Unfortunately, accurate negative information cannot be removed and will generally remain on your credit reports for about seven years. Lenders use your credit reports to analyze your past debt repayment behavior and make informed decisions about whether and under what terms they give you credit. Therefore, it's just as important that they see your negative credit history as your positive history. According to the Federal Trade Commission, credit repair companies can't legally do anything for you that you can't do for yourself.
The fact is that creditors and credit bureaus have no obligation to remove negative items from their credit report if they are accurate. Or, in some cases, the error isn't yours, but the company or credit bureau is to blame for errors in credit reports. Under federal law, you have the right to get a free credit report from the three major credit bureaus (Equifax, Experian, and TransUnion) once a year. This is a list of factors that can negatively affect your credit rating and stay on your credit report for up to seven years in most cases.
It monitors the credit scores of the three reporting agencies in real time, alerts you if someone applies for credit using your name, and offers personalized advice to improve your score. Credit reporting agencies will not delete accurate and verifiable information even if you challenge it (because the investigation will verify the accuracy of this information), so you may need to negotiate to have some elements removed from your credit report. Under the Fair Credit Reporting Act (FCRA), credit bureaus and lenders must ensure that the information they report is accurate and truthful. Federal law guarantees everyone the right to a free credit report from each of the three national credit bureaus (Equifax, Experian and TransUnion) each year.
If you detect an error or inaccuracy in your credit reports, you will need to file a dispute with the creditor or credit bureau reporting the information for correction or removal. To help you on your path to better credit, here are some strategies to eliminate negative credit report information from your credit report. In this case, you'll need a more holistic approach to credit repair, a way to develop better habits with your lenders so that your rating can increase organically. You may be entitled to additional free credit reports in certain circumstances, such as after placing a fraud alert, becoming unemployed or receiving public assistance, or having been denied credit or insurance in the past 60 days.
The Fair Credit Reporting Act (FCRA) gives you the right to dispute inaccurate negative items on your credit report, but you have no right to delete the correct items. However, if you decide to hire a credit repair agency, keep in mind that there are consumer protection laws that regulate how they operate and what they can do.
