A Guide to Credit Report Disputes

Three things to know about credit report disputes. First, a credit report dispute is when you notify a credit bureau like Equifax about something being wrong. Next is how to file a dispute with Equifax. Create or sign into your free MyEquifax account to file a credit dispute on your Equifax account. Third, you'll get the results of the dispute investigation within 30 days. [Duration- 1:00]

Highlights: 

• Regularly checking your credit reports can help ensure information is accurate and complete
• If you believe information on your credit reports is inaccurate or incomplete, contact the lender
• You can also file a free dispute with the three nationwide credit bureaus

When reviewing your credit reports, it’s important to make sure all of the information is complete and accurate. This includes everything from the account information to the other personal information that’s on your credit report such as your home address, name, and Social Security number.

By law, credit bureaus and the lenders and creditors that report information to them are both responsible for correcting inaccurate or incomplete information on your credit report.

Here are some steps you can take to address information you believe is inaccurate or incomplete:

1. Get in the habit of regularly checking your credit reports from the three nationwide credit bureaus. You’re entitled to a free copy of your credit report from each of the three nationwide credit bureaus (Equifax, Experian and TransUnion) every 12 months by visiting www.annualcreditreport.com. You can also create a myEquifax account to get six free Equifax credit reports per year. Once you've created an account, you can click on "Get my free credit score" on your myEquifax dashboard and enroll in Equifax Core Credit™ to get a free monthly Equifax credit report and a free monthly VantageScore credit score, based on Equifax data. A VantageScore is one of many types of credit scores.
2. If you find information you believe is inaccurate or incomplete on one of your credit reports, check your credit reports from the other two nationwide credit bureaus to see if the inaccurate or incomplete information appears there as well. Not all creditors report to all three bureaus. Some may report to only one, two – or none at all.
3. If you see account-related information that’s incomplete or inaccurate, consider contacting the lender first. You may be able to straighten out the matter with the company itself, and the company will report the updated information to the credit bureaus. Lenders and creditors reporting inaccurate or incomplete information are responsible for updating it with each bureau they report to.
4. File a dispute for free with the three nationwide credit bureaus. It’s important to remember that disputing information with one credit bureau may not impact information on credit reports from the other two bureaus. Also, dispute procedures may not be the same at all bureaus, so be sure to follow the procedure with the bureau where you're filing a dispute. You can file a dispute with each of the three nationwide credit bureaus online. At Equifax, you can create a myEquifax account to file a dispute. 

• Equifax dispute site
• Experian dispute site
• TransUnion dispute site

What information can I dispute on my credit reports?

You can dispute any of the following:
• Personal information: Your name, addresses, Social Security number or date of birth.
• Account information you believe is inaccurate or incomplete: For example, if late payments are being reported on one of your accounts but you have always paid your balance on time and in full. 
• Mixed credit files: If someone else's information is being reported on your credit file. This may happen if a father and son (Sr. and Jr.) have the same name, for instance.
• Duplicate reporting of an item: One example might be a debt listed twice.
• Information that may indicate fraud or identity theft: These would be credit accounts, including collection accounts, on your credit report that you don't recognize.

Whether you’re contacting a lender or the credit bureaus, provide all the evidence and documents you can to support your dispute, such as an account statement verifying an account balance. Give details about why you believe the information in the credit report is inaccurate or incomplete.

What should I expect after filing a dispute?

If you file a dispute with the three nationwide credit bureaus, you can generally expect to receive the results of your dispute within 30 days. If the information is found to be inaccurate, your credit reports will be updated, generally within about 30 days.

If the result of the investigation finds that the information is accurate, it will remain on your credit reports. If you still believe the information is inaccurate or incomplete, and you have additional information that can help support your dispute, you can file your dispute again with the credit bureau. You also have the option to provide a brief statement on your credit reports summarizing your dispute, which can help explain your situation. Or you could contact the creditor to attempt to resolve the issue.