How long does the credit bureau have to respond?

30 days from receipt of your dispute (45 days if you submit additional information during the investigation). The bureau must forward your dispute to the furnisher, require them to reinvestigate, and delete or correct the item if it cannot be verified.

Should I dispute online or by mail?

Each bureau accepts disputes online, by phone and by mail. An online dispute is filed through the bureau's website under that site's terms of use — read them before you agree to them. A mailed dispute sent by USPS Certified Mail, Return Receipt Requested, gives you a dated record of what you sent and when it arrived.

Do I need to dispute with all three bureaus?

Each bureau keeps its own file and reinvestigates the disputes it receives (15 U.S.C. § 1681i(a)(1)(A)), so the same item can show a different status at each. Once its rules are reviewed by a licensed attorney, the wizard produces one letter per bureau you select; which bureaus to dispute with is your choice.

What if the furnisher just verifies the same wrong info?

A consumer may dispute again with new information — for example the original contract, a payoff letter or an identity-theft report. A furnisher's investigation duties under 15 U.S.C. § 1681s-2(b) arise when a credit bureau notifies it of a dispute under § 1681i(a)(2). Civil liability for FCRA noncompliance is set out in § 1681n (willful) and § 1681o (negligent).

Debt defense overview

FCRA dispute letter

Get inaccurate credit info deleted.

Under 15 U.S.C. § 1681i, the credit bureau has 30 days to investigate your dispute and delete anything that cannot be verified. You can read through the wizard now; it produces the document once its rules are reviewed by a licensed attorney.

This tool cannot produce a document yet

The FCRA dispute letter (CRA) template is waiting for a licensed attorney to review its rule data. Until then SynthCounsel does not produce this document, so answering the questions will not give you one.

You can still read through the questions to see what it asks and what to gather.

See what is verified

Companion tool

FDCPA validation letter

Disputing the debt collector directly? The validation letter forces them to prove the debt under § 1692g(b).

Open the validation wizard

Companion tool

Cease-and-desist letter

Stop collector calls, texts, and employer contact under § 1692c(c) and TCPA.

Open the cease wizard

Debt defense overview

FCRA dispute letter

Get inaccurate credit info deleted.

This tool cannot produce a document yet

You can still read through the questions to see what it asks and what to gather.

See what is verified

Companion tool

FDCPA validation letter

Disputing the debt collector directly? The validation letter forces them to prove the debt under § 1692g(b).

Open the validation wizard

Companion tool

Cease-and-desist letter

Stop collector calls, texts, and employer contact under § 1692c(c) and TCPA.

Open the cease wizard