Loanio

Know your credit!

We all make mistakes, but when it comes to your credit report, a simple or small error can have a big impact. In fact, one small error is more than enough to drag down your FICO score and could even prevent you from getting a loan in the future. It is very important to monitor your credit report and score on a regular basis to spot any errors that occur. This will enable you to take quick action to fix any damage that has been caused before it can affect you adversely. Here are the steps you need to take to fix a mistake on your credit report.

1. File a Dispute.

This is done through the actual credit bureau. Since there are three different major reporting agencies, you may need to monitor all three to see if all of your reports are being affected. Each one will have to be dealt with separately, especially if the error appears on all three reports. In many cases, it may take 60 days or more for something to show up on a report, so if you do spot an error, you will need to keep monitoring your other reports as well.

All three bureaus now offer the ability to file a dispute online, or you can file it by phone or through regular mail, depending on your preference. You will need to select the reason for your dispute and provide the correct information if necessary. Expect to wait up to 45 days for a response one way or the other.

2. Contact Creditor Directly.

If your dispute is denied and you are certain that there is still an error on your report, you can contact the creditor directly. Keep a record of all communications and send a copy of everything you send to a creditor to the three major reporting agencies as well. Always use registered mail when you contact a creditor, since they will need to respond to you within 45 days to remain compliant.

If you do not hear back within that time frame, you will need to contact the reporting agencies to update them on the status of the dispute. In many cases if the creditor has not responded within that time frame, the agencies will simply remove the error.

3. Know Your Rights.

It is a very good idea to review the Fair Credit Debt Collections Protection Act so that you are aware of your rights when it comes to dealing with creditors, reporting agencies and collection agencies. The information contained in this act will assist you in determining your further course of action if you cannot get the error removed from your report.

With diligence, you can protect your credit rating from adverse affects due to errors, but it is up to you to make sure that they are taken care of promptly. If you are not currently monitoring your credit reports, you may want to consider doing so, especially if you plan on applying for a loan within the next 180 days.

Photo Credits: 1

Originally posted 2008-10-13 05:18:27. Republished by Blog Post Promoter

• Online Finance Magazines /caption] There are numerous different reasons to take the time to read online finance magazines. By buying and reading online finance magazines, you can learn a great deal about financing in a small amount of time. By buying and reading online finance magazines you will be infinitely better able to......
• Is Your Online Bank Safe? [/caption] Online banking has become incredibly popular and it is very useful. For those that rely on online banking, there is an accepted risk that goes with exposing your financial information online, but before you jump in, it is a good idea to do a little checking to make sure......
• Setting Goals for Good Personal Finance /caption] Setting goals is an important part of your personal finance plan. Goals can be divided into four unique categories that are relatively general in nature. These categories are short term goals, intermediate term goals, long term goals and life goals. Short Term Personal Finance Goals - These short term......
• The Danger of Auto Bill Pay As our society gets busier, it’s been increasingly important to automate several aspects of our lives. One of the first areas to be automated was the payment of monthly bills and for many, this is an essential system that helps them avoid late payments. However, there are a few dangers......
• 4 Tips for College Students Budgets /caption] If you are a college student, then your primary focus is probably set on your studies and trying to maintain your education so that you will be benefited in the future. Unfortunately, one of the things that you may not be putting enough consideration into is how you are......

• What Is In Your Credit Report? Although every one of the credit reporting agencies is going to format and then report their information in a different and unique way, all of the various reports are going to contain basically all of the same information and categories. Your SSN or social security number will be listed, along......
• How Does Credit Reporting Work? People seem to worry a lot about their credit reports. What’s on my credit report? What does my credit report say about me? Is my credit report right? These are the types of questions I’ve heard others ask. Despite the time that many people spend worrying about their credit reports,......
• Things to Have Removed from your Credit Report pt 2 Continued from part 1. 3 - Charge Offs. When you do not pay off a credit card account or a loan account for a period of three to six months, your creditors are generally going to assume that your account is non collectible, or that it is in default. When......
• How to Obtain Your Free (Government Mandated) Credit Report What is a credit report and what does it contain? Back in the day, when you applied for credit you would list all of your creditors on the application. The bank or whomever was deciding whether or not to extend you a line of credit would then call all your......
• Falsehoods and Fibs About Your Credit Score The following is a guest post by Tisha Tolar. The term “credit score” has been thrown around almost daily these days. People are worried about the changes in the credit card industry and realize no more than ever the importance of their credit score on their financial well-being. Credit cards......