Tips on disputing errors on your credit report

 
By ALEX VEIGA, AP Business Writer | Published: February 12, 2013    Comment on this article Leave a comment

NewsOK Related Articles

• Be patient. Once a dispute is received, credit bureaus are required to respond within 30 days. The credit bureau will contact the lender that provided the information that is under dispute. At that point, the lender looks into the matter. If a fix is made, the lender must alert all three credit bureaus of the error. When the investigation is complete, the credit bureau must provide written results and a free copy of your report.

• Contact lenders. Another option: Reach out to the lender on the account where the error showed up and ask that they update the credit bureaus with correct information.

• Contact the CFPB. Not getting anywhere with the credit bureaus? Try the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau, a federal agency with the authority to write and enforce rules for the credit reporting industry and to monitor the compliance of the three agencies. Consumers can file a credit reporting complaint online at www.consumerfinance.gov/complaint or by phone by calling (855) 411-CFPB (2372).

• Avoid credit repair firms. The Federal Trade Commission has warned consumers against firms that offer services claiming to improve a person's credit report for a fee. Such firms can't do anything that you couldn't do yourself.

Associated Press