The Fair Credit Reporting Act -15 U.S.C. §1681, et seq. ("FCRA"), is a federal statute which provides consumers with rights to accurate credit reporting by creditors and credit bureaus.  If you have been turned down for credit you have a right to examine your credit report for free by writing to the credit bureaus and requesting a copy of your credit report/file.  The FCRA provides for a sixty (60) day procedure in which you can dispute inaccurate information appearing on your credit report/file and demand the credit bureaus contact the entity reporting inaccurate information to verify the authenticity.  If the entity verifies the inaccurate information as correct, and the credit bureau continues to report the information you may have a right to money damages under the FCRA.

Common violations of the FCRA are:

(1) Merged Credit - This occurs when two persons have similar identifying information or characteristics.  For example when a father and some or mother and daughter share the same name and are Jr./Sr.  It occurs with persons you do not know or are not related to.  For example, when someone else shares a social security number that is different by only one or two digits.  In the aforementioned examples, someone else's information may get merged into your credit report, thus causing you to be denied credit.

(2) Inaccurate Information - Most common mistake made by credit reporting agencies is where there is a "trade line" (description of credit obligation owed by you (example mortgage or car payment)) that not accurate.  For example, your Ford Motor Credit (car loan) is showing that you have been late four (4) times or that your account is in repossession status.  These reports hurt you credit score when you attempted to obtain credit from another entity.  If any trade line is being reported inaccurately it is necessary for you to dispute the inaccuracy with the credit bureaus.   If they refuse to update or correct the trade line within sixty (60) days of receiving your written dispute you may be entitled to money damages under the FCRA.

Attorney’s fees and costs of litigation are also recoverable under this statute.

Fix Your Own Credit:

Number 1: Get Copies of Your Credit Reports

·         Click here for a sample letter to the major credit bureaus to obtain consumer copies of your credit reports MS Word© Format or Adobe© PDF Format

·         Cut, paste and customize this letter with your information and then send it out to all of the major credit reporting agencies. 

·         Remember, the reports will cost you $3.00 each in the state of Minnesota (around $9.00 in most other states) unless you attach a copy of a credit denial letter you have received in the past 60 days which was based upon the information that that credit bureau provided.

·         Save any and all of credit denial letters you receive, including the envelopes.

·         Save clean, original copies of each of the credit reports you have receive after you send your requests out.

·         Save a copy of what you send to the credit bureaus requesting the reports.

·         Online Users Beware: You may be tempted to get your credit reports on-line either directly from the credit bureaus or through a "consolidated" credit reporting service.  We don't recommend online reports for several important reasons: 1) Online service has been "hit or miss" with some of the credit bureaus; 2) consolidated reports are harder to link directly back to the particular source of the incorrect information; 3) the print outs are often harder to read than original reports. 

·         Our Advice: Take the time and send the manual letters.  They create a great paper trail.

Number 2: Examine All Credit Entries & Inquiries

·         Once you get all four of your consumer credit reports back, sit down and thoroughly review every account and company name on your reports.

·         Make sure that all of the information on the account, including late payment history, high credit, and monthly payments is accurate for every account.

·         Make accurate notes of any errors because you will use this information to create a second letter to request that your report be corrected.

·         Next, thoroughly examine and review every person and company listed who has obtained your credit report.

·         If there are inquiries on your credit reports which you don't recognize, try to investigate them thoroughly and eliminate any possibility that the access of your credit report was permissible.

·         Your current creditors, insurance underwriters, debt collectors who are collecting from you, and people who expect to loan you money have a right to access your credit report.

·         Inquires made for promotional purposes are legal as well and are usually indicated with a special code such as "PRM" for promotional or other specific language on the credit report.

Number 3: Send A Correction Request Letter

·         Click here for a sample letter to the major credit bureaus to request corrections to your credit reports in MS Word© Format or Adobe© PDF Format.

·         Again, cut, paste and customize this letter with your information and then send it out to all of the affected credit reporting agencies that are showing the inaccurate information.

·         You are not required to, but you may also choose to use the correction form provided by the credit bureau along with your new credit report.  Sometimes these forms have too little space or not enough room to explain the problem you have.

·         Save a copy of what you send to the credit bureaus requesting the corrections.

Number 4: Review Your Updated Credit Reports

·         Within thirty (30) days or so, after you have sent your request letter, you can expect a copy of any updated credit report showing what corrections have been made, what has been deleted, and what remains unchanged.

·         If you still dispute inaccurate information that is on your credit reports then it's time to contact our office immediately.  Your claims under the FCRA must be brought within two years or they will be forever barred by the applicable statute of limitations. 

Sample Letters to Credit Bureaus

Letter To Get Copies of Your Credit Reports

Your Name

Your Address

Your City, State and Zip

Your Daytime and Evening Phone Numbers

(DATE)

To Whom it May Concern:

Below is the information you require for a current copy of my consumer credit report.  I have also enclosed the $3.00 fee under Minnesota State Law for a current copy of my consumer credit report.  Please forward a current copy of my consumer credit report to my current home address.

Also attached are copies of each of the following documents to prove my identity:

·         My driver’s license;

·         My current pay stub or most recent W-2 form; and,

·         My bill from a major creditor or utility company

Sincerely,

Your Name

Enclosures

Letter To Request Corrections to Your Credit Reports:

Your Name

Your Address

Your City, State and Zip

Your Daytime and Evening Phone Numbers

(DATE)

Dear Sir or Madam:

I am writing to dispute the following information in my file.  The items I dispute also are circled on the attached copy of the report I received. (Identify item(s) disputed by name of source, such as creditors or court, and identify type of item, such as credit account, judgment, etc.)

(List Accounts and reason for dispute, i.e. amount, late payment, account not mine, etc.)

I believe I am a victim of identity theft, and did not make the charge(s). I am requesting that the item be blocked to correct my credit report.

Enclosed are copies of (use this sentence if applicable and describe any enclosed documentation) supporting my position.  Please investigate this (these) matter(s) and clock the disputed item(s) as soon as possible.

Also attached is a copy of my driver’s license and other documentation to prove my identity.  I have also listed my other identifying information below to assist you in identifying my credit report properly.

Thank you and I look forward to your immediate reply.

Sincerely,

Your Name

Enclosures

Sample Statements:

·   By agreement with the creditor, __________, this account was to be deleted and removed from my ____ Credit Report.  It should be removed immediately. 

·   The creditor agreed that this account was not my responsibility, but if I paid it in its entirety it would be removed from the report.  It has not been removed from the report and I am being unfairly victimized by ______ because of this inaccurate credit information.

·    This account belongs to my former spouse with whom I am now divorced.  It was never a joint account and it should not appear on my credit report.

·   I am a victim of identity theft.  Please see the attached FTC Identity Theft Affidavit.  Remove this account information immediately.

·   You have inaccurately listed my address.  I have never lived at this address.  This address should be deleted from my credit report immediately.  If you do not delete this, I demand you place a statement identical to my above statement on my credit report.

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