How to Make an Appeal to Three Credit Bureaus
If you find mistakes on your credit report, you can appeal to the three credit bureaus. The Fair Credit Reporting Act (FCRA) requires that Equifax, Experian and TransUnion investigate all appeals, which are officially known as disputes. The bureaus must try to validate that the item is correct; if they cannot, they must remove it from your reports. Disputing is not difficult if you know the correct process. You may be able to raise your credit score by appealing negative errors.
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Instructions
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Check all three credit reports to see if the same errors show up on all of them. The credit bureaus are independent of each other, so they may collect and report different information. You can order a free copy from each bureau every 12 months under the FCRA. Compare the mistakes that show up on each report, and make a note of them so you can do all of your appeals at once.
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Fill out a dispute form online for each bureau or send an appeal letter through the mail. Cardratings.com says making your appeal online is the fastest and easiest way. However, the Federal Trade Commission advises sending a certified letter by mail, especially if you have statements, checks or other proof of the error you are disputing. A letter lets you enclose copies of this proof, and sending it certified proves when it is received by each bureau.
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Wait 30 days to give the credit bureaus a chance to investigate your appeal. They should send a response within this time frame. They will remove the errors if they find your dispute was valid. They will leave the information on your credit report if they confirm the item is correct. Each bureau must notify you of either result.
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Send a consumer statement to the credit bureaus and ask them to place it on your report if they reject your appeal. The statement gives your side of the story to creditors who pull your report when they are considering a loan application or other decision.
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Tips & Warnings
You need valid grounds for your appeal so the credit bureaus will be obligated to investigate. They can refuse to check into the matter if they believe you are making frivolous claims. Credit Infocenter says any of the following mistakes should be disputed: accounts that are not yours, wrong creditor name, incorrect payment history, wrong credit limit or account balance and wrong account status.
The Federal Trade Commission advises consumers to get their free credit reports from annualcreditreport.com rather than responding to TV ads or online solicitations. The annualcreditreport.com site was set up by the government to give free reports annually with no further obligation. Commercially advertised sites generally make you sign up for some type of paid service or membership to get credit reports.
