Consumer Law

Disputing Inaccuracies in Credit Reports by Contacting the Creditor

By Kemnitzer, Anderson, Barron, Ogilvie & Brewer

The Fair Credit Reporting Act currently requires consumers to send dispute letters to the credit reporting agencies even though the inaccuracy originated with a bank or other creditor. This twist in the law is confusing to many consumers as it is counter-intuitive. A consumer should be able to ask the creditor to fix the inaccurate information it sent to the credit reporting agencies in the first place.

The good news is that, starting July 1, 2010, consumers will have the right to send a dispute letter directly to the creditor. This change is due to a new Federal Trade Commission rule. It will still be advisable to also send dispute letters to the credit bureaus, Trans Union, Experian and Equifax.

Full post as published by California Credit Law Blog on March 27, 2010 (boomark / email).