Disputing A Credit Report Successfully
The ability of successfully disputing a credit report is critical because just one small error in your report can have far reaching consequences on your life. Not only will it be difficult for you to get credit at a good rate if at all, but even a new job offer could easily be jeopardized. Not to mention you having to pay more for insurance.
Your credit report will usually be very detailed and will include information that indicates whether you have ever been sued or arrested or if you have fled for bankruptcy. It will also present a picture of how you usually pay your bills—late, on time or ahead of the due date, whatever the case may be.
And so it makes plenty of sense for you to know exactly what you will need to do in the event that there is an error in your credit report. But to start with you will need to always ensure that your current credit report is accurate. The best time you want to be disputing a credit report is as soon as possible and not when a situation develops where it impacts negatively on you.
To ensure that your information is always accurate you should request your credit report every four months and it does not need to cost you anything. This is because you ordinarily qualify for one free report annually from each of the three big bureaus and so all you need to do is to go through them approaching one of them every four months until the end of the year when you can start over.
Each time you receive a report you must take the time to carefully go through it and in the event that you see some incorrect information the right procedure is for you to contact the bureau right away and also the organization where the incorrect information originated from. Both are bound by the law to speedily investigate and correct any errors.
One of the options open for you in disputing a credit report is to do so online which is the most convenient way. However this is not a good idea. It is better for you to write a letter and send it out via certified mail. Your letter should clearly point to the error and should be accompanied by any supporting documents that you may have in your possession. Your letter should also state what kind of correction you would like to be taken.
According to the law the bureau has to investigate your complaint within 30 days and take the necessary remedial steps. Not only that, they will have to write to you notifying you of the changes they make while attaching a copy of your file which has been updated with the changes.
You can go further and request to have this information sent out to anybody who has requested your file for employment purposes over the last two years and also to anybody who has received it six months prior to the error and correction.
Disputing a credit report with this knowledge will enable you to always get speedy redress.
