Eyad a asked:


I have a 10,000 car loan from a small financing institution. They have been reporting my payments to TransUnion and every-time I apply for a credit card or any other loan I get rejected. My current balance is $400 and I will pay them off next month.

The problem is that when I go anywhere else and apply for loan or credit card, I get rejected because others can not see my car loan unless they check with TransUnion. Most banks and dealerships check with Equafix and Experian.

Yesterday, when I checked to see my credit report, I was able to see my loan and my score, which was around 650. When I tried to contact the my lender, they said that they only report to TransUnion and they can not change their policy just because of me.

What can I do to get my car to show on all three credit bureau?
and how am I suppose to find lenders who check with TransUnion

Jared

Ann Born asked:




Whenever it is time for you apply for a loan of any type, your credit is generally pulled. Depending on your credit history, your score may vary from anywhere within the 500s or lower, which is considered very bad to the 700s or higher which is considered excellent. Although many people consider the credit system within the United States to be somewhat cumbersome, it has been in place for many years and does not show any signs of changing soon. If you are trying to contact credit bureau agencies, you might be surprised to find that there are more than one that actually score you and are often looked at by the lending institutions.

The three credit agencies which take care of scoring your credit and ultimately help to determine whether you qualify for a loan are Experian, Equifax and TransUnion. Each of these three credit agencies will provide its own unique number, based on the scoring system that it uses to determine your credit. Whenever it comes time to contact credit bureau agencies, you need to figure out which of these agencies needs to be contacted. For example, if there is some fraudulent or mistaken information that appears on your credit report, you need to find out which of these agencies and is responsible for that report and contact them directly.

It may also be necessary for you to contact credit bureau agencies in order to receive a copy of your credit. As individuals, each of us are entitled to receive a free copy of our credit report on an annual basis. Although you certainly would not want to pull it all of the time because that would lower your credit scores, keeping in touch with your credit and knowing where your numbers are at is very important for you to make sure that no problems are occurring. Regularly contacting credit bureau companies and receiving a copy of your credit report can help you to avoid identity theft and to recognize any mistakes that were made on the report before they damage you too much.

There are also some companies which will contact credit bureau agencies for you and pull all three of your credit reports. Although you may have to pay a fee in order for this to take place, it may be worth your while considering the time that is involved in contacting each of the individual agencies one at a time.

Bertha

Waller Jamison asked:




Maintaining a good credit score isn’t easy at the best of times, but if you have worked hard to improve your credit and achieved a decent score, you wan to keep it that way. However, your credit score changes every time you take out a loan or are late with your payments and can also change through no fault of your own.

One of the reasons that your credit score can fall is because your report contains errors. This unfortunately can have an adverse effect on your ability to borrow money.

If you want to be sure that there are no mistakes in your credit score, you have to check it at regular intervals, that is to say at least once a year. And don’t forget that there are three major credit bureaus and each may have a slightly different score.

If you keep an eye on your credit score, you’ll be able to ensure that there are no major problems when you need to borrow money for a car, mortgage or other expensive item. It can be extremely inconvenient to be about to take out a loan and find that you are unable to do so because of problems with your credit score.

If you find any irregularities on your report you must contact the relevant credit bureau right away so that they can identify the problem and sort it out before it becomes a major issue. Any credit bureau dispute needs to be cleared up immediately.

Generally speaking, mistakes are just small errors which can be fixed quickly and without much effort, but even a minor error can prevent you getting credit when you need it most.

There are times when a mistake is the result of identity theft, which has become much more common these days and of course is a very serious problem, one that you must take steps to resolve immediately. If you are a victim of identity theft, the credit bureaus will put an alert on your file and this will explain the situation to any potential lenders. Identity theft can have long-term repercussions and is something you want to deal with as soon as possible.

Brian

Tim Bock asked:




Many times people are unaware of exactly what’s in their credit report, let along if there’s a collection account in there. There are usually 1 or 2 reasons why a collection account may exist.

- The account went to collections
- Mistaken identity

Fortunately it’s not the end of the world. There are steps that can be taken to get the collection off of your credit for good.

Get a copy of your credit report

There are 3 main credit bureaus where you can obtain a copy of your credit report. These are as follows:

- Equifax
- Transunion
- Experian

Dispute the findings

Each credit bureau operates separately. Therefore having the account deleted from one does not automatically mean it will disappear from all 3. Lenders do look at all three credit reports, so it’s extremely important to follow up with all of them. Not doing so will affect your ability in getting a loan.

Do it in writing

It’s important to mail your dispute in. Do not try to do it over the phone. Writing gives you documentation in case you need it. After they received the dispute, they will investigate the matter. If the investigation is not resolved within the allotted amount of time, the item will automatically be deleted from your credit report.

Fair credit reporting act

Become familiar with this law, before you contact the credit bureaus. It could save you a lot of time and trouble. It’s important to get the facts, so you have all the tools at your disposal when going up against the credit bureaus.

Phyllis

Tony Banks asked:




The truth of the matter is that repairing your credit can take some time but its surely not impossible, it takes time for a few reasons. If you discover that there are errors on your credit report or you want to challenge certain entries, the dialog via mail that you have with the credit bureaus will take at least a couple of weeks before you know the final outcome.

Especially if the credit bureau has to contact a third party creditor for information. The good thing about this is that they have a specific amount of time to do this by law. Once that time frame is up, they have to delete the item in question from your credit report. It is important that you understand the credit laws so that you know when they are in violation.

Once you begin the process, you can expect to start seeing results within a couple of weeks. You want to pull an updated version of your report often during the process to make sure all necessary corrections are being made.

Each of the credit bureaus will also send you a letter letting you know of any chances, additions or deleted items from your credit file. Also keep in mind that you have 3 credit reports from the 3 main credit bureaus. (Equifax, Transunion & Experian)

Each bureau operates independently of the other and their corresponding times will be different when dealing with each one. Keep in mind that each of your reports from the three bureaus can possibly have different information, it’s a good idea to work on all three at the same time.

Katherine

Ashley asked:


I am 20 years old, and pulled my credit report about 3 months ago. I found three collection accounts on my credit report.

I first disputed the accounts with the credit bureaus, who all verified the accounts. These accounts are not mine, I know they are not mine, for a business in a state I have never been to.

My next step was to send the collection agencies a certified letter requesting validation of debt, that was over 2 months ago, no response from any of them.

I was doing research on Y/A and found out that now I should dispute the accounts with the credit bureaus again and send certified mail with copies of validate letters, that they failed to answer OR I should contact the credit bureaus for something called Method of Validation.

My question is can anyone help me with a sample letter or tell me how to word a letter to the credit bureaus saying they should delete the accounts because the collectors did not validate. I am not good at writing letters, I feel inadequate.

Also should I list all three accounts on one letter to each bureau?

Lucille

andrea c asked:


Basically I went to the ER without any medical coverage because my work had changed it and i didn’t know when they did. Then I got bills for 80, then 90 then 790.00!!! I dont know how to pay that off except in monthly payments. SMALL monthly payments. I was talking to a guy that was collecting the debt and he said that they were ready to SUE me if i didn’t make a payment of at leaset 334.00 in three months!!! I asked him if there is any other way that I can pay smaller amounts like 50.00 because I cant afford it and he said no. If I don’t pay the 334.00 then they will sue me. I had the payments set up then I talked to the settle company that I already reported this to back in february and they said they sent a letter to them that basically tells them they cannot contact me and what not. But the credit bureau said they are not willing to work with them. Will I get sued for this if theres nothing that can be worked out for a smaller price?
One more thing, I signed up with a settlement company back in February of this year. The company sent out a letter of cease and desist so that they wouldnt contact me anymore and my paralegal said that they’ll do their best to make an offer to them, although the guy from the California Service Bureau said that he was not going to take any offers from them because they don’t work with them. Like i said before i already tried working out a deal with them but the guy from the Service Bureau said they can only offer me 334.00 a month which is outrageous.
And I don’t think the hospitals will work with me on this anymore being that its been almost a year now since i went to the ER and they made the California Service Bureau handle this.

Clara

Helen Hecker asked:


Everyone wants a good credit score. So much of what we do financially is dependent on this FICO score on our credit report. Of course it’s important to try to make payments on time, etc. but this isn’t always easy to do. Emergencies come up. You can be the best person in the world and responsible too and you try to do things right. But there are secrets in the credit reporting field.

But you may just find yourself short on cash and try as you may just have to miss a payment or make a late payment or you’re charged for something you did not buy or returned or something else. Many times this is through no fault of your own.

If you don’t have a current free annual credit report you can get a free credit report instantly online. After you have your credit report in hand, look through the report and find all the negative marks or bad items. Make a list. Hopefully it’s short. Maybe you only have one or two. If you have several then list them with the highest amount down to the lowest.

This is an easy lesson in how to repair your credit. We’re going to tackle the lowest amounts first. And here’s the secret that many people do not know. If you write a letter to the three credit report companies or bureaus and dispute any of the amounts, the credit bureaus contact the creditors. If the amounts are small the creditor may not even bother to answer the credit bureaus.

The credit bureau has to remove the item if the creditor hasn’t responded within a certain length of time.

Don’t think that writing the letter is hard to do. Sit down early in the morning when you are fresh or at a time when you have more energy. Just simply address three envelopes to the three credit bureaus. They are Experian, TransUnion and Equifax.

You can easily get their address from the free credit report or online. Just explain that you found some errors on your credit report that you want to dispute. Make it short.

Enclose any relevant documentation, if you have any, which shows there is an error or that you want to dispute. This would include any cancelled checks, online payment confirmations, etc. Ask for a correction. Then say something like you want to keep a good standing and value an accurate and good credit history.

Also say something like a good credit rating and credit score is important to me. Make sure to name the creditor and the date of the error. Keep a nice tone to the letter.

Then close with a ‘thank you’ paragraph. Something like “Thank you for attending to my letter and this matter so I can maintain a good credit history. If possible let me know that my file has been reviewed and send me a copy of the corrected credit report.”

If you review your free credit report often you can catch small errors and fix your credit report before too much time passes. This is a little known secret and if the creditor amount is small enough you should be able to easily get it removed. It’s worth the small effort to raise your credit score. You CAN fix it yourself knowing this secret! There are many other credit report secrets!



Suzanne

Ashley asked:


I am 20 years old, and pulled my credit report about 3 months ago. I found three collection accounts on my credit report.

I first disputed the accounts with the credit bureaus, who all verified the accounts. These accounts are not mine, I know they are not mine, for a business in a state I have never been to.

My next step was to send the collection agencies a certified letter requesting validation of debt, that was over 2 months ago, no response from any of them.

I was doing research on Y/A and found out that now I should dispute the accounts with the credit bureaus again and send certified mail with copies of validate letters, that they failed to answer OR I should contact the credit bureaus for something called Method of Validation.

My question is can anyone help me with a sample letter or tell me how to word a letter to the credit bureaus saying they should delete the accounts because the collectors did not validate. I am not good at writing letters, I feel inadequate.

Also should I list all three accounts on one letter to each bureau?

Steve

Jay Delgado asked:


Credit agencies are managed and ran by humans, and from time to time, humans have been known to make mistakes. This leaves the door wide open for there to be mistakes on your credit report. I am not saying there is, I am just saying there could be. In order to protect yourself and your credit standing, it is recommended that you review your credit report once every 90 days.

When you review your credit report, you may come across some information that just does not add up. When you do, you should record this information on a separate piece of paper. Some things to look for include: accounts that are not yours, accounts entered more than once, payments recorded as late when they were on time, discrepancies in amount owed, etc. If you have any questions about anything, write it down.

Your first instinct when you find something that you do not understand on your credit report is to panic. Your mind is filled with dark scenarios where someone stole your identity and is living the good life in a tropical paradise. Before you panic and send off a 10-page letter to the credit bureau, take a moment to review each account in question.

Sometimes accounts that appear out of place are actually legitimate. Take for instance collection accounts. Often, these accounts will appear under different names as the debt has been sold by the original creditor. For entries that you do not recognize, you should use the contact information provided. Call the company and ask who the original creditor was. Ask when the account was opened, at what branch, etc. This might clear up any questions that you have.

If it does not, you will need to contact the credit bureau by mail. Instead of writing a book, though, you should only send a brief explanation of why you think the account should not be on your credit report. Popular complaints include: I was not late, this is not my account, this is more than 7 years old, this collection was reported in error and so on. Keep this letter brief. Your purpose is only to bring the discrepancy to the credit bureaus attention. They will then contact the creditor and ask for verification of the debt. All you need to do is wait.

In most cases, erroneous entries will be removed at this stage. If not, you will have to contact the original creditor. Be sure to keep any correspondence from the creditor as you will need to send this to the credit bureau once your investigation is done. Keep in mind that creditors must respond to your requests within a limited amount of time. If they do not or if they fail to validate your debt, you can have the negative information removed from your credit report; you can also sue them for damages.

If you find an error on your report, there is no reason to sit back and do nothing. Your credit standing is at stake, and there are avenues that you can use to get information removed from your report. Take advantage of them. If you find it all confusing you should consider hiring a professional credit restoration company.



Tim