How to Contact Credit Reporting Agencies

Credit reporting agencies are feared almost as much as the IRS—and there are three credit reporting beasts compared to just one IRS monster. The problem, of course, is that the credit agencies can make or break your chances at approval for a loan for a car, home, education or even employment. Almost everyone at some point will need to contact the credit companies. Here are some steps to make the communication more efficient and get you the results you need.

Difficulty: Moderately Easy

Instructions

Contact Credit Reporting Agencies to Obtain a Credit Report

1. Order a free annual consumer credit report online by visiting Annual Credit Report (see link below).

2. Point your browser to the PDF file in the Resources section to download the mail order form for a report from all 3 agencies. Complete the form and send to:
   
   Annual Credit Report Request Service
   P.O. Box 105281
   Atlanta, GA 30348-5281

3. Call Experian at 1-888-397-3742 to request a personal credit report.

4. Call Experian’s Business hotline at 1-800-520-1221 for business credit services.

5. Call Transunion’s service at 1-877-322-8228 for personal assistance.

6. Call 1-800-813-5604 for Transunion's corporate help.

7. Call 1-800-685-1111 to talk to an agent at Equifax and order a credit report from them.

8. Call 1-888-202-4025 for the business liaisons at Equifax.
   

Contact Credit Reporting Agencies to Dispute Information

9. Obtain your credit report. You’ll need one to dispute any charge.

10. Visit the Experian site (see link below) to dispute a charge on your Experian account or call 1-888-397-3742.

11. You can write to Experian at:
    
    Experian
    P.O Box 9532
    Allen, TX 75013

12. Contact the Transunion dispute center at 1-800-916-8800 or visit them at the ir Web site (see link below).

13. Write to Transunion at:
    
    Transunion
    P.O Box 6790
    Fullerton, CA 92834-6790

14. Point your browser to the dispute page at the Equifax Web site )see link below) or call 1-800-525-6285 to reach Equifax.

15. Send snail mail to Equifax at:
    
    Equifax
    P.O Box 740241
    Atlanta, GA 30374-0241
    

Tips & Warnings

• Before beginning the dispute process, make sure you can document the misinformation and that you’ve tried to contact the creditor to fix the problem.
• You must have a copy of your credit report before entering the dispute process.
• Include your social security number, phone number and full name including aliases with each written transaction.
• Do not expect a fast turnaround time on requests. It can often take up to 6 months for closed or updated accounts to appear on your credit report.
• Do not threaten the agencies. While you do have consumer rights and recourse, you won’t be able to take any of the agencies to small claims court.

Who Can Help Sponsored

• How strong is your score?  Did you know checking your own credit won’t affect your score? Click here to see yours in two easy steps from Experian.

[mrok826]

on 10/19/2009 They do not always "report the facts". Someone seriously screwed up and combined my credit info with my sisters in my credit report. My credit card was canceled due to my (sister's) high outstanding debt. It is impossible to reach anyone, and they claim I already got my free credit score for the year (which I didn't, she did) so I don't even have access to it to be able to dispute the screw-up. Very, very frustrating. And scary, to think that these people can mess up your life so easily and be so unwilling to help at the same time!

[zappo123]

on 9/2/2009 HERE'S THE TRICK TO CALL EQUIFAX: Call Sales (the only number they give) at 1-888-202-4025, then press 6 to speak to a LIVE PERSON. Of the 3 agencies, Equifax is the worst in terms of customer service and fulfilling promises made. Every time I've had to place a fraud alert on my account, Equifax promises to confirm by email and snail mail, but they don't. Worse, they make it ALMOST impossible to reach them by phone. So many people must call Sales for this reason, they have a special extension to handles these calls.

[divorcee209]

on 2/4/2009 TransUnion continue to report information incorrectly though I've provided them with proof.

[heatherschulte]

on 7/5/2008 I don't fear the credit reporting beasts, as you put it. The credit reporting agencies simply report the facts as outlined in the Fair Credit Reporting Act. I pay my bills on time and they record that.

[cozzo76]

on 6/5/2008 Hawthorne Abstact Corp is using S.S.numbers without a paper trail. They did this to us. My husband has a rating of over 820 and my sister and brother-in-law have very bad credit. They should not be able to get a $350,000 mortgage on a house they own with my husband. He had no knowledge of. We don't trust your companies if this is possible with you knowing. How reliable are you? We might be losing our own home to these scam artists. It was to be a buyout not a refinancing that is why we know they used my husbands S.S.he is a owner.My name is Antoinette Iannacco,17 Ridgewood Drive,Hockessin,De.19707,[e-mail] 302-239-2749