How to dispute credit report errors so they actually come off

Pull all three reports, not just the free score app

A score app shows you a score. A dispute needs the underlying report, and the three bureaus — Equifax, Experian, and TransUnion — often hold different data. You are entitled to free reports at AnnualCreditReport.com, the official site set up under federal law.

Read every line: account numbers, opening dates, balances, payment history, the status field, and the date of first delinquency. That last one controls when the item must fall off, which makes it the single most valuable date on the page.

Write down exactly what is wrong

'This isn't mine' and 'this is unfair' are not the same claim, and they get different results. Name the specific inaccuracy: an account you never opened, a payment marked late that was paid on time, a balance that is wrong, a debt reported twice by the original creditor and a collector, or a date of first delinquency that has been re-aged to keep the item on your report longer.

Then find the proof: bank statements, cancelled checks, a payoff letter, the original agreement, correspondence with the creditor. One piece of dated documentation beats three pages of frustration.

Dispute with the bureau and the furnisher

Send the dispute to the credit bureau reporting the error and to the furnisher — the bank, lender, or collection agency that supplied the data. Disputing with only one leaves the other free to re-report the same item.

Keep the letter short and factual: identify yourself, identify the account, state the specific error, state the correction you want, and list the documents attached. Send copies, never originals. Mailing certified with return receipt gives you a dated record of when the clock started.

The 30-day clock

Under the Fair Credit Reporting Act the bureau generally has 30 days to investigate, extendable to 45 if you send extra information during the window. If the information cannot be verified, it must be deleted or corrected, and you are entitled to a free copy of the updated report.

Calendar the deadline. A surprising number of items come off simply because the furnisher does not respond in time, and nobody will tell you that but your own calendar.

When it comes back after deletion

A deleted item that reappears is not the end of the process. A furnisher that re-inserts previously deleted information must certify it is accurate, and the bureau must notify you in writing within five business days of the reinsertion.

If it returns without that notice, say so in your next letter and reference the earlier deletion by date. Persistent re-reporting of information you have documented as inaccurate is the point at which the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau complaint process, and sometimes a consumer attorney, become genuinely useful.

What never works

Paying a company to send the same scattergun dispute to every line on your report. Bureaus dismiss obviously templated volume disputes as frivolous, and the accurate negatives come straight back.

Neither does a 'credit sweep', a new identity number promising a clean file, or anyone guaranteeing removal of accurate information for a fee up front. Accurate negative marks come off on a schedule — generally seven years, longer for some bankruptcies — and no letter changes that.

• No legitimate company charges before performing the service.
• Nobody can legally remove accurate, timely information.
• You can do everything a credit repair company does yourself, for the price of postage.

What moves a score while you wait

Disputes fix errors. Habits fix scores. The two levers with the fastest effect are paying every bill on time, which drives the largest share of the score, and lowering how much of each card's limit you are using — the utilization figure updates monthly, so a payment made before the statement date can show up within weeks.

Leave old accounts open unless they cost you money; length of history helps. Space out new applications. And check back in 30 days rather than 30 minutes.