As with any type of credit problem, it is often difficult to resolve your issue yourself. Consumers often go through a frustrating cycle of disputing inaccuracies in their reports with the credit reporting agencies only to receive a response that the item was "verified as reported". Some consumers are even told initially the item has been "deleted" only to find that it reappears in a future credit report. One recent client discovered that even though the negative item did not appear in the credit report that was given to him by the credit reporting agencies, it did appear in credit reports that were given to prospective creditors when he applied for a loan.

As described below, if you are experiencing problems getting the credit reporting agencies and banks to comply with the law and honor your right to an accurate credit report, you should contact us immediately for a free initial review of your situation. Our firm practices one area of law and we do it well - we protect consumers.

We have been involved in several hundred federal cases for victims of identity theft, abusive debt collectors and predatory mortgage companies and no matter how tough your situation may appear, we have likely dealt with it before. Before we speak, please review the information below so that you may be better prepared to help us help you. This is provided for informational purposes and may or may not apply to your situation.

Each U.S. citizen is now entitled to a free copy of their credit reports each year. You can obtain yours by visiting http://www.annualcreditreport.com.

Start with the "personal identifiers" section of the report and ensure that only your true name, address, social security number and date of birth appears in this section. Individuals with common first and last name combinations are the most likely to be the victims of a "mixed credit file" situation. Some individuals who believe that they are the victims of identity theft initially later learn that the inaccuracies in their credit file are the result of a computer glitch at the banks or the credit reporting agencies based on the way they identify people.

You should work your way through each account item (also known as a "tradeline") and carefully note the various fields of information contained in it. The most important field is the current "status" of the account. The best rating is an "R-1" or "I-1" notation that reads "Paid as Agreed, never late". If the rating is other than this, it is likely a derogatory item. Be particularly careful to note the "date of first delinquency" field, which is the date that the creditor or collection agency is claiming that you first became delinquent on the account. This field determines when the item must legally be removed from your credit report. A favorite tactic used by collection agencies is to change this date so that the delinquency appears more recent and the effect of this is to keep the item on your credit report for a longer period of time. They are banking on the fact that someday you will want to either get a mortgage or re-finance your house and will need to pay the collection item if it appears on your report. This type of activity is a violation of the Fair Debt Collection Practices Act, and if they fail to correct this falsehood during your dispute to the credit reporting agencies, they will have violated the Fair Credit Reporting Act as well.

You should ignore the many companies out there that purport to help you repair your credit by charging you a fee. These companies have become more aggressive lately in their marketing to victims of inaccurate reporting but, at the end of the day, none of them will be able to do anything that you could not do yourself. The common tactic is to flood the credit reporting agencies with disputes about the inaccurate item in the hope that the agency will be forced to delete the item based on the sheer volume of disputes submitted. However, the Fair Credit Reporting Act provides that the credit reporting agencies may determine that your dispute is frivolous and ignore it, and ultimately, doing business with these types of companies may compromise the ability of a consumer attorney to help you.

The easiest way of obtaining an immediate response from the on-call attorney at our firm is to send an email to consult@clalegal.com. In your initial email, you are encouraged to list as many facts regarding your situation as possible, including a timeline if applicable. We will respond via email or telephone (your preference) within 24 hours and help you determine your best course of action. There is no charge for this initial review of your case and if we are able to represent you, we will do so on a "no recovery, no fee" basis and you don't have to pay any upfront money for your attorney. The law provides that companies who violate the Fair Credit Reporting Act are liable for your attorney's fees and costs and our job is to work aggressively to achieve a recovery of your actual, statutory and punitive damages, in addition to attorney's fees and costs.

Disclaimer: This information is only provided for general background and is not intended as legal advice. After your free initial consultation and a careful review of your file, we will make a determination as to the scope of possible representation in your matter and advise you accordingly.