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Wouldn't you be surprised to
discover you're dead, especially if the news came from your
loan officer? A 30-year-old Detroit man certainly was. His alleged
deceased status was the one snafu on his credit report keeping
him from getting a new car loan.
Few credit dings are as devastating as that one.
Still, credit reports may contain some inaccuracies. We're talking
about flat-out wrong information -- not even those self-inflicted
credit wounds that everyone tries to deny.
Here's how to spot credit blemishes and make
them go away.
From scrapes to gashes
There are two kinds of credit report blunders -- information
that's outright inaccurate, and boo-boos that reflect the errors
of your ways. In either instance, the best way to approach the
cleanup process is to start with the source, which, in most
instances, is listed right there on your credit report.
In the very-much-alive Detroit man's case, it
was an input error at the Social Security Administration that
led to false claims of his demise. Other credit reporting errors
can include accounts mistakenly attributed to you; application
notices that you didn't fill out, and out-of-date home address
or employment information. Errors can also include omissions,
such as the presence of a delinquency that you've already remedied,
or an old collection action that is still being reported as
overdue.
With a little diligence on your part, such inaccuracies
can be updated or removed from your record relatively quickly.
(Just follow our six steps to disputing inaccuracies below.)
Under the Fair Credit Reporting Act, credit bureaus are required
to investigate your claim within 30 days. If it determines that
an error has been made, it must correct the boo-boo and notify
the other credit bureaus and you (with a free report).
Accurate negative information -- the stuff that's
from your own doing, such as late payments and not calling your
mother back promptly -- generally stays on your report for seven
years, with a few exceptions, according to the Federal Consumer
Information Center:
Information about criminal convictions may be
reported without any time limitation.
Bankruptcy information can follow you around for
10 years.
Credit information reported in response to an
application for a job with a salary of more than $75,000 has
no time limit.
When you apply for credit or life insurance in
the amount of $150,000 or more, any credit information reported
at that time has no time limit.
Information about a lawsuit or an unpaid judgment
against you can be reported for seven years or until the statute
of limitations runs out, whichever is longer.
Article continued at http://www.fool.com/ccc/check/check05.htm
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