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After a Credit-Report Dispute: Timing, Repeated Debts, and Unresolved Errors

This guide presents selected U.S. government consumer education from CFPB. References to “we” or “us” in the source material refer to the issuing agency. Source dates and links appear below.

What if I disagree with the results of my credit report dispute?

When consumers make a dispute, they often fail to get an adequate answer, or any answer at all, from the credit reporting company. You have rights under federal law if this happens to you.

The Fair Credit Reporting Act (FCRA) is the federal law that, among other rights, gives you the right to dispute incomplete or inaccurate information on your credit reports. The credit reporting company must take steps to investigate the dispute when you notify them of an error. They are not required to investigate if your dispute is “frivolous.”

What are my rights if a credit reporting company doesn’t respond to a dispute I file, or if they don’t respond accurately or completely?

If a credit reporting company doesn’t respond to your dispute or doesn’t respond adequately, you have rights:

You have the right to add a statement to your credit file. For unresolved disputes, you can ask that a brief statement of the dispute be included in your file and included or summarized in future credit reports. Your right to include a statement in your file applies only to disputes you’ve submitted to a credit reporting company, not to disputes that you’ve submitted directly to companies that provided the wrong information to the credit reporting company.

You have the right to bring a lawsuit. Credit reporting companies that break the law can be held liable for damages and attorney fees. In the case of a willful failure to comply with the law, the company can be liable for actual or statutory damages and punitive damages. Time limits apply to bringing a lawsuit, so be aware of deadlines.

For additional help getting a response from the credit reporting company:

You can also submit a complaint with the CFPB online or by calling (855) 411-CFPB (2372).

How long does it take to repair an error on a credit report?

If you dispute an error on your credit report, a credit reporting company generally must investigate the dispute within 30 days of receiving it. They have five business days after completing an investigation to notify you of the results.

There are some cases, however, in which the company may take up to 45 days to complete the investigation:

  • If you file a dispute after receiving your free annual credit report, they have 45 days to investigate.
  • If you submit additional information relevant to your dispute during the 30-day investigation period, they can extend the investigation period for 15 additional days.

You should receive a written notice of the results of your dispute investigation along with a copy of your updated credit report following the investigation. This free report does not count as your annual free report. If the creditor or furnisher provides the wrong information to a credit reporting company and then corrects your credit report as a result of your dispute, it has a duty to forward the correction to every credit reporting company to which it has provided the incorrect information.

Should I dispute a creditor on my credit report if I don’t recognize the company?

If you don’t recognize a creditor, you should contact the company to learn more. The unfamiliar creditor may be legitimate.

Creditors and lenders may sell your accounts or use a third-party collection company to collect on an outstanding debt. As a result, it may show up as an unfamiliar name on your credit report. Also, if you have a retail store credit card, it is quite common for such cards to be listed on your credit report under the name of the bank issuing the card, not the retailer.

In addition, if the unfamiliar creditor is listed only as making an inquiry, it may indicate you’re being prescreened for credit opportunities. The Fair Credit Reporting Act permits prospective creditors or insurers to have the credit reporting company search your credit file to see if you meet criteria set by the creditor – a process called prescreening – in order to make you a firm offer of credit or insurance. If you don’t want to receive these offers, you can opt out of prescreening.

However, if you believe the information is incorrect, you should dispute it. Learn how to dispute an error on your credit report.

How do I remove debts that are listed multiple times from my credit report?

If the same debt is listed multiple times you should dispute the multiple listings with the credit reporting company and the original creditor or furnisher that provided the information to the credit reporting company.

A multiple listing is not a harmless error. It could lower your credit score and lead lenders to give you loan offers with higher interest rates and less favorable terms.

Is it possible to remove accurate but negative information from my credit report?

You generally cannot have negative information removed from your credit report if it is accurate.

You can, however, dispute accurate information if it appears multiple times. Most negative information will remain in your report for seven years. Some types of information remain longer.

You can also dispute negative information that arose from identity theft or is not information about you. The credit reporting companies should remove these items from your credit reports.

Beware of anyone who claims that they can remove information from your credit report that’s current, accurate, and negative. It’s probably a credit repair scam.

You have the legal right to dispute inaccurate information directly with both the credit reporting companies and the companies that furnish your information to the credit reporting companies. To fully protect your rights, you should always dispute credit report inaccuracies with both. They must conduct a reasonable investigation, and fix mistakes as needed, usually within 30 days, at no cost to you.

There is no reason to pay someone else to dispute inaccuracies on your credit report for you, as it is already a legal right available to you for free.

If you are having problems with credit reporting companies or credit repair, you can submit a complaint to us. We will forward your complaint to the company and work to get you a response.

Sources and publication details

The federal agency source text is U.S. government work in the public domain. Fynoptic selected, adapted, and formatted it for this guide. No agency endorsement is implied. Follow the linked sources for current program details and the rules applicable to your circumstances.

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