How Do I Remove Errors From My Credit Report?

Getting a copy of the credit report first

Because a dispute needs to identify the specific inaccurate item, the process starts with obtaining a copy of the credit report from the bureau reporting the error, through AnnualCreditReport.com — the only source authorized under federal law to provide free reports from Equifax, Experian, and TransUnion.

What the FCRA dispute process requires

Under the FCRA, a consumer can submit a dispute identifying the specific item believed to be inaccurate, along with any supporting documentation. The bureau is required to investigate, generally within 30 days of receiving the dispute (up to 45 days if the consumer submits additional information during the review), and to forward the relevant information to the furnisher — the lender, collector, or other entity that originally reported the item — for verification.

Disputing with the bureau vs. the furnisher

A dispute can be filed with the credit bureau itself, with the original furnisher of the disputed information directly, or with both simultaneously. Furnishers are separately required under the FCRA to investigate disputes they receive directly and to report the results back to the bureau if a correction is warranted.

What happens after the investigation

If the disputed information is found to be inaccurate or if the furnisher cannot verify it within the required timeframe, the bureau must correct or delete it and provide the consumer with a free updated report reflecting the change. If the information is verified as accurate, it remains on the report, though the consumer retains the right to add a brief statement of dispute to the file.

Escalating to the CFPB if unresolved

If a dispute isn't resolved satisfactorily through the bureau's own process, a complaint can be submitted to the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau, which forwards it to the company involved and generally requires a response within a set timeframe, providing an additional avenue beyond the bureau's internal dispute system.

How a correction can affect a credit score

If the corrected information involves a factor such as a reported late payment, an incorrect balance, or an account that doesn't belong to the consumer, removing or fixing it can change the specific inputs the credit scoring model uses — for example, correcting a reported balance changes the utilization ratio calculated from it. The size of any resulting score change depends on which specific data point was corrected and how heavily that factor is weighted in the scoring model.

Common categories of reported errors

Frequently disputed items include accounts that don't belong to the consumer (sometimes resulting from identity theft or a mixed credit file), payments incorrectly reported as late, outdated account statuses that haven't been updated after a debt was paid or settled, and duplicate reporting of the same debt by multiple collectors. Each category may require slightly different supporting documentation, such as a payment confirmation or an identity theft report, to support the dispute.

How identity theft-related errors are handled differently

If a disputed item resulted from identity theft, the FCRA provides an additional process involving an identity theft report — commonly filed through the FTC's IdentityTheft.gov — which can be used to block fraudulent accounts from appearing on a credit report more directly than a standard dispute, and which also creates a formal record useful when working with the affected creditor or furnisher directly.

Why disputing all three bureaus separately can matter

The same inaccurate item can appear on a report from one bureau and not another, depending on which bureaus the original furnisher reports to, so a dispute filed with only one bureau does not automatically correct the same item on a report from a different bureau — checking and, if needed, disputing with all three separately ensures the correction is complete across each bureau's own file.

Frequently Asked Questions