An Inaccurate Credit Report
In America, we often make purchases with credit. However, stores, car dealers, banks, or other lenders typically review our credit report before deciding whether to extend credit to us to make a purchase on credit or to determine the interest rate that we will pay. A lower interest rate generally results in less amount of money we spend for the item than the amount of money we purchase on credit. Thus, credit reports are important, but what are credit reports?
Organized by credit bureaus and used by lenders, employers, and insurers, credit reports are detailed records of people’s credit history. They include personal information, financial accounts, and sometimes investigations about particular entries. Credit reports show where people live, how they pay bills and if they pay on time, whether they have been arrested or sued, and whether they have filed for bankruptcy.
The information in credit reports, however, is not always accurate. So, reviewing your credit report in order to ensure that the information is correct and current is important. A good credit report means you have a better opportunity to rent or buy a home, to buy or lease a vehicle, buy insurance, and apply for a job.
But what should you do when the information in your credit report is inaccurate? Here are some tips to combat inaccuracy: Contact the credit reporting company (or credit bureau) and information provider (or the individual or entity that provides your information to lenders, employers, insurers, etc.), notify them of the inaccuracy, and specify by a writing what information is inaccurate. In this written statement or letter, identify and clarify who you are, spotlight each piece of information you find inaccurate, state the facts, explain your reasons why the information is inaccurate, enclose copies of documents that support your reasons why the information is inaccurate, request the removal of said inaccurate information, and enclose a copy of your current credit report. Use certified mail to send your letter to the credit reporting company and information provider, and keep copies of your letter, enclosures, and correspondence with the credit reporting company and information provider.
Unless the credit reporting company and information provider find your inaccuracy claim baseless or do not act, usually wait thirty days while they investigate your claim. If the credit bureau and information provider find said information is indeed inaccurate, corrections in your credit file likely will be made. After these companies finish their investigation into your inaccuracy claim, they send you their results and a copy of your altered credit report with the inaccurate information altered or removed. If the investigation does not satisfy you, ask them to place a summary of their investigation and your claim in future versions of your credit report, and the process of written correspondence and investigation might repeat until all parties involved are satisfied with the conclusion, which likely will not contain the inaccurate information.
These steps with a credit reporting company and/or an information provider may not be enough. If the credit bureau and/or information provider fail to correct the inaccurate information, legal action might be necessary. If this is so, talk to a lawyer. For more information, contact Nashville Attorney Perry A. Craft. He has handled these issues before.
Perry A. Craft has dedicated his life to helping people in need. He has tried, settled, or resolved numerous civil and criminal cases in State and Federal courts, and has represented teachers and administrators before school boards, administrative judges, and the state Board of Education. Learn more about Attorney Craft.