FTC Cracks Down on ‘Credit Repair’ Scams
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FacebookAccording to a recent report, government regulators are cracking down on companies that promise to remove negative information from your credit report. The FTC, the U.S. Postal Inspection Service and eight state law enforcement agencies have targeted 20 companies that offer to remove information from consumers’ credit reports in return for big bucks.
According to Eileen Harrington of the FTC’s Bureau of Consumer Protection, “Credit repair promoters generally charge hundreds of dollars, but don’t deliver on their claims. The fact is, they can’t. No one can legally remove accurate and timely information from your credit report.”
This is great news, as there’s no reason to pay for the removal of erroneous information. Simply check your credit report and file a dispute if you see anything that doesn’t belong. If, on the other hand, you have legitimate black marks on your record, there’s little that you can do. And paying a fly-by-night company a few hundred bucks certainly won’t help the situation.
[Source: CNN/Money]
Published on February 3rd, 2006 - 4 Comments
Filed under: Credit Cards
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About the author: Nickel is the founder and editor-in-chief of this site. He's a thirty-something family man who has been writing about personal finance since 2005, and guess what? He's on Twitter!
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I’ve read that the technique these companies use is simply to flood the credit reporting agencies with so many disputes that they have a difficult time proving them all within the allotted thirty-day window. When they can’t, they’re forced to remove the information.
Of course, most of the time they’re able to address all the disputes, so it seldom works.
Comment by MoneyDummy — Feb 3rd 2006 @ 8:25 amHappy to find out that the government is protecting consumers.
Time and good behavior is the only thing that fixes credit.
Comment by Jose Anes — Feb 16th 2006 @ 12:47 pmnot true, credit repair does work. I used credit assistance network in lake park and they removed over 90% of the negative information i had.
Yes, you can do this yourself, I chose the convenient way
Comment by lane — Aug 29th 2008 @ 9:31 pmI am interested in reading some more feedback on credit repair agencies. I am considering doing this, and would like to read more before paying the fee. Thanks!
Comment by cindy — Apr 28th 2009 @ 11:16 pm