Dispute Information

Experian Dispute Process

Experian® wants your credit information to be as accurate as possible. If you have reviewed your credit report and believe that the information is inaccurate, you can dispute it online for the fastest resolution.

Correcting your information with Experian is now easier than ever! If you have a current Experian report, simply log in to your member center, view your current report and click on the “Dispute Information” button located near the top of the page. If you don’t have a current report, simply pull another one from your Member Center. As a Triple Advantage member, you can enjoy unlimited free Experian credit reports!

Please note: You must have a current copy of your Experian report in order to dispute with Experian.

Equifax Dispute Process

To dispute information on your Equifax credit report, you can contact the bureau reporting company by postal mail:

Equifax Information Services, LLC
P.O. Box 740256
Atlanta, GA 30374-0256
TransUnion Dispute Process

To dispute information on your TransUnion credit report, you can contact the credit reporting company by postal mail below. You can dispute online if you have a current 3 Bureau Credit Report within your member center. Simply view your current report and click on “Dispute Information” button located near the top of the page. As a Triple Advantage member, your membership comes with a free 3 Bureau Credit Report and Score at enrollment!

Please note: You must have a current copy of your 3 Bureau Credit Report in order to dispute online with TransUnion.

TransUnion Customer Relations
P.O. Box 1000
Chester, PA 19022

Your rights - Fair Credit Reporting Act (FCRA)

Para informacion en espanol, visite www.ftc.gov/credit o escribe a la FTC Consumer Response
Center, Room 130-A 600 Pennsylvania Ave. N.W., Washington, D.C. 20580.

A Summary of Your Rights under the Fair Credit Reporting Act

The federal Fair Credit Reporting Act (FCRA) promotes the accuracy, fairness, and privacy of information in the files of credit reporting companies. There are many types of credit reporting companies, including Experian®, Equifax® and TransUnion and specialty agencies (such as agencies that sell information about check writing histories, medical records, and rental history records). Here is a summary of your major rights under the FCRA. For more information, including information about additional rights, go to www.ftc.gov/credit or write to: Consumer Response Center, Room 130-A, Federal Trade Commission, 600 Pennsylvania Ave. N.W., Washington, D.C. 20580.

• You must be told if information in your file has been used against you. Anyone who uses a credit report or another type of consumer report to deny your application for credit, insurance, or employment - or to take another adverse action against you - must tell you, and must give you the name, address, and phone number of the agency that provided the information.
• You have the right to know what is in your file. You may request and obtain all the information about you in the files of a consumer reporting agency (your “file disclosure”). You will be required to provide proper identification, which may include your Social Security number. In many cases, the disclosure will be free. You are entitled to a free file disclosure if:
  • a person has taken adverse action against you because of information in your credit report;
  • you are the victim of identify theft and place a fraud alert in your file;
  • your file contains inaccurate information as a result of fraud;
  • you are on public assistance;
  • you are unemployed but expect to apply for employment within 60 days.

  In addition, all consumers will be entitled to one free disclosure every 12 months upon request from each nationwide credit bureau and from nationwide specialty consumer reporting agencies. See www.annualcreditreport.com for additional information.

• You have the right to ask for a credit score. Credit scores are numerical summaries of your credit-worthiness based on information from credit bureaus. You may request a credit score from consumer reporting agencies that create scores or distribute scores used in residential real property loans, but you will have to pay for it. In some mortgage transactions, you will receive credit score information for free from the mortgage lender.
• You have the right to dispute incomplete or inaccurate information. If you identify information in your file that is incomplete or inaccurate, and report it to the consumer reporting agency, the agency must investigate unless your dispute is frivolous. See www.ftc.gov/credit for an explanation of dispute procedures.
• Consumer reporting agencies must correct or delete inaccurate, incomplete, or unverifiable information. Inaccurate, incomplete or unverifiable information must be removed or corrected, usually within 30 days. However, a consumer reporting agency may continue to report information it has verified as accurate.
• Consumer reporting agencies may not report outdated negative information. In most cases, a consumer reporting agency may not report negative information that is more than seven years old, or bankruptcies that are more than 10 years old.
• Access to your file is limited. A consumer reporting agency may provide information about you only to people with a valid need — usually to consider an application with a creditor, insurer, employer, landlord, or other business. The FCRA specifies those with a valid need for access.
• You must give your consent for reports to be provided to employers. A consumer reporting agency may not give out information about you to your employer, or a potential employer, without your written consent given to the employer. Written consent generally is not required in the trucking industry. For more information, go to www.ftc.gov/credit.
• You may limit “prescreened” offers of credit and insurance you get based on information in your credit report. Unsolicited “prescreened” offers for credit and insurance must include a toll-free phone number you can call if you choose to remove your name and address from the lists these offers are based on. You may opt-out with the nationwide credit bureaus at 1 888 5OPTOUT (1 888 567 8688).
• You may seek damages from violators. If a consumer reporting agency, or, in some cases, a user of consumer reports or a furnisher of information to a consumer reporting agency violates the FCRA, you may be able to sue in state or federal court.
• Identity theft victims and active duty military personnel have additional rights. For more information, visit www.ftc.gov/credit.

States may enforce the FCRA, and many states have their own consumer reporting laws. In some cases, you may have more rights under state law. For more information, contact your state or local consumer protection agency or your state Attorney General. Federal enforcers are:

Credit Bureaus: Who are they?

The three biggest credit reporting companies – also called credit bureaus – are:

• Experian®
• Equifax®
• TransUnion®

Experian®, Equifax® and TransUnion® use credit scoring models to evaluate and score the information in an individual’s credit report.

Even though the three credit bureaus use similar formulas to calculate a credit score, you can have different credit scores from each one. It depends on how complete, accurate and up-to-date each of the credit reporting company’s information about you is.

Credit Bureaus and Credit Reports

Credit bureaus keep track of a person’s entire credit history. For instance, if you obtained a credit card as a college student in 1985, the credit bureaus would have that information.

Who’s interested in your credit report?

• Banks and other potential lenders gather information from credit reporting companies to help them decide whether or not to extend credit to potential borrowers.
• Insurance companies use credit reports to make decisions about who to insure and at what price.
• Employers often use information from the credit reporting companies to help make hiring decisions on potential candidates.

Credit bureaus and free credit reports

You’re entitled to a free copy of your credit report:

1. If you’ve been turned down for a loan, insurance policy, or a job because of credit.
2. Under federal law – The Fair and Accurate Credit Transactions Act (FACT) – all U.S. residents are entitled to one free credit report from each of the 3 credit bureaus. Visit www.annualcreditreport.com or call 1-877-322-8228 to find out how you can get a free copy of your credit report.

Remember: Nobody’s perfect. Not the credit bureaus, or borrowers. But if you arm yourself with information, you can help credit reporting companies see you for the responsible person you really are.

Thinking of Cleaning Up Your Credit? Think Again.

“Credit repair” - as advertised on the radio, TV, and Internet - tends to be, at best, a waste of money and, at worst, a scam that would simply defraud you or perhaps involve you in fraud yourself. Even if a credit repair company is legitimate, there’s nothing they can legally do that you can’t do yourself at no cost.

This is because there really is no legal way to “repair” bad credit if the history thereof is accurate – only time and ongoing responsible credit management can do that. Credit repair companies can do no more for your credit legally than you can.

Beware of “credit repair” scams

Unscrupulous credit repair operations work by seeking out consumers who have been denied loans or credit based on their poor credit histories. One such common scam is called “file segregation.” Beware when a credit repair company:

• Promises to provide consumers with instructions on how to develop a new credit identity.
• Recommends that you get an Employee Identification Number (EIN) or Individual Taxpayer Identification Number (ITIN) and encourages you to use it in place of your true Social Security number.

Credit Repair: Your legal rights

When the information in Your Credit Report is Inaccurate

The Federal Fair Credit Reporting Act guarantees your right to dispute inaccurate information in your credit report free of charge. You can file a dispute with one of the nation’s national credit reporting agencies to have it corrected or removed.

When the negative information in your file is accurate

If there is negative information in your credit report that is accurate, focus on building better credit for the future rather than trying to have it removed from your credit report. Only time and establishing a positive credit history can “clean up” your credit.

One of the best first steps to getting your credit back on track is seeing what is on your credit report. If you find errors in your credit report, you can take steps to dispute any inaccurate information. It’s also a good way to assess your current credit debt. The next step might be to contact old accounts that carry outstanding debt and arrange payment plans. As you begin to manage your debt successfully, you will also check your credit report on a regular basis to make sure your good efforts are being reported.

About Credit Reports

Credit reports provide a detailed record of an individual’s borrowing and repaying history. Lending institutions use these credit reports to determine an individual’s interest rate and borrowing capabilities.

What’s in a credit report?

Credit reports are produced by 3 credit bureaus – Experian, Equifax and TransUnion (also known as credit reporting companies) – and include:

• Personally Identifying Information – your social security number, current and previous addresses and employment history
• A summary of the number and types of accounts and whether they are in good standing
• Payment history for each account
• Details of accounts turned over for collection action
• Information about past bankruptcy or judgments
• Inquiries made by lenders or other institutions about your credit report

If you have found errors in your credit report, there are ways to correct them. Your credit report provides information on correcting errors in your file.

Taking control of your credit report and reputation

The information on credit reports is used to calculate a credit score. Lenders use the credit score to make decisions about extending credit. It’s important to keep track of the information in your credit report to make sure there are no errors. According to research by the U.S. Public Interest Research Group, 79% of credit reports contain at least one error-which you have the right to correct.

Credit reports can be free!

Thanks to the Fair and Accurate Credit Transactions Act (FACT), U.S. residents are entitled to one free credit report every 12 months from each of the three U.S. credit bureaus.

There are several ways to access your free credit report:

1. On the web: www.annualcreditreport.com
2. By phone: 1-877-322-8228
3. Completing the form in the Annual Credit Request brochure and mailing it to:

   Annual Credit Report Request Service
   P.O. Box 105281
   Atlanta, GA 30348-5281

If you’ve been turned down for a loan, credit card, insurance policy or job due to a negative credit report, you’re also entitled to a free credit report from the credit bureau. So, if you want lenders to see you for the responsible person you really are, be sure you have a credit report that reflects the real you!