Credit Report Repair
Your Rights Regarding Credit Report Repair
Probably the most important step you can take to start credit report repair is to get copies of your credit history from the credit bureaus--Experian, Equifax, TransUnion. Until you can determine which information is factually correct, complete, and up-to-date, you cannot begin the process of credit report repair. Check all information carefully.
Make sure your name is correct, as well as, vital data: social security number, address, phone number, employer, date of birth, place of birth. An amazingly high percentage of credit reports have errors. Think about it. If just your middle name is wrong, you could easily be faulted for someone else's bad credit.
Procedures for Corrections and Removals
Go online and find the many Web sites that provide excellent consumer advice on methods to correct credit reports. The Fair Credit Reporting Act (FCRA) spells out your rights to have accurate credit reports on file with the reporting agencies. The Credit Repair Organization Act (CROA) regulates companies that engage in credit report repair, in case you choose to go that route instead of taking the time to do the work yourself.
Changing an accurate credit report is legally impossible. However, you have the right to dispute any item in your report any number of times--even if it is true. The reporting bureau must verify or re-verify that item each time you challenge it. If the bureau cannot verify it within a specific time, that item must be deleted from your file. In this sense, you can erase bad credit.
