Difficulty with Experian, re: disputing errors on credit report. HELP?
Posted in Credit on 03/20/2010 01:27 pm by admin
I’ve been trying to resolve errors on my credit reports recently, but Experian is giving me a major headache. I sent them two letters via certified mail; one to request deletions, and a second one to request corrections. Instead of addressing these issues, they responded with letters claiming they could not honor my request because I didn’t provide enough info to verify my identity. Grrrr.
There are several inaccuracies on my credit reports, but Experian is REALLY inaccurate… plus I’m under some time pressure to get this resolved. According to the Experian website, the fastest way to dispute anything is online… but I apparently need a ‘report number’ to dispute the Experian inaccuracies. Since it’s been longer than 30 days since I accessed my ‘free’ reports, I can no longer access those. Does this mean I need to purchase new reports?
If so… does anyone have any positive experience with disputing credit report inaccuracies online with Experian? Is there a better/faster way?
Is there any reasonable way to purchase access to all 3 CRA’s, where you can dispute errors from alkl three agencies all at once? I was looking at Experian’s 3-in-1 reports ($40)… but they don’t say if you can dispute online directly from those reports, or how long you have access to them. I need to know the fastest (and simplest) way to do this. I can’t imagine why they make this process so complicated….
Johnny K - These are mostly items that have already been paid that are still showing delinquent. (Paid either by me directly to the creditor, or paid (late) by insurance. Most are old medical bills that have long been taken care of. They also think I still owe $17,000 on my truck… which I paid off the lease early, and purchased in 2004. (They seem to believe I have behind on my payments all these years. HA…What a mess!) There is also a large and rather puzzling phone bill with a provider I have never used.
There is one creditor (medical) that I do still owe money too… it seems insurance isn’t going to pay any more on it. (it took them about a year to pay anything on it… which is what I’ve been waiting for.) I’m willing to pay that bill… but is it unreasonable to ask them to remove it from my record once it’s paid? (It was never supposed to go to collections in the first place, since insurance was technically still pending…)
STEVIE
03/21/2010 at 7:40 pm
GREG
Buy a new report and dispute online, I’ve done this with experian, equifax and transunion and have had success with all.
03/22/2010 at 6:48 am
ROY
You don’t need to send certified letters. However, you do need to provide proof of your identity. Instead of reinventing the wheel by purchasing new credit files and trying to dispute online, why not send letters regular mail with proper ID? I believe they want a copy of your driver’s license or other photo ID, social security card, and your DOB.
03/23/2010 at 3:33 pm
JACKIE
It’s only 9.95 for the online credit reports I am sure that cheaper then the certified mail you sent. Make it easy on your self and buy the report and do it online it much faster then doing my mail or phone. Make sure you buy from the experian website there are so many fakes out there.l
03/24/2010 at 3:09 pm
ELLIOTT
I’ve been really successful with EX online and it is faster than mail just repurchase and dispute items a few at a time.
03/24/2010 at 7:02 pm
ABEL
You should always print out or save the free credit reports you get from annualcreditreport.com, so next year, remember that! I would call them directly and ask to speak to a manager. They are obligated to respond to your request if you provide them with the correct information.
If they don’t do what you request, report them to your state banking dept.
03/24/2010 at 7:27 pm
COY
I deal with these people all day every day, and one thing they are not in business to do is advocate the consumer. First thing I would do is contact an attorney — a friend if you know any, because the effort involved is minimal, and if it is a friend, they are unlikely to charge you for something so minor. Anything that arrives on law office letterhead tends to get the wheels moving. The content of the letter is less important than the return address. Also, where do you bank? Do you know any officers there? They could pull your CBR in a second — and might just do it as a customer service. I have noticed that the credit bureaus I pull (I work in finance) are always significantly different than the “free” credit bureaus people submit to our office. I’d like to give you an explanation, however, at this point all I can say is that reports pulled from the same credit agency on the same day can have radically different scores (I have seen differences of well over 50 points) if one is pulled by a business, and the other is pulled by an individual.
Also, what is the nature of the item(s) you are trying to get removed? Are they settled debts / collections / liens? Are they late payments? Is it fraudulent activity? Have you been confused with another individual with the same name? Specifics are not important, but if you could give me an idea it would help.
03/28/2010 at 7:10 am
GILBERT
Sometimes, you have to sue the credit bureau and the creditor who put the wrong info in your credit report. You can file suit in small claims court (or any other court) under the Fair Credit Reporting Act. This might be the only way to get their attention.
I would never dispute anything online…do it in writing and keep a copy of everything you send to them regarding a dispute.
03/29/2010 at 7:01 pm
GILBERT
I disputed my credit report on-line with Transunion.It was very easy and they removed everything that I had a dispute with. It only took like14 days for them to investigate and remove it. I think that your entitled to one free report a year from each of the agencies,so you might be able to go through one of the others so you wouldnt have to buy your report. Once Transunion did mine the info was removed from the other companies also. Good Luck.