Whether you like it or not, you have a credit score. And equally distasteful is the fact that you have very little say-so into what your credit score is. Actually, that is not true, despite the fact that most people would believe that. The biggest reason that most people believe that is because they see the big three credit bureaus (Experian, TransUnion, and Equifax) as big profit-motivated conglomerates whose job it is to make your life miserable when you are applying for credit or a loan.
To a certain degree, you could say that is true but there is more to the story than that. You see, these credit reporting agencies all have to follow rules that have been setup. The unfortunate part is that they can also play dumb, which they do frequently, with the attitude of “we do not MAKE the news, we only report it”. Where all of this is going is the fact that the credit report of the MAJORITY of consumers that these companies are reporting on contain ERRORS. Yes, this is a known fact, or at least it is a fact if you follow this industry and understand what they are doing and how easy it is for errors to creep into their systems. It is not necessarily a lack of quality control, it is simply a matter of the tremendous volume of data they deal with. Consider keeping records on about 300 million (or more) consumers and businesses, and if each one only has had 10 instances of credit or a loan in their lifetimes, that is still well over 3 BILLION records they need to keep straight.
So let’s say that Citibank transposed some digits on a social security number when they reported to the credit bureaus last month, and the transposed number turned out to be yours. Presto, now in the eyes of the credit bureau, you have a Citibank account, which might even be past due, which lowers your credit score. And the fact that some companies only report to one credit bureau, while others report to two of them or all three just compounds the problem further, since you undoubtedly have a DIFFERENT credit score at each credit bureau! Yes it really is as simple as that, and yes, you should be concerned.
You have rights and one of those rights is that the data that the credit bureaus keep on you is accurate and reflects the truth. And yes, the law even recognizes that there can sometimes be “extenuating circumstances”, and while most consumers do not realize it, you also have the right to have a 100 word statement included in any credit report that is requested. If you missed two months worth of payments because you fell ill to beri-beri or something and are now caught up, by all means add a statement about that to your credit report!
Take the time to get a copy of your credit report, a separate copy of it from each of the three credit bureaus, and then go through it with a microscope if you need to. Identify each and every item that is not right and then file a dispute with the credit bureau. They are obligated by law to either verify the information or to remove it from your credit report. But it does not happen automatically – YOU need to initiate the dispute, and if you don’t, the inaccurate data will remain on your credit report until the cows come home.
The more positive things and fewer negative things that are contained on your credit report, the higher your credit score will become. And yes, that part IS automatic.
By: Jon Arnold