FAQs
How do I contact the credit bureaus?
What should my dispute letter look like?
What should I say in the body of the dispute letter?
Should I send the credit bureaus any supporting documents?
Should I keep copies?
How should I send my dispute letters?
How can I obtain my credit reports?
Who is allowed to get a copy of my report?
What is credit scoring?
Why is credit scoring used?
Where can I get more information on credit scores and credit reports?
How can I dispute inaccurate information on my credit reports?
What are my alternatives if the dispute process fails?
Do we take Fair Credit cases on a contingency basis?
How do I contact the credit bureaus?
Answer: Via the US Postal Service, Certified Mail, Return Receipt Requested!
Please dispute inaccuracies in your credit report by letter. Send the letters via Certified Mail, Return Receipt. You can get the forms from the Post Office. Creating a paper record of your efforts to resolve your credit reports is very important.
If the credit bureaus do not resolve the problems and you want to bring a lawsuit, you will need proof that you disputed the inaccurate items properly. Without copies of letters, with proof that they were received by the persons to whom you sent them, you can’t prove your case. Complaining by phone or by email via the internet may seem convenient to you now, but when you don’t get the results you want, you are not going to be able to prove your case.
Here are the mailing addresses for the credit bureaus:
Equifax
P.O. Box 740241
Atlanta, GA 30374-0241
Experian
P.O. Box 9554
Allen, TX 75013-9554
Trans Union
P.O. Box 1000
Chester, PA 19022
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What should my dispute letter look like?
1. Use your own letterhead. If you don’t have any letterhead that shows your name and address, create some by putting your name and address at the top of the page.
2. Date your letter. These letters establish a chronology of how hard you tried to get them to correct the errors. Without dates, no one can know the chronology.
3. Identify the credit bureau to which you are writing. That way the jury or court will know who this letter went to.
4. Identify the credit report you are writing about. Put in its name and address in a block before “Dear Sir or Madam.” If it is an Experian report, have a reference line that states the letter concerns “Experian report no. _______.” Don’t complain to Experian about a report from TransUnion or Equifax.
What should I say in the body of the dispute letter?
In the body of your letter, state that you are the person named above and you’re you are disputing certain items in your credit report. Then, separately for each item you are disputing, identify that item as shown in the report and clearly explain why it is inaccurate. We have provided some sample dispute letters to give you ideas how you might explain your own disputes.
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Should I send the credit bureaus any supporting documents?
Yes, attach copies of documents that support your claim. If an item is inaccurate because you have paid it in full and on time, include copies of your proof of payment. If the credit reporting agency has mixed into your credit report a delinquent electric bill for a person with a similar name who lives Cleveland and you live in San Francisco, enclose a copy of your PG&E bill for San Francisco.
If you enclose copies of documents with your letter to the credit bureau, make a record of that by listing the enclosures at the bottom of your letter (Don’t send originals. You may need them).
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Should I keep copies of these letters?
Don’t write on your file copies. Keep file copies of every letter you send out and every letter you receive. Your file copies should include copies of all the supporting documents you enclosed with your letter. Make the copies and staple them to your file copy.
Don’t use your file copies as a note pad. Notes should be kept on separate pieces of paper. If you are writing notes, remember to date your notes, to write legibly to record the conversation accurately. Get the name and address of each person with whom you are speaking.
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How should I send my dispute letters?
Mail your letters “Certified Mail, Return Receipt Requested.” This way you will have a record that proves when you sent the letter and when the credit bureau received it. This is very important because the credit bureaus are required to act within certain numbers of days after they receive your letter. You cannot establish when they should have responded unless you know when they got your letter.
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How can I obtain my credit reports?
You are entitled to a free copy of your credit reports once a year. We recommends request your free credit reports by mail. This way you have a record that you asked for it, the date when you asked for it, and the date when the credit bureau responded. Also, in this way you will receive a printed copy of your credit report.
Here are the mailing addresses for the credit bureaus:
Equifax
P.O. Box 740241
Atlanta, GA 30374-0241
Experian
P.O. Box 9554
Allen, TX 75013-9554
Trans Union
P.O. Box 1000
Chester, PA 19022
There is a website that you can use to order your free credit reports. It is www.annualcreditreport.com. Be careful. There are lots of websites with similar names, including some that have been set up by the credit bureaus. All of the others try to get you to sign up for some very expensive services that you probably don’t want when you request your “free” credit report. For this and other reasons, we strongly recommend that you send your request via mail to each credit bureau separately.
You can request your credit reports by phone, but we do not recommend it. You will not have any written record of your request or the date when you made it. Furthermore, some of the credit bureaus may have complex telephone trees in place where, if you push the wrong button, you may end up paying for an expensive subscription service! That said, here are their telephone numbers:
Experian 1-888-397-3742
Equifax 1-800-685-1111
Trans Union 1-800-888-4213
Finally, you can order copies of your credit report from the websites of the credit reporting agencies, but we recommend against doing it that way. If you use their websites, you are likely to be subscribing to expensive services you may not want.
www.experian.com
www.equifax.com
www.transunion.com
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Who is allowed to get a copy of my report?
The credit reporting agencies are supposed to furnish copies of your credit report only to people or businesses that have a permissible purpose to see your credit report, as listed in the Fair Credit Reporting Act. For example, a company is allowed to get your report if you apply for credit, insurance, or to rent an apartment. Your employer (or future employer) may do so only if you agree in writing. If you give someone written authorization to obtain your credit report, then they have a permissible purpose too. [Sometimes companies bury written authorizations in the fine print of a document they ask you to sign in return for some small giveaway like a t-shirt or a towel.]
An auto dealer may ask you to sign such an authorization before you take a test drive of a vehicle. When you return from the test drive, they have looked at your credit report and determined exactly how much you can afford to pay each month for a car payment. They use this information to get you to spend the maximum you can afford on a car.
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What is credit scoring?
Credit scoring is a system creditors use to help determine whether to give you credit.
Information about you and your credit experiences, such as your bill-paying history, the number and type of accounts you have, late payments, collection actions, outstanding debt, and the age of your accounts, is collected from your credit application and your credit report. Using a statistical program, creditors compare this information to the credit performance of consumers with similar profiles. A credit scoring system awards points for each factor that helps predict who is most likely to repay a debt. A total number of points — a credit score — helps predict how creditworthy you are, that is, how likely it is that you will repay a loan and make the payments when due.
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Why is credit scoring used?
Credit scoring is based on real data and statistics, so it usually is more reliable than subjective or judgmental methods. It treats all applicants objectively. Judgmental methods typically rely on criteria that are not systematically tested and can vary when applied by different individuals.
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Where can I get more information on credit scores and credit reports?
One of the best sources we have found is a paperback by Evan Hendricks called Credit Scores & Credit Reports. You may order it ($19.95) by going to www.creditscoresandcreditreports.com or from Amazon.
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How can I dispute inaccurate information on my credit reports?
The Fair Credit Reporting Act gives you the right to demand that the credit bureaus investigate inaccurate entries on your credit reports. The Fair Credit Reporting Act requires you to dispute the inaccurate information with the credit bureau, not the company that is reporting the inaccurate information. This may seem illogical and counter-intuitive, but it is the law. Send your dispute letters to the credit bureau. They are supposed to send the information on to the company that is furnishing the inaccurate information for reinvestigation.
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What are my alternatives if the dispute process fails?
You may sue the credit bureaus and companies that report inaccurate information under the FCRA.
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Do we take Fair Credit cases on a contingency basis?
Yes. The Fair Credit Reporting Act provides that the consumer’s attorney may seek and obtain attorney’s fees from the credit bureaus and other defendants, if the consumer prevails in the case. We carefully review the consumer’s claims and only agree to represent those whom we believe have strong claims. If we take your case, you will not have to pay us our hourly fees; we will seek our fees from the defendant.
To find out if you have a case under the Fair Credit Reporting Act, call us toll free at 415-651-1951 or contact us online.