Credit Dispute Letter Format

According to the Fair Credit Reporting Act (FCRA), consumers have the right to dispute inaccuracies in their credit report. The consumer reporting company is expected to look into the claims of the consumer, usually within 30 days of receiving the consumer's credit dispute letter, unless the former considers the claims frivolous. The following credit dispute letter format may be of use to consumers desirous of drafting an effective credit dispute letter.

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Sample Credit Dispute Letter Format



Date Name Address, City, State, Zip Code To The Complaint Department Dear Sir/Madam, It's my belief that my credit report is reflecting a few inaccuracies. I request you to kindly look into the same and expedite the process of corrections. I am enclosing herewith my credit report and have circled the items that I believe are erroneous. I filed for Chapter 7 bankruptcy in '98 and in May 1998, the bankruptcy court entered a discharge order releasing me from debt. As I am given to understand, bankruptcy information can be reported in the credit report for a maximum period of 10 years. However, my credit report still reflects the Chapter 7 bankruptcy discharge. In addition to Chapter 7 bankruptcy information, the credit report does not reflect account information pertaining to my secured credit card. At the time of applying for a secured credit card, I was assured that my account information would be reported to the credit bureaus on a regular basis. I was approved for a CCB Secured Credit Card in January 2008. Since then, I have been making regular payments in lieu of my credit card with the hope of rebuilding my credit scores. I was dismayed to note that the account information is not reflected in my credit report. I am given to understand that all credit inquiries within a span of 40 days are treated as a single inquiry. Armed with this knowledge, I shopped around for car and home loans in the month of October. However, the supposed single inquiry seems to have been recorded as multiple inquiries. I am currently in the process of availing a home mortgage. Unfortunately, errors in the credit report have made me an unlikely candidate for approval. I have enclosed the relevant court documents pertaining to Chapter 7 bankruptcy discharge and copies of my monthly credit card statements. I am also enclosing copies of the application forms that were filled out in the process of applying for car and home loans in October 2009. It's my sincere belief that on re-investigating the disputed items, the truth of the matter will come to light. I would request you to consider my entreaty and revert at the earliest. Sincerely, Signature Name Enclosures: A copy of the credit report with disputed items circled in red. Copies of the Bankruptcy Discharge Papers. Copies of the application forms filled out while shopping for car and home loans. Copies of monthly secured credit cards statements.


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The consumer does not have to strictly adhere to the above credit dispute letter format. As long as one is able to communicate one's grievances in precise terms, there is no need to conform to the given credit dispute letter template. One should not forget to include relevant enclosures in support of one's claims. However, original copies of the enclosed documents should always be retained for further reference.