Instead, roll up your sleeves and go to work on your credit report yourself. Even if you were able to find reputable help, you couldn't walk away completely. Only you can start the process by looking at your credit report and spotting credit card accounts you never had, or late payments that weren't late.
Begin by ordering a free credit report from each credit bureau through www.annualcreditreport.com. Don't respond to the ads you have seen for other sites that promise "free credit reports." Only annualcreditreport.com was set up under government rules to provide completely free reports.
You will need to look for mistakes in three credit reports; one from each credit bureau: Equifax (800-685-1111), TransUnion (800-916-8800), and Experian (888-397-3742). One bureau might be correct, while another might have errors. All three matter.
Sometimes people find their report reflects accounts held by someone with a similar name. Other times, people find unpaid bills they didn't know were delinquent. Medical bills can show up in reports while people are still seeking payments from insurance companies.
You won't see a credit score on the credit reports. But the credit score reflects the payment history you see in your credit reports, so cleaning up errors should improve your score. You can buy your credit scores at MyFico.com.
Credit bureaus are required by law to investigate all consumer disputes, fix errors and inform you of the outcome within 30 days. Hendricks suggests using the official dispute form provided by the bureaus on Web sites and writing a short letter that states you are "disputing the following inaccuracies." State why, and give the account, account number, your name, address, previous address, birth date, Social Security number and supporting documentation.
Hendricks said to send a certified letter with a return receipt, and send a copy to the credit card company or other firm that was erroneous in your report. Then file it all in case you are unsuccessful after 35 days and must pursue the matter further.
The credit bureaus investigate disputed records electronically, and often the system fails to detect mistakes when they have occurred.
At that point, you may want to get legal help, Hendricks said. If you do, seek an attorney with experience in the Fair Credit Reporting Act through the National Association of Consumer Advocates ( www.naca.net) or the National Consumer Law Center ( www.nclc.org).
Gail MarksJarvis is a Your Money columnist. Contact her at gmarksjarvis@tribune.com.
