Wondering what you might find with a free credit rating check? According to a survey conducted
by USPIRG, a consumer organization, a shocking 70% of the credit reports they looked at had at
least one error. Your credit report represents an X-ray of your financial health and it's what guides
creditors when they make decisions about you. And since you wouldn't want a surgeon to operate
on you using an X-ray that had a 70% chance of being wrong, it's a good idea to get a free credit
rating check.
If you find errors when you get your free credit rating check, you might not know what to
do next. Thanks to the passage of the Fair Credit Reporting Act(FCRA) in 1971, you have certain
rights for dealing with errors on credit reports. The FCRA states that a credit report agency must
remove any information that's inaccurate, incomplete or unverifiable and do so within 30 days
of receiving notification of the error.
The first thing you do if you find an error in your free credit rating check is to fill out
the dispute form that the credit reporting agency supplies. Include any documents that
support your position when you mail the form. It's best to use certified mail with the
return receipt requested. When the agency gets the form, it's required to investigate all
non-frivolous disputes.
Within five days after the credit bureau finishes investigating the disputed item from
your free credit rating check, it's required to send you the results. If the disputed item is
changed, you can request that the updated information be sent to anyone who requested a
copy of your credit report in the last year or last two years if it was an employer. If the
disputed item is not resolved to your satisfaction, then you have the right to make a
summary position statement. The statement will be included in future copies of your credit
report and consists of up to 100 words explaining why you think the item is inaccurate or
incomplete.
To get your free credit rating check with a free credit report and free 30 days of credit
monitoring, please go to
free instant credit reports.
