My Credit Report Has a Mistake. What Should I Do?

This page is general consumer information, not legal advice.

Step 1: Get your reports and pinpoint the exact error

Pull your reports from Equifax, Experian, and TransUnion using AnnualCreditReport.com. Our guide to pulling and saving your free reports explains how. Each bureau keeps its own file, so an error can appear on one report and not the others. Save a copy of each report exactly as it appeared.

For each thing that looks wrong, write down:

• Which bureau's report shows it, and the report date
• The company name and the last four characters of the account number only
• The exact field that is wrong: balance, status, payment history, dates, personal information, or whether the account is yours at all
• What the report says, word for word, and what you believe it should say instead
• The record that supports the change, and where that record came from

A vague dispute ("this is wrong") invites a useless result. A dispute that names the field and the proof gives the bureau something it has to answer.

Step 2: Dispute with the credit bureau

File a dispute with every bureau whose report shows the error. A dispute with one bureau does not notify the others.

• Equifax: file online through myEquifax, or call 1-888-378-4329, the number listed on Equifax's dispute instructions.
• Experian: file online through the Experian Dispute Center, or by mail to Experian Dispute by Mail, P.O. Box 4500, Allen, TX 75013, as listed on Experian's dispute form.
• TransUnion: file online through the TransUnion Service Center, or call (800) 916-8800, as listed on TransUnion's phone and mail instructions.

Keep a copy of the dispute exactly as you sent it, the channel you used, the date, and any confirmation or reference number.

Step 3: Dispute with the company that reported it

Separately, notify the company that furnished the information (the bank, card issuer, collector, or landlord). This is called a furnisher dispute. Send it in writing, preferably by certified mail, with copies of your supporting documents. Keep the mailing receipt.

Telling the bureau does not prove the company was notified, and telling the company does not prove the bureau received anything. Keep the two files separate.

Step 4: What to include in your dispute

• Your full contact information
• A clear explanation of what is wrong and why
• Copies, not originals, of documents that support your position: statements, payment confirmations, payoff or settlement letters, police or identity-theft reports
• A copy of the credit report with the disputed items highlighted (optional, but helpful)

Send copies, never originals. Keep everything you send, plus proof it arrived.

Step 5: The 30-day clock and what the results mean

The bureau generally has 30 days from receiving your dispute to investigate. In certain circumstances, such as a dispute following a free annual report or relevant additional information sent during the investigation, the period may be up to 45 days. A qualifying direct furnisher dispute generally follows the same investigation period. Wrong or unverifiable information must be updated or deleted. See the CFPB's timing guidance and direct-dispute rules.

Results letters use different words for different things, and the outcome can differ from one bureau to the next:

• Deleted or updated: the item changed in your favor.
• Verified (or "remains"): the bureau says the furnisher confirmed the information. This is an investigation result, not a court decision, and it does not by itself settle whether the investigation complied with the law.

Save the full results notice, the date of the response, and a newer report showing how the entry reads now.

Step 6: If the dispute comes back verified but the item is still wrong

Do not just resend the same dispute. A repeat with nothing new can be dismissed as frivolous. Instead:

1. Ask how the result was reached. After a reinvestigation, you can request a description of the procedure the bureau used, including the name, address, and phone number of any company it contacted. The bureau generally has 15 days to send it.
2. Send a focused follow-up with new proof. If you have documentation the first dispute did not include, send a supplemental dispute to the bureau and the furnisher, matched to the specific field that is still wrong.
3. Add a statement to your file. You can ask that a brief statement of the dispute be included in your credit file.
4. Complain to the CFPB. The Consumer Financial Protection Bureau takes complaints about credit reporting, and the CFPB describes these options when you disagree with dispute results.
5. Get the situation reviewed. A verified-but-wrong result may warrant a consumer-protection attorney's review; it does not by itself establish a legal violation. If the error cost you a loan, a job, an apartment, or a better rate, it is worth having someone look at it before any deadlines run.

Our guides go deeper on each of these steps: how to file a credit report dispute, the dispute evidence checklist (what to save, and a printable worksheet), and what to do when a dispute comes back verified but is still wrong.

When it is worth getting help: CreditHound's free check

CreditHound helps you gather details about possible mistakes on your reports from Equifax, Experian, and TransUnion and explains your rights under the Fair Credit Reporting Act (FCRA). The initial questionnaire does not pull, upload, access, or automatically analyze your reports.

• The review is free and takes a few minutes: a short questionnaire, no Social Security number, no credit pull.
• It never asks you to pay for a dispute, a letter, or a subscription.
• If your answers suggest a possible FCRA violation and you consent, your situation can go to an independent consumer-protection law firm for review. The FCRA provides for fee shifting in successful claims; any fees and costs depend on the firm's agreement with you. The firm decides whether to accept your case, and you are never obligated to hire anyone we introduce you to.
• Prefer to talk? Call CreditHound at 516-407-8274.

CreditHound is not a law firm and does not write, send, or file disputes for you. We help you gather the details about what looks wrong, and with your consent your situation can go to an independent partner law firm for review. CreditHound is not a credit repair organization: we do not promise score increases, we do not remove accurate negative information, and we do not charge consumers. No outcome, deletion, or score change is guaranteed.

Frequently asked questions

Sources

• Consumer Financial Protection Bureau: How do I dispute an error on my credit report?
• Consumer Financial Protection Bureau: Options when you disagree with dispute results
• Fair Credit Reporting Act, Section 611: Reinvestigations
• Fair Credit Reporting Act, Section 605: Reporting periods