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Different Types of Credit Repair Letters
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Don Tate
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By Don Tate
Published on 11/03/2010
 
As you get started with learninggathering information about repairing your credit reports, you will find that there are a variety of types of credit repair letters you may need to write. Here are a few types of letters you may encounter as you attempt to repair your credit reports.

Credit Repair Letters to Repair Your Credit Score
As you begin to gather information about fixing your credit reports, you will find that there are many different types of credit repair letters you might need to use. Unfortunately, there is no ideal letter that will work for all people in all circumstances. You will have to find the right letter for the task at hand.

Credit Repair Letters

Listed below are a few examples of categories of letters you may come across as you attempt to fix your credit score. This doesn't cover each type of letter, but it does work to illustrate the variety of letters you may need to write.

Credit Bureau Dispute

The credit bureau dispute is the letter that most people probably think of when they think of credit repair letters. The credit bureau dispute is your message to a credit bureau telling them that you would like them to verify the accuracy of an item listed in your credit file. You are basically telling the credit bureau that they need to prove that an item is recorded correctly. If they cannot do so, then the account must be updated or deleted.

According to the Fair Credit Reporting Act and subsequent case law , you have the right to dispute items that are inaccurate or, in your opinion, give users of your credit reports an unfair impression of you. You should not dispute items that are accurate and verifiable.

Credit Bureau Dispute Follow-up

The same laws that grant you the right to dispute your credit reports also state that the credit bureaus are supposed to process your dispute and follow up with you within 30 days, but this often times does not happen. You may need to follow-up your initial dispute letter with another letter stating that you have already sent in a dispute, that the credit bureau was supposed to have replied, and reiterating which item you are disputing. This letter lets the credit bureau know that you are serious about correcting your credit and you will not give up just because you don't hear back.

Goodwill Letter

As mentioned above, not all negative items in your credit report can be disputed with the credit bureaus. In addition, just because have disputed an inaccurate listing doesn't necessarily mean it will be deleted. Sometimes you will have to go around the credit bureaus and your creditors.

The goodwill letter is the least confrontational of these credit repair letters to creditors. In it, you are asking nicely for the creditor to remove a negative item. To help your case, you may bring up your current good standing with the creditor or request sympathy because of the effect the listing has on your credit rating in your request for the deletion.

Debt Validation Letter

If a credit bureau dispute doesn't work and the creditor is not receptive to your playing nice, it's time to get rough.

By taking advantage of your rights under a number of consumer protection statutes like the Fair Debt Collection Practices Act and the Fair Credit Billing Act, you can make creditors and collections agencies have to jump through specific hoops to prove that a debt is owed. Just like with the credit bureaus, if they are unable or unwilling to do so, the negative items must be deleted from your credit reports.

Getting Assistance with Credit Repair

After spending some time looking into credit repair, or even after getting started repairing their own credit reports, many people realize how difficult credit repair can be. Fortunately, there are many good credit repair companies out there who have the knowledge and the experience to help make the process easier.