How to Fix Credit Card History
Life for the average consumer has become increasingly challenging. With rapid technological advances and the continued pace of globalization, consumers don't always know how to make sense of it all. We are faced with an uncertain economic outlook, a widening income gap between America's wealthiest and poorest consumers, increasing consumer debt and decreasing spare time. As consumers, we are exhausted! We are confused and with less and less confidence in the marketplace. Add to all of this, we are nearly in the poorhouse with few prospects to look ahead to. For some of us, we can concentrate our efforts on repairing our credit.
This is a smart thing to do when, sadly, many will only pay lip service to this responsibility. As a responsible consumer, our first task will be to contact the appropriate people. One thing is very clear, while the matter of our debt problems can become very complicated, the matter of cleaning the mess up, does not have to be. We can contact the people in charge and go about our business finding solutions. This will be a liberating experience for many of us. The ideal solution for American consumers would be to access a single, central gateway. This would provide a good source of consumer information. With the information that we need in hand, we can go about our business, taking care of our needs.
How to Fix Credit Card History
When it comes to your personal credit reputation - it just makes good sense that you would want to resolve any part of your credit card history that causes you concern. You do not need to simply sit on these results. They will not correct themselves. You will need to take affirmative action and take matters into your own hands.
General Errors
Notify the card issuer in writing within 60 days after the bill that contained the error had been issued to you. In your letter, include: your name; account number; the type, date, and the amount of the error; and the reason why you believe the bill contains an error. In return, the card issuer must investigate the problem and either correct the error or explain to you why the bill is correct. You can expect to have resolution within two billing cycles 90 days after the issuer receives your billing error notice. You do not have to pay the amount in question during the investigation. When you have a difficult credit history you will need to take the time necessary to rebuild a good creditworthy reputation. There are currently 6 of 10 people in America who have bad credit histories and this means that they also have bad credit ratings. There are certainly positive steps that can be taken to turn this trend around. Repairing bad credit takes some time. Are you prepared to put the amount of time and effort needed into turning this situation around? More than anything, it takes time and good money management. There are important steps that you can take today. Your poor credit history can be a thing of the past with your commitment to change and the application of a few proven steps. After you have applied yourself to these simple steps you can be well on your way to sound money management and the smart rebuilding of a good credit rating.
Correct any mistakes
Once you receive a copy of your credit report, review it carefully. Look for inaccuracies and incorrect information. If you find any, just follow the instructions on the last page of your credit report to dispute the mistakes and, then, have the credit bureau make the corrections. Be certain that you have as much proof as possible (receipts, documents, any identification needed, etc.) to back up your claim.
Work towards a better credit report history
If the information on your Credit Report contains no mistakes—but still shows a poor credit history—there are important steps that you can take to correct that. A poor credit history cannot be repaired quickly and with only a minimum of effort. It requires seven years for the bad information to clear off of your credit report. Commit to making change and as you are waiting during the repair process, do what you can to build good credit. This will improve your chances of receiving credit again, while you are waiting.
Beware of "quick fixes"
You will, no doubt, be tempted to investigate the services of those who promise that they trusted! Remember that we said, earlier, that repairing a difficult credit history will take some time and some good effort? The disreputable credit repair agencies will charge you an exorbitant amount of money and will promise to deliver a service that, legally, they simply cannot. The Better Business Bureau's article on credit repair fraud is a good one to read to learn more on this subject. You can also check with the BBB before signing up with any credit repair agency.
Correct ALL Errors
You must take responsibility for correcting the misinformation on your credit report. Under the FCRA, both the CRA and the organization that provided the information to the CRA, such as a bank or credit card company, have responsibilities for correcting inaccurate or incomplete information in your report. To protect yourself under the law, contact both the CRA and the information provider. First, tell the CRA in writing what information you believe is inaccurate. Include copies (NOT originals) of the documents that support your position. In addition to providing your complete name and address, your letter should clearly identify each item in your report that you dispute, state the facts and explain why you dispute the information, and request to have the information deleted or corrected. Make it as clear as possible for them to understand so, you, may want to enclose a copy of your report with the items in question circled. Write a letter that is to the point and nothing too fancy. Send your letter by certified mail, return receipt requested, so you can document what the CRA received. Keep copies of your dispute letter and enclosures. CRAs must reinvestigate the items in question—usually within 30 days—unless they consider your dispute to be unsound. They also must forward all relevant data you provide about the dispute to the information provider. After the information provider receives notice of a dispute from the CRA, it must investigate, review all relevant information provided by the CRA, and report the results to the CRA. If the information provider finds the disputed information to be inaccurate, it must notify all nationwide CRAs so they can correct this information in your file. l Disputed information that cannot be verified must be deleted from your file. If your report contains erroneous information, the CRA must correct it. If an item is incomplete, the CRA must complete it. For example, if your file showed that you were late making payments, but failed to show that you were no longer delinquent, the CRA must show that you're current. If your file shows an account that belongs only to another person, the CRA must delete it.
Once the reinvestigation has completed, the CRA must give you the written results and a free copy of your report if the dispute results in a change. If an item is changed or removed, the CRA cannot put the disputed information back in your file unless the information provider verifies its accuracy and completeness, and the CRA gives you a written notice that includes the name, address, and phone number of the provider. As well, you can request that the CRA must send notices of corrections to anyone who received your report in the past six months. Job applicants can have a corrected copy of their report sent to anyone who received a copy during the past two years for employment purposes. If a reinvestigation does not resolve your dispute, ask the CRA to include your statement of the dispute in your file and in future reports. Next, in addition to writing to the CRA, tell the creditor or other information provider in writing that you wish to dispute an entry. At the same time, include copies (NOT originals) of documents that support your position. Make note of any address provided by the provider to deal with disputes. If the provider then reports the item to any CRA, it must include a notice of your dispute. In addition, if you are correct-that is, if the disputed information is not accurate-the information provider may not use it again. Having a bad credit rating, then, does not need to be a life sentence. You can repair your credit rating and your credit report, yourself, and also with the aid of professionals. Take this step towards rebuilding your future and experience the freedom that having good credit brings.
Accurate Negative Information
When negative information in your report is accurate, you have no other choice but to put in the amount of time necessary to have it removed. Negative information that is accurate can generally stay on your report for 7 years. There are exceptions to this, however:
Information about criminal convictions may be reported without any time limitation. Bankruptcy information may be reported for 10 years. Credit information reported in response to an application for a job with a salary of more than $75,000 has no time limit. Credit information reported because of an application for more than $150,000 worth of credit or life insurance has no time limit. Information about a lawsuit or an unpaid judgment against you can be reported for seven years or until the statute of limitations runs out, whichever is longer. Criminal convictions can be reported without any time limit.
Having a bad credit rating, then, does not need to be a life sentence. You can repair your credit rating and your credit report, yourself, and also with the aid of professionals. Take this step towards rebuilding your future and experience the freedom that having good credit brings.