Identification

• According to the Electronic Privacy Information Center, consumers did not have the right to view their report nor challenge any of its contents prior to the passage of the Fair Credit Reporting Act in 1970. Today, the the Fair Credit Reporting Act not only mandates that bureaus provide consumers with access to their credit report but it requires the bureau to maintain the accuracy of that report. By law, the credit bureaus are not permitted to include false information on a credit report.
  
  

Significance

• To facilitate the correction of mistakes, the Fair Credit Reporting Act gives consumers the right to dispute credit report errors. Once the bureau receives a dispute, it must investigate that dispute and make corrections within 30 days of the date the dispute was submitted. Once complete, the bureau will send you written notification of the results as required by law. You will need to file a separate dispute with each bureau. You can file disputes online at the bureau's website or by mail or phone using the bureau's contact information that's located on your credit report.
  
  

Consideration

• The bureaus require you to have a current copy of your credit report in order to file a dispute. Congress passed the Fair and Accurate Credit Transactions Act in 2003 as an addendum to the Fair Credit Reporting Act. The law provides consumers the right to receive one free report each year from all three main bureaus: TransUnion, Experian and Equifax. You can order the free reports at the AnnualCreditReport website. You can also use the information on that site to order the reports by phone or mail.
  
  

Warning

• The Fair Credit Reporting Act does not require the credit bureaus to remove accurate and verifiable information, even if that data is derogatory. Some credit repair companies promise to remove items from your report. Such claims may be a scam, according to the Federal Trade Commission. Derogatory credit items can remain on your credit report for up to seven years except for bankruptcies, which can remain for up to 10 years. You don't need to pay anyone to correct errors on your report since the Fair Credit Reporting Act gives you the right to do that yourself at no cost.