According to the Government Accountability Office, 80-90% of credit reports have serious errors on them. If you made mistakes at your job 80-90% of the time, you would not have a job anymore [unless, of course, you are a TV weatherman]. Chances are that your credit report may contain errors and those errors will cost you untold financial opportunities if you do not correct them. Greenberg Minasian, LLC is ready, willing and able to help you correct these errors and right these wrongs.
Thousands of consumers are refused credit cards, mortgages, student loans, housing and good rates on auto insurance as a direct result of the inaccurate information contained on their credit reports. This may be happening to you right now. Thankfully, you have options and you have RIGHTS. First, you have the RIGHT to view your own credit report. Second, if it contains errors or outdated information you also have the RIGHT to dispute the erroneous inclusions on the report. Third, you may have the RIGHT to receive compensation if there is a violation of the Fair Credit Reporting Act.
The Fair Credit Reporting Act [FCRA] is a federal statute that was enacted in 1970 to protect the rights of consumers. The FCRA regulates the industry that provides information to the credit reporting agencies, the agencies themselves and those who use that report to determine your creditworthiness. The FCRA gives you, the consumer, the right to sue the credit reporting agencies, creditors and debt collectors who report incorrect or inaccurate information.
Greenberg Minasian has filed numerous actions on behalf of individuals who have received a bankruptcy discharge but have been robbed of their “fresh start” by creditors and debt collectors who re-report a discharged debt on their credit file. Through litigation, Greenberg Minasian has been able to force these Defendants to correct these credit reports, as well as compensate their clients for their damages.
Q. How would you know that there is inaccurate, untimely or misleading information on your credit report?
The answer is simple. You have the Right to order and review your credit report. We can assist you in doing so. There are three major, national credit reporting agencies: Equifax, Experian and Transunion and each maintains their own independent records. Your reports can be ordered by mail or phone and you are entitled to one free report from each of the three agencies at least once a year. You are also entitled to a free report if you have been denied credit in whole or in part based on the contents of your credit report. As of September. 2006, you report is available online, however, if you obtain your report in this manner you may be waiving your right to have your matter heard in Federal Court. This is NOT the preferred method.
These three agencies are the supplier of most of the information regarding you credit history and, therefore, your credit worthiness. Once you receive a copy of your reports, you will need to review them carefully. Each report is independent of the other. While one may be correct, another may not. If any information is inaccurate, untimely or misleading it should immediately be disputed. We can assist you with that too and demand that your credit report is corrected. There is no charge to you for this service!
Q. What happens once the items are disputed?
The agency must correct your credit report within 30 days. If it fails to do so, then there may be a violation of the Fair Credit Reporting Act. Our next step is to file a complaint on your behalf and ask that the court issue a fine of $1000.00 per violation, or your actual damages. There is no fee to you if the court does not rule in your favor. After you receive new credit reports pursuant to your dispute, you should contact Greenberg Minasian so your file may be reviewed and a determination can be made as to whether or not they will file a complaint on your behalf.
Q. Why should you do this?
If you have bad credit, it will cost you money. That’s right. As of 2004 you can be made to pay higher care insurance premiums if you have bad credit. Or, you may not be able to get loans at a competitive interest rate. No one can erase negative information from your credit report if it is accurate and up to date. However, it is likely that it is not accurate or timely. Bad credit may be a result of a poor credit score. A poor credit score can come from negative information on your credit reports. As a result, your credit score may be low. Thus, your creditworthiness is tarnished.
Q. What is a Credit Score?
A credit score is a number that comes from a mathematical formula that is meant to predict creditworthiness. The most commonly used credit score standard is the FICO score by Fair Isaac. The FICO score ranges from 350 to 850. The lower the number, the worse the credit score. These figures are used as a predictor to gage whether or not you will be 90 days late on any loan obligation. Talk about a crystal ball! The formula that they use is very secretive and uses thousands of reports to generate the range. That data is broken down into percentages. Here they are:
• 35% – Payment History
• 30% – Debt Ratio
• 15% – Length of Credit History
• 10% – Types of Credit
• 10% – Number of Credit Inquiries
Q. How often should you check your credit reports?
Annually. You need to review each of your credit reports once a year. You have the right to obtain a free report from each of the agencies one per year or when you are denied credit. Exercise that right; know what they know. Your financial freedom may depend on it! Just because the reports may be accurate one year, does not ensure you that it will be accurate and in full compliance with the law the following year. Similarly, just because the agency may have corrected information on your report once, does not mean that they won’t make another mistake again in the future. These are not chances that you can afford to take.
Contact Greenberg Minasian via this website or by calling our office for your free consultation.
Credit Report Errors
If you ordered a copy of your credit report and noticed that it contained errors, kindly contact our office on how to correct this issue, or send a letter to each of the three national credit reporting agencies on your own setting forth the items which you dispute. If you have not obtained a copy of your credit report, you may write to the three national credit reporting agencies (Transunion, Experian and Equifax) and ask for a free copy of your credit report. Below is a sample credit report request letter. If you wish, you may obtain credit reports over the internet on the authentic website to visit for free credit reports, www.annualcreditreport.com.
After you have received your credit reports, and noticed errors, you may use the following sample letter to dispute your report. In compliance with the Fair Credit Reporting Act, the credit reporting agencies must complete their investigation within thirty (30) days and must then provide you with a new report setting forth the results of their investigation.
You should send a dispute letter to each of the credit reporting agencies whose report contains inaccuracies. The addresses for disputes for the three credit reporting agencies are:
TransUnion LLC
P.O. Box 2000
Chester, PA 19022-2000
(800) 916-8800
www.transunion.com
Equifax Information Services, LLC
P.O. Box 740256
Atlanta, GA 30374
(888) 873-5420
www.equifax.com
Experian NCAC
701 Experian Parkway
Allen, TX 75013
(800) 583-4080
www.experian.com
Equifax: 1-800-525-6285; www.equifax.com
Experian: 1-888-EXPERIAN (397-3742); www.experian.com
TransUnion: 1-800-680-7289; www.transunion.com
Fair Credit Reporting Act Statutes
The complete text of the Fair Credit Reporting Act (FCRA).
Information from the government on many consumer related issues.
www.ftc.gov
Identity Theft
What is identity theft? Identity theft is when someone uses your name, address, social security number, bank and/or credit card number, without your knowledge or consent, to open accounts, commit fraud or commit other crimes.
Your identity can be stolen in numerous ways.
Identity thieves can obtain your records by hacking into organization’s computers, bribing employees of companies who have access to your records, rummaging through your mail or garbage to obtain identifying information, or stealing your wallet or credit cards.
As a result of such a crime, identity thieves may go on spending sprees using your credit cards or debit accounts, open new credit accounts in your name, take out auto loans in your name, change the mailing addresses on your credit cards.
AS A RESULT OF THE ACTIONS OF IDENTITY THIEVES, YOUR CREDIT SCORES CAN BE RUINED. PREVENTION AND PROTECTION ARE KEY.
To avoid becoming a victim of identity theft, there are preventative measures you must take.
1) Resist from giving out any personal information such as your social security number, accounts numbers, or mother’s maiden name over the phone or on the internet unless the information is secure.
2) Do not leave your social security card or social security number in your purse or wallet because if that wallet is stolen, this information coupled with your driver’s license provides much of the information necessary to identity thieves to commit fraud.
3) Review your credit reports for errors
Remedying the Effect of Identity Theft
The Fair Credit Reporting Act (FCRA) provides specific rights to victims of identity theft. A brief summary of these rights are set forth below.
The three major nationwide consumer reporting agencies can place a “fraud alert” on your file to alert potential creditors and others that you may be a victim of identity theft. A fraud alert may be placed on your file by calling just one of the three nationwide consumer reporting agencies. After the first consumer reporting agency is notified, then they are imposed with the obligation of alerting the other two agencies.
An initial fraud alert stays on your file for 90 days. An extended alert may be provided for seven years. You also have a right to a free copy of your credit reports for each of the three credit reporting agencies once a year. It is important to obtain this credit report and review same for inaccuracies or unfamiliar accounts. Once you recognize and account on your credit report that is not yours, you have a right to dispute same with the credit reporting agencies.
You have a right to obtain documents related to fraudulent transactions using your personal information. You also have a right to obtain information from a debt collector for debts you believe were incurred in your name as a result of identity theft. You have a right to ask consumer reporting agencies to block information on your file if you have been a victim of identity theft. You may also prevent businesses from reporting information to you from consumer reporting agencies if you believe the information is a result of identity theft.
Please contact our office via this website or by calling our office.