How can I correct inaccurate information found in my Credit Report?


A consumer's legal rights regarding credit reporting are governed by the Federal Trade Commission. These are contained in the Consumer Protection Act (FCRA). The Fair Credit Reporting Act is primarily concerned with Credit Reporting agencies and Credit Reports. The intent of the FCRA is to protect consumers against credit abuses.

Errors appear on personal credit reports for a variety of reasons including human error, incorrectly being confused with a person with a similar name and fraud.

As per the FCRA, both the information provider and the credit reporting agency are required to correct any inaccurate data on your personal credit report.

If you find inaccurate information when you buy your credit report, you should do the following to fix your credit report:

  • Check your 3 bureau credit reports from all three major credit reporting agencies (Experian™, Equifax™ and TransUnion™), because their files for you might vary.
  • Contact the credit reporting agency from which you found the inaccuracy in writing detailing which information you feel is inaccurate, the facts on why and your request that it be deleted or  corrected in the credit report. There are many great websites with sample dispute letters.
  • Include a photo copy of your personal credit report and the items in question clearly highlighted for the reference of the person reviewing your correspondence along with any other supporting documents.
  • Send your correspondence to the credit reporting agencies via a trackable mail channel.
  • Keep copies of all correspondence with the dates that you sent them.
  • Credit reporting agencies must investigate your claim in a timely manner, in most cases this is 30 days.
  • A copy of the correspondence you provided will be sent by the credit reporting agency to the source that provided the information to them.
  • The information provider must investigate your claim and if it is found that there is in fact an inaccuracy, they are required to correct your credit report and report it to all three major credit reporting agencies.