How to Correct Errors on Your Credit Report

Common errors

• Accounts that are not yours, either through fraud or mixed-up identities
• Wrong personal details, such as a misspelled name, an incorrect date of birth or addresses you never lived at
• Payments recorded as late when they were on time
• Accounts shown as open that have been closed or settled
• Defaults recorded with the wrong date, or still showing after six years
• Duplicate accounts, for instance after a debt was sold on
• Financial associationsFinancial associationA financial association is a link on your credit file between you and another person, usually created by a joint account or loan.Read more → with people you no longer share accounts with
• Debts that you have repaid but which still show an outstanding balance

Step 1: get your reports

Get your reports from Experian, Equifax and TransUnion. See our guide to checking your credit report. Highlight the errors and collect evidence such as bank statements, settlement letters and emails from the lender.

Step 2: work out who is responsible

Credit reference agencies do not create the information. Lenders and other data providers supply it. So an error is normally corrected at the source. You can:

• Contact the lender that supplied the data and ask them to correct it, and
• Tell the credit reference agency that the data is wrong so that they can mark it as disputed

Step 3: write a clear complaint

Contact the lender and the agency in writing, by email or through their online forms, and keep copies. Include:

• Your full name, address and date of birth
• The account or entry in question
• What is wrong and what it should say
• Copies of evidence
• A request to correct it within a set time, such as 28 days

Step 4: ask for a note while the dispute is going on

While the matter is being investigated, the credit reference agency can mark the entry as disputed. This should mean it is not used in automated decisions, but lenders may still see it.

Step 5: add a notice of correction

If the lender or agency does not agree to correct the entry but you believe it is misleading, you can add a notice of correction, a short statement of up to 200 words explaining your side. It is added to your file and lenders see it when they look. Use it for situations such as when a debt was a result of fraud, or a late payment was due to a bank error. It does not have the same effect as removing the entry, but it helps.

Step 6: remove financial associations

If you are linked to someone you no longer share a financial product with, ask the agencies to remove the link. You may need to close joint accounts and provide evidence of separation. If you have become linked by mistake, ask the agency to investigate.

Step 7: deal with fraud

If you find accounts opened in your name:

1. Contact the lender and tell them it is fraud.
2. Report it to Action Fraud (or Police Scotland).
3. Ask the lender to remove the account from your file.
4. Consider Protective Registration with Cifas, which adds a warning to your file and costs a small fee.
5. Keep checking your report for new entries.

Step 8: escalate if you are not satisfied

If the lender or agency fails to correct the error, you can:

• Complain formally using their complaints procedure
• Go to the Financial Ombudsman Service (FOS), which is free, after eight weeks or on receiving a final response
• Complain to the ICO about data protection issues

What cannot be changed

Accurate information, even if negative, cannot be removed before it expires. Typically, defaultsDefaultA default is a record on your credit file showing that you have seriously fallen behind on an agreement, usually after several months of missed payments.Read more →, CCJsCounty Court Judgments (CCJs) ExplainedWhat a County Court Judgment is, how to respond to a claim, how to pay or set one aside, how long a CCJ stays on your record and how it affects credit.Read more → and late payments stay on your file for six years. See our guide to improving your credit score for how to work with that. Be wary of firms that offer to remove accurate entries for a fee. They cannot, and complaints about such firms can be made to the FCA.

Example letter outline

You do not need a formal template, but a clear structure helps. Open with your name and address, then state: "I am writing to dispute an entry on my credit fileHow Credit Scores Work in the UKHow UK credit scores work: what the credit reference agencies record, what affects your score, why scores differ between agencies and what lenders actually see.Read more →." Name the account, say what is wrong, say what it should show, and list the evidence you have enclosed. Ask for a written response within 28 days and say that you will complain to the Financial Ombudsman ServiceHow to Make an Insurance Claim and What to Do If It Is RejectedStep-by-step guide to making an insurance claim in the UK, what evidence to gather, what insurers must do, and how to complain to the Financial Ombudsman.Read more → and the ICO if it is not corrected. Keep the letter to a page.

Tips

• Keep records of every call, email and letter
• Use recorded or tracked delivery for post
• Be polite but firm
• Be specific about the outcome you want
• Allow time for updates to appear on all three files