Federal Trade Commission | consumer.ftc.gov

Disputing Errors 

on Credit Reports

1

Your credit report contains information about where you live, how you pay your bills, and 

whether you’ve been sued or arrested, or have filed 

for bankruptcy. Credit reporting companies sell the 

information in your report to creditors, insurers, 

employers, and other businesses that use it to evaluate 

your applications for credit, insurance, employment, 

or renting a home. The federal Fair Credit Reporting 

Act (FCRA) promotes the accuracy and privacy of 

information in the files of the nation’s credit reporting 

companies.

Some financial advisors and consumer advocates 

suggest that you review your credit report 

periodically. Why?

● Because the information it contains affects 

whether you can get a loan — and how much 

you will have to pay to borrow money.

● To make sure the information is accurate, 

complete, and up-to-date before you apply for 

a loan for a major purchase like a house or car, 

buy insurance, or apply for a job.

● To help guard against identity theft. That’s when 

someone uses your personal information — like 

your name, your Social Security number, or 

your credit card number — to commit fraud. 

Identity thieves may use your information to 

open a new credit card account in your name. 

Then, when they don’t pay the bills, the 

delinquent account is reported on your credit 

report. Inaccurate information like that could 

affect your ability to get credit, insurance, or 

even a job.
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How to Order Your Free Report

An amendment to the FCRA requires each of the 

nationwide credit reporting companies — Equifax, 

Experian, and TransUnion — to provide you with a 

free copy of your credit report, at your request, once 

every 12 months.

The three nationwide credit reporting companies 

have set up one website, toll-free telephone 

number, and mailing address through which you 

can order your free annual report. To order, visit 

annualcreditreport.com, call 1-877-322-8228, or 

complete the Annual Credit Report Request Form at 

the center of this booklet and mail it to:

Annual Credit Report Request Service

P.O. Box 105281

Atlanta, GA 30348-5281

Do not contact the three nationwide credit reporting 

companies individually.

You may order your reports from each of the three 

nationwide credit reporting companies at the same 

time, or you can order from only one or two. The 

FCRA allows you to order one free copy from each 

of the nationwide credit reporting companies every 12 

months.

You need to provide your name, address, Social 

Security number, and date of birth. If you have 

moved in the last two years, you may have to provide 

your previous address. To maintain the security of 

your file, each nationwide credit reporting company 
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may ask you for some information that only you 

would know, like the amount of your monthly 

mortgage payment. Each company may ask you for 

different information because the information each 

has in your file may come from different sources.

Other situations where you might be eligible 

for a free report

You’re also entitled to a free report if a company 

takes adverse action against you, such as denying 

your application for credit, insurance, or 

employment, based on information in your report. 

You must ask for your report within 60 days of 

receiving notice of the action. The notice will give 

you the name, address, and phone number of the 

credit reporting company.

You’re also entitled to one free report a year if you’re 

unemployed and plan to look for a job within 60 days; 

if you’re on welfare; or if your report is inaccurate 

because of fraud, including identity theft.

Otherwise, a credit reporting company may charge 

you a reasonable amount for another copy of your 

report within a 12-month period. To buy a copy of 

your report, contact the three credit report companies:

Experian-1-888-397-3742

www.experian.com

TransUnion-1-800-916-8800

www.transunion.com

Equifax-1-800-685-1111

www.equifax.com
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Correcting Errors

Under the FCRA, both the credit reporting company 

and the information provider (that is, the person, 

company, or organization that provides information 

about you to a credit reporting company) are 

responsible for correcting inaccurate or incomplete 

information in your report. To take advantage of all 

your rights under this law, contact the credit reporting 

company and the information provider.

Step One

Tell the credit reporting company, in writing, what 

information you think is inaccurate. Include copies 

(NOT originals) of documents that support your 

position. In addition to providing your complete 

name and address, your letter should clearly identify 

each item in your report you dispute, state the facts 

and explain why you dispute the information, and 

request that it be removed or corrected. You may 

want to enclose a copy of your report with the items 

in question circled. Your letter may look something 

like the one below. Send your letter by certified mail, 

“return receipt requested,” so you can document what 

the credit reporting company received. Keep copies of 

your dispute letter and enclosures.

Credit reporting companies must investigate the 

items in question — usually within 30 days — unless 

they consider your dispute frivolous. They also must 

forward all the relevant data you provide about the 

inaccuracy to the organization that provided the 

information. After the information provider receives 

notice of a dispute from the credit reporting company, 
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it must investigate, review the relevant information, 

and report the results back to the credit reporting 

company. If the information provider finds the 

disputed information is inaccurate, it must notify all 

three nationwide credit reporting companies so they 

can correct the information in your file.

When the investigation is complete, the credit 

reporting company must give you the results in 

writing and a free copy of your report if the dispute 

results in a change. This free report does not count 

as your annual free report. If an item is changed or 

deleted, the credit reporting company cannot put 

the disputed information back in your file unless 

the information provider verifies that it is accurate 

and complete. The credit reporting company also 

must send you written notice that includes the name, 

address, and phone number of the information 

provider.

If you ask, the credit reporting company must send 

notices of any corrections to anyone who received 

your report in the past six months. You can have 

a corrected copy of your report sent to anyone 

who received a copy during the past two years for 

employment purposes.

If an investigation doesn’t resolve your dispute with 

the credit reporting company, you can ask that a 

statement of the dispute be included in your file 

and in future reports. You also can ask the credit 

reporting company to provide your statement to 

anyone who received a copy of your report in the 

recent past. You can expect to pay a fee for this 

service.
You have the right to get a free copy of your credit file disclosure, commonly called a credit report, once every 12 months, from each of

the nationwide consumer credit reporting companies - Equifax, Experian and TransUnion.

For instant access to your free credit report, visit www.annualcreditreport.com.

For more information on obtaining your free credit report, visit www.annualcreditreport.com or call 877-322-8228.

Use this form if you prefer to write to request your credit report from any, or all, of the nationwide consumer credit reporting companies. The

following information is required to process your request. Omission of any information may delay your request.

Annual Credit Report Request Form

Once complete, fold (do not staple or tape), place into a #10 envelope, affix required postage and mail to:

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

Social Security Number:

- -

Date of Birth:

/ /

Month Day Year

First Name M.I.Last Name JR, SR, III, etc.Current Mailing Address:

Fold Here Fold Here

Please use a Black or Blue Pen and write your responses in PRINTED CAPITAL LETTERS without touching the sides of the boxes like the examples listed below:

A B C D E F G H I J K L M N O P Q R S T U V W X Y Z 0 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9
If additional information is needed to process your request, the consumer credit

reporting company will contact you by mail.

Your request will be processed within 15 days of receipt and then mailed to you.

Copyright 2004, Central Source LLC

EquifaxExperianTransUnion

I want a credit report from (shade

each that you would like to

receive):

Shade here if, for securityreasons, you want your creditreport to include no more than

the last four digits of your

Social Security Number.

Shade Circle Like This >

Not Like This >

House Number Street NameCity State ZipCode

ZipCode State City

Apartment Number / Private Mailbox For Puerto Rico Only: Print Urbanization Name

Street Name House Number

Previous Mailing Address (complete only if at current mailing address for less than two years):

Fold Here Fold Here

For Puerto Rico Only: Print Urbanization Name Apartment Number / Private Mailbox

31238
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Step Two

Tell the creditor or other information provider, in 

writing, that you dispute an item. Be sure to include 

copies (NOT originals) of documents that support 

your position. Many providers specify an address 

for disputes. If the provider reports the item to a 

credit reporting company, it must include a notice 

of your dispute. And if you are correct — that is, 

if the information is found to be inaccurate — the 

information provider may not report it again.
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About Your File

Your credit file may not reflect all your credit 

accounts. Although most national department store 

and all-purpose bank credit card accounts will 

be included in your file, not all creditors supply 

information to credit reporting companies: some local 

retailers, credit unions, travel, entertainment, and 

gasoline card companies are among the creditors that 

don’t.

When negative information in your report is accurate, 

only the passage of time can assure its removal. A 

credit reporting company can report most accurate 

negative information for seven years and bankruptcy 

information for 10 years. Information about an 

unpaid judgment against you can be reported for 

seven years or until the statute of limitations runs 

out, whichever is longer. There is no time limit on 

reporting: information about criminal convictions; 

information reported in response to your application 

for a job that pays more than $75,000 a year; and 

information reported because you’ve applied for more 

than $150,000 worth of credit or life insurance. There 

is a standard method for calculating the seven-year 

reporting period. Generally, the period runs from the 

date that the event took place.

For more information, see How Credit Scores 

Affect the Price of Credit and Insurance at 

consumer.ftc.gov.
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Date

Your Name

Your Address

City, State, Zip Code

Complaint Department

Name of Company

Address

City, State, Zip Code

Dear Sir or Madam:

I am writing to dispute the following information in my file. I 

have circled the items I dispute on the attached copy of the 

report I received.

This item (identify item(s) disputed by name of source, such 

as creditors or tax court, and identify type of item, such as 

credit account, judgment, etc.) is (inaccurate or incomplete) 

because (describe what is inaccurate or incomplete and why). 

I am requesting that the item be removed (or request another 

specific change) to correct the information.

Enclosed are copies of (use this sentence if applicable and 

describe any enclosed documentation, such as payment 

records and court documents) supporting my position. Please 

reinvestigate this (these) matter(s) and (delete or correct) the 

disputed item(s) as soon as possible.

Sincerely,

Your name

Enclosures: (List what you are enclosing.)

Sample Dispute Letter
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For More Information

The FTC works to prevent fraudulent, deceptive and 

unfair business practices in the marketplace and to 

provide information to help consumers spot, stop and 

avoid them. To learn more about credit issues and 

protecting your personal information, visit consumer.

ftc.gov.

To file a complaint or get free information on 

consumer issues, visit consumer.ftc.gov or call 

toll-free, 1-877-FTC-HELP (1-877-382-4357); 

TTY: 1-866-653-4261. Watch a video, How to File 

a Complaint, at consumer.ftc.gov/media to learn 

more. The FTC enters consumer complaints into the 

Consumer Sentinel Network, a secure online database 

and investigative tool used by hundreds of civil and 

criminal law enforcement agencies in the U.S. and 

abroad. 


Federal Trade Commission

consumer.ftc.gov

October 2011