Thinking of Using a Credit Repair Specialist to “Fix” Your Credit? Think again.

Credit repair companies or "specialists" are popping up all over the country in the last few years, so many in fact that Credit Repair Organizations Act (CROA) was passed in 1996 to protect and advise consumers of their rights when using a credit repair specialist. I strongly suggest that you refer to the CROA before entering into any contract with a credit repair company. Some of these specialists may actually provide what would seem to be a valuable service, but in fact don't really do anything that you couldn't do for yourself, for free. Every consumer is allowed to question errors and misinformation that they find in their credit files. Credit repair specialists simply contest these errors on your behalf. There is no magic involved and no special training, skills or tactics are needed.

There is a real danger, however, in using the advice that a lot of these "specialists' dispense. Some of them will actually advise you to commit a crime in order to "clear" your credit. The crime is committed by suggesting a tactic referred to as "file segregation". File segregation is the act of obtaining an Employee Identification Number (EIN) or an Individual Taxpayer Identification Number (ITIN) and using it in place of your actual Social Security number. Sounds like a great way to make a fresh start, but it's ILLEGAL, and the consumer taking and using this bad advice is committing a federal crime and could be subject to fines or prison. It won't help that they didn't know any better.

The most common technique used by credit repair companies entails taking advantage of a right afforded by the Fair Credit Reporting Act. The FCRA states that the credit repair agencies have 30 days from the time they receive notice of a disputed account to either confirm, correct or remove the disputed item. While this is true, there is another clause that allows a creditor that has missed this deadline to simply resubmit the information, without notice. And, because the credit repair specialist tries to bombard the creditors with these dispute letters in hopes of a missed deadline, creditors are allowed to ignore disputes that it considers frivolous. If you really have an error or misreporting account on your credit report, you can take the steps to correct or remove it yourself. You can find a sample dispute letter, along with specific instructions and addresses to all three of the major credit reporting agencies in my book "The Insider's Secrets".

Your Legal Rights

The Fair Credit Reporting Act guarantees your right to dispute inaccurate information in your credit report free of charge, so if any of the problems you've had are due to inaccurate information, you can file a dispute with the nation's major credit bureaus to have it corrected or removed.

If the information is accurate, however, you'll need to focus on building better credit for the future rather than trying to have it removed from your report. Most lenders are primarily interested in your payment patterns for just the past few years, so if you begin now to pay every bill on time it will have a positive impact on your credit relatively quickly.

Only time and establishing a positive credit history can legally "clean up" your credit. One of the best first steps to getting your credit back on track is seeing what is on your credit report. This way, you can take steps to correct any inaccurate information that may be contained on your report and, at the same time, assess your current credit debt. The next step might be to contact old accounts that carry outstanding debt and arrange payment plans. As you begin to manage your debt successfully, you will also want to work on rebuilding your credit.

Many banks offer secured card cards, which are guaranteed by a deposit you make with the card issuer. Your credit limit will be equal to the amount on deposit.

Pay your bills on time! It seems obvious, but paying your bills on time is the best way to build a solid credit history.

Review your credit history. Many credit reports contain inaccuracies, usually caused by innocent errors. The Fair Credit Reporting Act ensures your right to dispute such inaccuracies in your credit report without charge.

You'll find specific help with every one of these remedies in "The Insider's Secrets" our complete and comprehensive guide to buying and financing a car. We have included a number of chapters on credit, credit scoring, and credit issues. We even offer a sample dispute letter and the physical and web addresses of the three credit reporting agencies. You can find our book and more information on every aspect of the car buying and financing process at our website.