a
representative. Always document any conversation you have with a credit reporting agency. Get the
name of the person, their position, telephone extension along with the date and time of the
conversation and the nature of the call.
3. Opt-Out. The credit reporting agencies make money by selling your information. Opting out of
marketing lists protects your information. The marketing lists are not only sold to companies wanting
to send you unsolicited credit offers, they are also sold to collection agencies and those who
purchase debts. When you opt-out, your information will only be given to someone with "Permissible
Purposes". You can Opt-Out online or via telephone. Visit optoutprescreen.com or call
(888) 567-8688.
4. Identity Mistakes. Sometimes the Credit Reporting Agencys’ system will confuse people with
similar names and birth dates. They often confuse family members who have social security numbers
that are consecutively numbered. On occasion, if you can prove to the Social Security Administration
that having a number too similar to your sibling has been detrimental to you, they may consider
issuing you another number. Always dispute variations of your name, you'd be surprised how many
ways creditors can spell "John Smith".
5. Categorize Positive and Negative Entries. Review and highlight all negative entries.
Categorize your negative entries accordingly. You may want to deal with those items that are most
detrimental to your credit scores. Bankruptcy, Foreclosure, Tax Liens, Judgments, Repossession,
Defaulted Loans and Collections all rank high in damaging information. Deal with these first. Late
payments, Past due accounts and Inquiries can be dealt with on another round of dispute letters.
6. Bankruptcy Entries. If you have a bankruptcy listing, you must deal with the creditors first,
meaning, you should challenge those “accounts listed in bankruptcy” and get those items deleted
before you actually challenge the Bankruptcy listing.
7. Request Deletions. When disputing the high ranking items always go for a full deletion. Having
an item changed from “collection” to “paid collection” will not help your credit score. Unpaid and Paid
Collection entries hold the same negative weight. See Deletions
8. Undisclosed Negative Information. If you discover any negative information your original
creditor did not notify you of, your rights have been violated. The Fair Credit Reporting Act states
that a creditor must notify you of any negative information they have placed on your credit report.
Contact the creditor and let them know they are in violation of the FCRA and request they remove the
item.
9. Dispute Letters. All dispute letters should be sent certified mail with return receipt. Keep good
records as you may need them later. The credit reporting agencies have 30 days after receipt of
dispute to conduct an investigation and resolve the matter. If you have documentation to support your
dispute include that with your dispute letter.
10. Create an Emergency. The credit bureaus receive a vast amount of disputes daily so make sure
you create an urgency so that your dispute is taken seriously. Let them know you are in the process
of obtaining a mortgage loan and the errors in your report are hurting your chances of being
approved and/or causing the lender to only offer subprime interest rates.
11. E-Oscar Verification. Because the credit bureaus use one system of credit dispute verification,
E-Oscar, you may need to resubmit your dispute request if it comes back verified. E-Oscar is an
electronic dispute processing system of verification by which disputes are coded from among 26
categories such as “Not His/Hers”; Claims Inaccurate Information” “Claims Account Closed”.
Once coded, the dispute is automatically sent to the creditor without any human intervention. It does
not matter whether a consumer submits a dispute on-line, over the telephone or through the mail, the
E-Oscar method still utilizes the same method of coding the dispute under one of the 26 categories. In
fact, if you dispute on-line with a credit bureau you are presented a limited number, usually five (5) of
the dispute codes from E-Oscar's twenty-six (26) category codes.
Read more about the E-Oscar method of verifying credit disputes here:
www.house.gov/apps/list/hearing/financialsvcs_dem/osbennett061907.pdf
Congress is aware of the problems consumers encounter when challenging inaccurate credit reports
and hopefully help is on the way. Chairman of the House Financial Services Committee, Rep. Barney
Frank, says "There needs to be some way that consumers in a reasonable way can document the
error," Below is a brief video of a hearing regarding credit reporting agencies.
1. Get Credit Report. Order your credit report from all three major credit reporting agencies:
Experian, Equifax and Transunion.
See Credit Reports.
2. Look for Inaccurate Information. Review and analyze your report carefully. Start with your
personal information first such as name, address and telephone numbers. Dispute old address,
incorrect spellings of your name and telephone numbers. This can be done over the telephone with a
representative. Always document any conversation you have with a credit reporting agency. Get the
name of the person, their position, telephone extension along with the date and time of the
conversation and the nature of the call.
3. Opt-Out. The credit reporting agencies make money by selling your information. Opting out of
marketing lists protects your information. The marketing lists are not only sold to companies wanting
to send you unsolicited credit offers, they are also sold to collection agencies and those who
purchase debts. When you opt-out, your information will only be given to someone with "Permissible
Purposes". You can Opt-Out online or via telephone. Visit optoutprescreen.com or call
(888) 567-8688.
4. Identity Mistakes. Sometimes the Credit Reporting Agencys’ system will confuse people with
similar names and birth dates. They often confuse family members who have social security numbers
that are consecutively numbered. On occasion, if you can prove to the Social Security Administration
that having a number too similar to your sibling has been detrimental to you, they may consider
issuing you another number. Always dispute variations of your name, you'd be surprised how many
ways creditors can spell "John Smith".
5. Categorize Positive and Negative Entries. Review and highlight all negative entries.
Categorize your negative entries accordingly. You may want to deal with those items that are most
detrimental to your credit scores. Bankruptcy, Foreclosure, Tax Liens, Judgments, Repossession,
Defaulted Loans and Collections all rank high in damaging information. Deal with these first. Late
payments, Past due accounts and Inquiries can be dealt with on another round of dispute letters.
6. Bankruptcy Entries. If you have a bankruptcy listing, you must deal with the creditors first,
meaning, you should challenge those “accounts listed in bankruptcy” and get those items deleted
before you actually challenge the Bankruptcy listing.
7. Request Deletions. When disputing the high ranking items always go for a full deletion. Having
an item changed from “collection” to “paid collection” will not help your credit score. Unpaid and Paid
Collection entries hold the same negative weight. See Deletions
8. Undisclosed Negative Information. If you discover any negative information your original
creditor did not notify you of, your rights have been violated. The Fair Credit Reporting Act states
that a creditor must notify you of any negative information they have placed on your credit report.
Contact the creditor and let them know they are in violation of the FCRA and request they remove the
item.
9. Dispute Letters. All dispute letters should be sent certified mail with return receipt. Keep good
records as you may need them later. The credit reporting agencies have 30 days after receipt of
dispute to conduct an investigation and resolve the matter. If you have documentation to support your
dispute include that with your dispute letter.
10. Create an Emergency. The credit bureaus receive a vast amount of disputes daily so make sure
you create an urgency so that your dispute is taken seriously. Let them know you are in the process
of obtaining a mortgage loan and the errors in your report are hurting your chances of being
approved and/or causing the lender to only offer subprime interest rates.
11. E-Oscar Verification. Because the credit bureaus use one system of credit dispute verification,
E-Oscar, you may need to resubmit your dispute request if it comes back verified. E-Oscar is an
electronic dispute processing system of verification by which disputes are coded from among 26
categories such as “Not His/Hers”; Claims Inaccurate Information” “Claims Account Closed”.
Once coded, the dispute is automatically sent to the creditor without any human intervention. It does
not matter whether a consumer submits a dispute on-line, over the telephone or through the mail, the
E-Oscar method still utilizes the same method of coding the dispute under one of the 26 categories. In
fact, if you dispute on-line with a credit bureau you are presented a limited number, usually five (5) of
the dispute codes from E-Oscar's twenty-six (26) category codes.
Read more about the E-Oscar method of verifying credit disputes here:
www.house.gov/apps/list/hearing/financialsvcs_dem/osbennett061907.pdf
Congress is aware of the problems consumers encounter when challenging inaccurate credit reports
and hopefully help is on the way. Chairman of the House Financial Services Committee, Rep. Barney
Frank, says "There needs to be some way that consumers in a reasonable way can document the
error," Below is a brief video of a hearing regarding credit reporting agencies.
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Links
The major credit bureaus receive tons of information daily and mistakes are
often made. Disputing inaccurate items can raise your credit score if those
items are deleted or corrected. It is very common for credit files to contain
errors, inaccurate, outdated and obsolete information. Never assume this
type of information will somehow automatically drop-off.
often made. Disputing inaccurate items can raise your credit score if those
items are deleted or corrected. It is very common for credit files to contain
errors, inaccurate, outdated and obsolete information. Never assume this
type of information will somehow automatically drop-off.
More Resources
Chexsystems
ChexSystems is subject to
FCRA Rules and they must
investigate all disputes.
Debt Validation
Stop the collection process by
requesting a collection agency
to validate your debt.
Options to Foreclosure
There are options to
foreclosure, you do not have to
lose your home.
ChexSystems is subject to
FCRA Rules and they must
investigate all disputes.
Debt Validation
Stop the collection process by
requesting a collection agency
to validate your debt.
Options to Foreclosure
There are options to
foreclosure, you do not have to
lose your home.
Page 1 of 2
Sometimes you have to dispute the
outdated information in order to
get it deleted. For instance, any
negative information over 7 years
old should be deleted, including
collection accounts.
Bankruptcies over 10 years old
should also be deleted. You
should dispute any negative
information in your credit reports.
outdated information in order to
get it deleted. For instance, any
negative information over 7 years
old should be deleted, including
collection accounts.
Bankruptcies over 10 years old
should also be deleted. You
should dispute any negative
information in your credit reports.
The Fair Credit Reporting Act
(FCRA) says that the Credit Reporting Agency (CRA) and the credit card
company must correct errors and any incorrect information in your credit
file. This must be completed within thirty (30) days from the date your
dispute is made with the credit bureau. If the creditor fails to respond within
the thirty (30) day time frame, the incorrect entry will be deleted.
Information that Can be Disputed
The good news is that most information in your credit report can be
disputed, including names, addresses, telephone numbers and employment
information and the following major entries:
(FCRA) says that the Credit Reporting Agency (CRA) and the credit card
company must correct errors and any incorrect information in your credit
file. This must be completed within thirty (30) days from the date your
dispute is made with the credit bureau. If the creditor fails to respond within
the thirty (30) day time frame, the incorrect entry will be deleted.
Information that Can be Disputed
The good news is that most information in your credit report can be
disputed, including names, addresses, telephone numbers and employment
information and the following major entries:
- Bankruptcies
- Foreclosures
- Tax Liens
- Defaulted Loans
- Repossessions
- Judgments
- Collections
- Late mortgage payments
- Late revolving credit payments
- Inquiries
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