Category Archives: Disputing Credit Reports

Information related to disputing inaccurate information on your credit report in Fairfax, Arlington, Alexandria, Sterling, Manasass, Woodbridge, Fredericksburg, Stafford, and Richmond, Virginia.

Should you hire a credit repair company?

Disputing Credit Reports

Boastful advertising claims promising to remove bad credit and raise credit scores are found on the Internet by companies that claim the ability to clean your credit history. Many of these claims are false, the actions taken to “repair” your credit may actually do more harm than good, and credit repair could impede your ability to raise your credit score. Given that you can dispute inaccurate information on your credit report for free, I  do not believe that consumers need to hire a credit repair company.  Moreover, the Federal Trade Commission often prosecutes unscrupulous credit repair companies under the Credit Repair Organization Act (CROA), and therefore, in my opinion,  a consumer is really taking a chance when hiring one of these companies.

The CROA is a federal law that regulates how a credit repair company contracts and performs its credit repair services for consumers. The stated purpose of the CROA is “to protect the public from unfair or deceptive advertising and business practices by credit repair organizations.”  15 U.S.C. 1679(b).  To achieve this purpose, the CROA requires that a credit repair organization provide mandatory disclosures at the the time of contract.  Among the required disclosures are: the total cost of the services as well as the payment requirements; disclosure as to all promises related to performance; and a description of what the credit repair organization will do for the consumer. In addition, the CROA prohibits the credit repair organization from receiving payment for services until those services are fully performed. The CROA also requires that the credit repair organization provide a prospective purchaser of its services with a three day right to cancel after the consumer signs the contract.  For more information on the pitfalls related to credit repair organizations, I recommend that you visit the FTC’s website at

http://www.ftc.gov/bcp/edu/pubs/consumer/credit/cre13.shtm

An unrealized problem for many consumers that hire credit repair organizations is that credit reporting agencies are prepared for the tactics employed by the credit repair company, and consumers may hurt their credit file as result of engaging in “credit repair.” Many credit repair organizations try to game the credit reporting system by engaging in numerous and repeated credit disputes in an effort to trip up the credit reporting agency or furnisher based upon the timing requirements of the FCRA reinvestigation duties. In the long run, these activities can hurt a consumer because the efforts are often associated with deceptive statements regarding legitimately past due debt. A consumer should never make a deceptive statement about a credit account or allow a deceptive statement to be made on their behalf by a credit repair organization. Moreover, consumers with legitimate inaccuracies on their credit report and victims of identity theft are better suited to write their own credit dispute letters with attachments supporting their arguments.  Credit repair organization letters that I have seen are often short generic form letters that do not describe properly the consumer’s credit dispute.  You will get much better results in the long run by writing your own dispute letter without the cost of hiring a credit repair organization.  For my previous post on how you can write your own credit dispute letter, please see

https://yourfaircreditlawyernow.com/?p=36

 

 

 

 

How to Examine Your Consumer Report For Inaccuracies

Disputing Credit Reports

When you request a copy of your “credit report” from a consumer reporting agency, you are actually receiving a document that is a consumer report often referred to as a consumer file disclosure.  Under the FCRA, a credit report is consumer credit information that a CRA provided to third parties like banks, car dealers, and mortgage brokers.  A consumer report is simply that same credit information, however it sent directly to you the consumer not a third party.  Pursuant to Section 1681g of the FCRA, you are entitled to receive an exact copy of the entire contents of the credit file that the CRA maintains on you that it sends to third parties as a credit report.

The consumer reports provided by Experian, Trans Union, and Equifax all have a different appearance and layout, but the types of information maintained on the report are basically the same.  Some furnishers only report to one of the three main CRAs, so an account may appear on only one out of the three credit files.  Moreover, if you obtain a consumer report from a third party vendor, the appearance and ordering of the information can change.  In general, there are five main groups of information that appear on all consumer reports including: background information, public record information, prior credit account history, inquiries, and FCRA required disclosures.

On the top of your consumer credit report, the CRA provides you with the background information associated with the credit file as well as a credit file number.  The background identifying information includes: name, address, former addresses, date of birth, partial social security number, and employment data.  You should check this information carefully to make sure that none of the information is inaccurate.  If you are the victim of identity theft, many times you will see information related to the identity thief such as addresses and dates of birth that are unrelated to your actual identifying information.  Make sure you dispute any of the information that is inaccurate as incorrect background information can cause erroneous credit accounts to be associated with your credit file. For information on how to dispute inaccurate information in your credit file, please see my prior post:

https://yourfaircreditlawyernow.com/?p=36

Following your background information, you will see public record information, which can be some of the most damaging information on a credit file.  Many credit denials are the result of inaccurate judgment information, inaccurate bankruptcy information, or inaccurate tax liens.  You should carefully review the reported public record information to make sure that no information related to another consumer has been mixed up with your credit information.

Next, you will typically see information related to your past credit accounts.  Some CRAs will list the adverse accounts in a separate section of the report, while others will simply report the accounts in alphabetical order.  Attention to detail is vital as you review these accounts because account number and creditor names can change. Because of these changes, it can be difficult to determine if a particular account is yours.  If you see credit accounts that are not yours or accounts that are reporting inaccurate late payments, include a description why the account(s) are inaccurate when you send a credit dispute letter to the credit reporting agency.

Following your credit account information, you will see information related to third party inquires into your credit history.  These inquiries will include both “hard inquires” and “soft inquiries.”  When reviewing your inquiries, please make sure that you either authorized the credit inquiry or that the creditor had a legitimate business reason for acquiring a copy of your credit report.  “Soft inquiries” do not affect your credit score and can be acquired by companies that want to establish a business relationship with you.  Be careful when dealing with companies that have acquired your information via a soft inquiry as in some instances they can be companies that have poor records with organizations like the Better Business Bureau.

Finally, all CRAs are required to provide you with important notices regarding your rights under the FCRA.  At the end of the consumer report, you should receive a summary of your consumer rights as well as a list of regulatory agencies that you may contact.  If you are reviewing your consumer report and notice anything unusual, inaccurate, or wrong, please do not hesitate to contact me at my office, 571-313-0412.

Inaccurate Credit Reports Because of Mixed Credit Files and Merged Credit Files

Disputing Credit Reports, Employment Credit Reports, ,

A mixed credit file or a merged credit file occurs when another consumer’s credit information is placed erroneously on your credit report.  Despite the fact that the responsibility for the debt is that of another consumer, a credit reporting agency will attribute that information to your credit report.  This situation can lead to disastrous consequences because the information can cost you a mortgage, a job, or to pay higher interest rates.

As you would expect, both furnishers and credit reporting agencies can be the source of the incorrect credit account that appears on your credit report.  Mixed credit files and merged credit files occur for consumers because of the manner that credit reporting agencies acquire and organize their data.  Originally, furnishers provide information to credit reporting agencies about consumer accounts.  Furnishers provide this data electronically by including identifying information like name, address, and social security number.  If the information provided by the furnisher to the credit reporting agency is incorrect or missing, then the credit reporting agency can match the information to the wrong consumer’s file.  Incorrect file matching occurs because the credit reporting agencies do not maintain one file for each consumer.  The credit reporting agencies maintain pieces of individual data in their records and then associate and match similar data based upon complicated algorithms that are proprietary secrets.  While these algorithms are closely guarded secrets, we know some information about the process through discovery in litigation of mixed and merged credit file cases.  Typically, a nine for nine social security number match is not required to associate one piece of credit information with a particular credit file,  and other criteria like name and address are factors into the decision as to which file to place a credit account.  A name and address alone may be enough for incorrect data to match to your file and cause a completely different credit file to ultimately merge into your credit file as part of the computerized matching process.  Accordingly, people with common names have a higher chance to be the victim of mixed and merged credit files.  Inappropriately merged credit files typically occur when an existing credit file begins to more closely match your credit file with the credit reporting agency. Identity theft victims also can have the identity theif’s actual bad credit merge into the good credit of the victim.

Common mixed credit file and merged credit file causes include:

  1. Transposition errors in social security numbers.
  2. Incorrect name being attributed to a social security number.
  3. Different versions of your name like nicknames and maiden names.
  4. Mismatching information related to Jr., Sr., and III suffixes

Correcting inaccurate credit information as a result of mixed credit files or merged credit files is accomplished in the same manner as any other credit report inaccuracy.  Please review my previous blog post on how to dispute inaccurate information information on your credit report.

If you would like to contact me with any questions, or potential referral to a lawyer in your area, please contact me at 571-313-0412.

How do I get a free copy of my credit report?

Disputing Credit Reports, FAQ, , ,

The fastest way to get a free copy of your credit report is to obtain the report through www.annualcreditreport.com.  You may also obtain a free copy of your credit report by calling 1-877-322-8228, or through the mail by  completing  the Annual Credit Report Request Form and mailing it to: Annual Credit Report Request Service, P.O. Box 105281, Atlanta, GA 30348-5281.  The Federal Trade Commission also has a short video on free credit reports that you can review as well.

The FCRA requires certain credit reporting agencies to provide you with one free copy of your credit report per year. The important thing to remember is the correct website to visit in order to obtain your free credit report. The website is:

www.annualcreditreport.com

When you visit the website, you will need to know basic details about your financial life in order to answer security questions. Initially, you will enter obvious items like your name, address, and social security number.  As you enter a specific credit reporting agency website, you will answer more difficult questions about your financial history to verify your identity.  Examples include prior street address names and numbers, monthly payment amounts for certain debts, and maybe even the names of prior roommates.

You do not need to purchase anything to obtain a free copy of your credit report.  You may be solicited for optional items like credit scores and credit monitoring, but you need not purchase anything in order to see your free credit report.

Because their are three main credit reporting agencies, I like to review one free report every four months by staggering the individual reports that I obtain for free.  A good reference point is near your birthday with scheduled reminders to get another free report four months later.  By viewing credit reports in this fashion, you are getting periodic snapshots to make sure that no new inaccuracies are on any credit report.

I would print off and maintain in your records the copies of the reports that you obtain.  This creates a baseline snapshot of your credit file if you are ever the victim of inaccurate credit reporting, identity theft, a mixed credit file, merged credit file, or multiple credit files.  Monitoring the contents of your credit file is important in protecting your future.  Do not delay, get a free copy of your credit report today.

 

Reporting Restrictions On Old Obsolete Credit Accounts.

Disputing Credit Reports

If you were wondering when old, derogatory, yet accurate credit information comes off your credit report, there is good news and bad news regarding FCRA provisions that restrict the reporting of old or “obsolete” credit information on your credit file.  The good news is that the FCRA places significant restrictions on what old derogatory information may be reported on your credit file by a credit reporting agency.  The bad news is that in practice, the rules provide opportunities for unscrupulous debt collectors to “re-age” derogatory credit information, so it remains on your credit file longer than permitted by law.

With many exceptions, the general rule is that a consumer can expect to have derogatory credit accounts remain on their credit file for seven years. The date of the first delinquency determines the beginning date for calculation of the obsolescence period.  The end date for the reporting of derogatory information depends on the type of debt and circumstances surrounding the debt.  It is important to note that the date of first delinquency for the debt should not change if the debt is sold and is not altered by payment arrangements.

A credit reporting agency may report an account that is not charged off for seven years from the date of first delinquency.  An account that has been charged off or placed for collection more than 180 days after the date of first delinquency may be reported by the credit reporting agency for seven years and 180 days.  Finally, if the account is placed for collection or charged off before the expiration of 180 days from the date of first delinquency, the seven year period runs from the date of charge off or when the account is first placed for collection. Bankruptcy will remain on your credit file for 10 years, and different time periods apply for judgments, tax liens, criminal records, and certain student loans.

Sometimes a debt collector will “re-age” an old past due debt that should not otherwise appear on your credit file.  Re-aging occurs when the debt collector incorrectly reports the initial date of delinquency, commonly as the date that they acquired the debt. By reporting the account in this fashion, the seven year reporting period is improperly extended, which causes the collection account to remain on the consumer’s credit file longer than permitted.  Debt collectors like debts to remain on a consumer’s credit file because it provides them significant leverage to obtain payment on an old account.

If you are the victim of old information that should be removed from your credit report, your best recourse is to dispute the information with the credit reporting agency by informing them of the facts and circumstances supporting your position. For information on disputing inaccurate information in your credit file, please see my earlier blog post: https://yourfaircreditlawyernow.com/?p=36

In addition to FCRA claims against credit reporting agencies and furnishers related to old, obsolete credit information, the re-aging of collection accounts by a debt collector may also be a violation of the Fair Debt Collection Practices Act.  Given the different rules at play regarding this topic, you should not hesitate to contact a local consumer protection lawyer.  I am located in Virginia at 571-313-0412, but I would be happy to speak with you about your situation for a potential referral to a lawyer in your area.

 

What happens after you send your credit dispute letter.

Disputing Credit Reports,

After you have mailed your credit dispute letter and supporting documentation to a credit reporting agency (CRA), the process typically results with your letter being
outsourced to another country like India, Costa Rica, Jamaica, or the Philippines
for processing.  Whether you disputed credit information with Equifax, Experian, Trans Union, or another CRA will ultimately determine the particular country in which your dispute is outsourced.  When the CRA receives the credit dispute letter, it normally has the dispute letter with attachments scanned into its system.  Next, the CRA has the foreign-based processor review the letter and documentation to identify your particular type of dispute and select a code number that best describes your particluar dispute. At this point, the CRA must notify the furnisher of your dispute. The FCRA presently requires that the CRA must notify the furnisher of the dispute within five business days of receiving your credit dispute letter.  The CRA will send notice of your dispute through an electronic system known as E-OSCAR via a form called an Automated Consumer Dispute Verification form or “ACDV”.  The furnisher of the disputed credit information will receive the ACDV and has a duty to conduct a reasonable investigation of the dispute.

I think that it is helpful to imagine your credit dispute letter running on two parallel train tracks, one with the CRA and one with the furnisher of the information.  When the CRA reviews your dispute, if it determines that the disputed information is inaccurate,
incomplete, or cannot be verified, it has to delete the item of information or change the information as appropriate given the results of its reinvestigation.  The time required for a CRA to complete its investigation depends on certain factors and can be extended, but a good rule of thumb is that a CRA has about thirty days to complete the investigation of your credit dispute.  In addition, the furnisher of the disputed credit information also has a responsibility to investigate your dispute.  The furnisher should make a detailed inquiry into its records to assure that the information reported is full, complete, and accurate.  Often times the furnisher will only check its computer records to determine if it has already made a decision regarding the disputed account and will not conduct the thorough analysis required.  After the furnisher completes its investigation, it will send a response to back to the credit reporting agency.

When the investigation of your credit dispute letter is concluded, the CRA must send you notice of the results of the reinvestigation. The results of the reinvestigation will typically be mailed to you unless you have authorized some other method of notice.  The notice of the results of the reinvestigation should also include notice that you may request a description of the procedure used to determine the accuracy of your disputed
information.  It can be a good idea to request this information from a CRA if incorrect information remains on your credit file or if the source of the information is of dubious origin.  You will also receive notice of the right to have previous users of your credit file notified of the disputed account.  Finally, you also have the right to place a statement of dispute in your credit file describing why you believe a certain item of information is incorrect.  As with the credit dispute letter you send, you will want to keep a copy of the results of the reinvestigation of your dispute letter. If you have many disputes with multiple CRAs, you will probably want to purchase a multi-pocket file folder as your records will become numerous. If your disputed credit report information remains on your credit report following the initial credit dispute letter, I would recommend that you contact an attorney that specializes in credit report litigation.

 

How do I dispute inaccurate Equifax, Trans Union, or Experian credit reports?

Disputing Credit Reports, FAQ, , , ,

Mail a written credit dispute letter along with supporting documentation to the credit reporting agency that reports the inaccurate information.  The letter should include your identifying information (name, date of birth, social security number) , an identification of the inaccurate information, a description why the information is inaccurate, and any documents that support why the information reported is inaccurate.  If you wish to discuss your letter before mailing it to the credit reporting agency, please call me at 703-390-2905. 

The reason you want to send this is information is related to the provisions of the Fair Credit Reporting Act (FCRA).  Under the FCRA, a consumer must initiate the dispute of an inaccurate credit report directly through a credit reporting agency (CRA) in order to trigger the liability provisions of the act. This means that you must send your credit report dispute letter including documents related to your dispute to the credit reporting agency (typically Equifax, Trans Union, and Experian). You may also want to provide a copy of the dispute to the furnisher of the incorrect information, but providing the information directly to the furnisher will not trigger your right to file a lawsuit.  After the CRA receives the dispute, it has a duty to send a notice of the dispute to the furnisher of the information.  Under the FCRA, both a CRA and a furnisher have a duty to conduct a “reasonable investigation” of the information that you have disputed.  Because reasonableness can often be in the eye of the beholder, certain information will increase the chances that an investigation of your credit report dispute will be resolved in your favor.

First, a good dispute letter should clearly identify your name, address, social security number, and date of birth.  By providing this information, you reduce the chance that the CRA can claim that they could not locate your credit information in their data base.

Second, you should clearly identify the account(s) that you are disputing as well as describe the facts supporting your position why the credit reporting is incorrect.  Often times a CRA can claim that they do not want to resolve disputes between you and a third party furrnisher.  To minimize this argument, you can identify the facts that demonstrate why your position is clearly correct and reference as many documents as necessary to demonstrate why the information reported is inaccurate.  You should also include the supporting documentation as part of your dispute package. Letters, invoices, and/or contracts involving the furnisher of disputed information can make for good proof of your argument.  In the event that you are a victim of identity theft, you should also include an identity theft affidavit, police report, and/or identification of the police report number with the investigating officer named.  For information about dealing with the affects of identity theft, please review this post on what to do if you are an identity theft victim.

Third, include a statement that describes how the inaccurate credit reporting is hurting you and request that the CRA take immediate action to solve your problem.  Whether that means correcting an inaccurate account, deleting a judgment that is not yours, or removing a false criminal conviction from an inaccurate employment credit report, you should request that the CRA stop reporting the inaccurate information.  If you have lost a job because of an inaccurate employment credit report or lost a mortgage because of an inaccurate credit report, I would tell the CRA the details in the dispute letter.

Finally, I recommend that you personally sign your letter, make a copy of the signed letter including the attachments for your records, and mail the letter via both first class mail and certified mail return receipt requested.  The Federal Trade Commission also publishes information that you can consult when disputing inaccurate information which is located at http://www.ftc.gov/bcp/edu/pubs/consumer/credit/cre21.pdf.  If you ever have any questions, you can also contact me.