Comments on: How to Fix Errors on Your Credit Report

By: Birdie

Birdie — Mon, 11 May 2009 19:55:41 +0000

I really enjoyed the article AND the comments! In fact, I wanted to add to #9 by Wrinkly Dollar – make sure you renew all forwards every 6 months AND if you have adult kids or roommates who have moved out of your house to another location, check with them to see if they are starting to get junk mail to their address with your name on it. That has happened to me twice and definitely causes concern over the possibility of id theft when they move if the mail keeps going there. Best solution is pretty much follow the great advice in this article to keep checking your credit reports regularly

By: Josh Smith

Josh Smith — Fri, 24 Apr 2009 03:50:18 +0000

Laura. You. Rock. This is just what my in laws needed to know. In fact they asked my not 3 hours ago how to do this.

I’m sharing this one with our readers at WalletPop.

Thanks for the excellent write up.

By: Wrinkly Dollar

Wrinkly Dollar — Fri, 24 Apr 2009 01:12:32 +0000

Great tips Laura. I had an “error” on my credit report a few years back – the hospital kept sending my bill to a temporary address that I didn’t think to apply mail forwarding to. Years later I found out about the $200 that was in the hands of collection agencies! Now the mess is all gone, but I might have fought it in the past with these tips. Thanks.

By: Kristy @ Master Your Card

Kristy @ Master Your Card — Thu, 23 Apr 2009 03:27:47 +0000

Excellent review! And I’m so glad you mentioned the accurate negative information. I wrote something similar to this at MYC several months ago and was attacked by someone who tried to say it was perfectly legal to dispute legitimate negative information. The fact is, knowingly disputing accurate information in an effort to have it removed is fraud. So, it’s best to be completely honest when dealing with your credit.

Something else I wanted to add. Even though the negative information stays on your credit file for 7 years, it only negatively impacts your score for 4 years. You should start seeing an increase in your scores at that point, not just at the 7 year mark when things start falling off.

By: Nickel

Nickel — Wed, 22 Apr 2009 20:47:52 +0000

Yeah, I tend to agree with Laura. Things like that are not at all contentious, so you might as well go ahead and dispute them. No, minor things like that are not likely to create problems, but it’s probably good to get rid of inaccuracies just in case.

By: Laura

Laura — Wed, 22 Apr 2009 20:43:43 +0000

@ckstevenson: I had something similar with my credit report listing me in another state. It’s up to you, but I’d fix it for two reasons:
1. It’s a bit misleading a may confuse some lenders.
2. It’s a very easy dispute to fix.

I think you raised a good point by asking how accurate do you want the report to be. Thanks!

By: Brad @ Twenty Something Sense

Brad @ Twenty Something Sense — Wed, 22 Apr 2009 18:35:35 +0000

For those interested in tracking their credit for free, I suggest using CreditKarma.com. This is a truly great service for managing your credit.

By: Trevor @ Financial Nut

Trevor @ Financial Nut — Wed, 22 Apr 2009 17:24:05 +0000

Good! I needed this post. I plan on disputing something this summer.

By: ckstevenson

ckstevenson — Wed, 22 Apr 2009 14:37:54 +0000

What constitutes an error that one wants to fix?

I read my credit report last year (got it as part of my refi, which was to a lower rated 30yr fixed) and the only “errors” I found were some listed addresses. They thought I lived at some point in NC with my Dad since we owned a beach rental property together. Do I care about that?

By: DDFD at DivorcedDadFrugalDad

DDFD at DivorcedDadFrugalDad — Wed, 22 Apr 2009 12:53:11 +0000

Great post!

I highly recommend checking your reports– I found errors and everyone I have spoken to who has checked theirs has also found errors . . .

By: Baker @ ManVsDebt

Baker @ ManVsDebt — Wed, 22 Apr 2009 12:29:33 +0000

This is a fantastic summary of information needed to fix errors on your credit report.

In my experience, the people whom I’ve know with errors usually put off fixing them because (a) they don’t have the knowledge and (b) they think it won’t be worth the work.

This kind of post goes a long way in helping eliminate (a) and hopefully minimizing (b). Great work!