Managing Your Money - Disputing Credit Reports

It's really very important to keep track of your credit report and what it says about you. Your credit report affects many areas of your life Should you find information that's incorrect, no matter what the reason, it's your job to dispute that information to have it removed and corrected in your credit report. You've got to be the one responsible for paying attention to what's on your credit report. You are really the only one looking out for your credit rating

Three different companies maintain credit reports for almost all consumers: Experian, Equifax, and Trans Union. Monitoring all three of these credit reports is essential because the information can differ from report to report.

Follow this process to ensure your credit reports are accurate:

1. Start with requesting your credit report here you The fastest way to get a copy of your credit report is to visit AnnualCreditReport.com, where you're entitled to receive a copy of each of your three reports for free once per year.

* If this is the first time you're checking credit reports, go ahead and request all three at once. You'll probably notice the information they contain will be different. There can be real differences between the reports, and that will make for a real difference in your credit scores as well.

* Here's the plan: once you've obtained and corrected path information in your current or ports you can stay updated by checking a new credit report for free, once every four months. Go back and request your report, one by one from each of the three companies, every four months. Over the course of a year you left checked all three

* Should you find any errors, you'll need to take corrective action.

2. Verifying the information in your reports is correct. Dig through all three credit reports carefully. Be on the lookout for incorrect and inaccurate information. Any information that's incorrect needs to be changed, even if it's something simple like a wrong address. All this information is used by lenders to determine your credit rating.

3. Get in touch with the credit agency. If you find information that needs to be changed in any of your credit reports, you'll need to contact the agency that prepared that particular report. Get started right away disputing and fixing incorrect information. Sometimes this process can take quite some time.

4. tips to consider in composing a letter of dispute. Use a search site like Google to hunt for sample letters and other information on writing a good letter of dispute. Professionalism is a must. Have proof and documentation of incorrect information so the credit agency will make the needed changes.

* Include copies of any documents that support your position. Make sure you keep the original documents in your personal files, and only send copies.

5. How to dispute an item in your report. When you request a correction, the credit agencies (Experian, Equifax, or Trans Union) will go back to the company that originally reported the information. They'll try to determine if that original information is indeed inaccurate.

6. Adding accounts to your credit file. Since all credit reports are different, some may be missing credit account information from one source or another, and you'll want to be sure it's included in all your reports. Don't be afraid to contact credit agencies that may be missing some of your credit history or other information. Ask them to update their records to include everything.

* Since each agency has its own rules regarding what it reports about you. It may take some time to have them add all the information you want to your report. However, if you're diligent, you should be able to have the information added.

7. Following up. It takes about 30 days for the average credit investigation, so you may need to follow up with a credit agency if you haven't heard back from them in a month or so.

When it comes to making sure your credit report is up-to-date and accurate, you are definitely in charge. If there is inaccurate information in your credit report, or if important information is missing, then take the steps to get the information corrected. Remember your next job, home or big loan may depend on it.