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Credit Reports – Fixing Errors Can Be Difficult
By: Charles Essmeier
Most Americans are aware that any time they try to borrow money, the lender
consults with a credit report outlining the borrower’s credit history. These
reports are prepared by the major credit bureaus – Experian, Equifax and Trans
Union, and the reports, along with the accompanying credit score, contain a
distillation of the borrower’s entire financial history. Armed with that
information, the lender can make a decision as to whether granting a loan or
credit would be wise. What many Americans don’t know is that most credit reports
contain errors. Worse, it can take months or even years to correct those
problems. In the meantime, the errors may prevent the borrower from obtaining a
loan or credit.
A recent study shows that nearly four out of five credit reports contain errors.
Worse, roughly one in four contains an error that is serious enough to prevent
the individual from obtaining credit or borrowing money. Most of these errors
are minor; they may simply consist of an incorrect address, phone number or
perhaps date of birth. Others can be more serious, such as listing a paid loan
as being in default, or including information from another person’s credit
history. These types of problems can be serious, as they can adversely affect
the credit score of the individual involved. The lower the credit score, the
harder it is to obtain credit or to get a loan at a favorable interest rate.
According to the Fair Credit Reporting Act, consumers are supposed to be able to
fix these problems quickly, but it often doesn’t work out that way. Sometimes,
even if the person has proof that the information contained in the report is
wrong, the bureaus are reluctant to correct it. A reason often given is that the
bureaus would prefer to believe the lenders who provided the information rather
than the consumer adversely affected by it.
The best way to avoid such credit report problems is to check your credit report
regularly and to report problems or incorrect information immediately. You can
do this, for free, by visiting http://www.annualcreditreport.com, a Website that
allows Americans to obtain one free credit report per year from each of the
three major credit bureaus.
About the Author:
©Copyright 2005 by Retro Marketing. Charles Essmeier is the owner of Retro
Marketing, a firm devoted to informational Websites, including
http://www.End-Your-Debt.com ,
a site devoted to debt consolidation and credit counseling.
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