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Consumer Credit Protection Act: Congress passed these laws to protect you — the FCRA, FDCPA, CROA, ECOA and TILA are all part of it.
FCRA § 611: You have the right to dispute inaccurate or incomplete information, and the credit bureau generally must investigate within 30 days — free of charge.
FCRA § 605: Most negative information must come off your report after 7 years. Most bankruptcies: 10 years.
FCRA § 605B: Identity theft victims can have fraudulent accounts blocked from their credit reports.
FCRA § 612: You are entitled to free copies of your credit reports at AnnualCreditReport.com.
FCRA § 615: If you are denied credit because of your report, you must be told and told which bureau was used.
FDCPA § 809: Dispute a debt in writing within 30 days and the collector must stop collecting until it verifies the debt.
FDCPA § 805: You can tell a debt collector in writing to stop contacting you.
FDCPA § 806–807: Debt collectors may not harass you, threaten you or lie to you.
CROA § 404: No credit repair company may charge you before its services are fully performed.
CROA § 407: You have 3 business days to cancel a credit repair contract without penalty.
ECOA: Creditors may not discriminate against you for race, color, religion, national origin, sex, marital status, age, or receiving public assistance.
TILA: Lenders must clearly disclose the true cost of credit — including the APR — before you sign.
SCRA: Active-duty servicemembers can cap interest at 6% on many debts taken on before service.

Consumer Credit Protection Act: Congress passed these laws to protect you — the FCRA, FDCPA, CROA, ECOA and TILA are all part of it.
FCRA § 611: You have the right to dispute inaccurate or incomplete information, and the credit bureau generally must investigate within 30 days — free of charge.
FCRA § 605: Most negative information must come off your report after 7 years. Most bankruptcies: 10 years.
FCRA § 605B: Identity theft victims can have fraudulent accounts blocked from their credit reports.
FCRA § 612: You are entitled to free copies of your credit reports at AnnualCreditReport.com.
FCRA § 615: If you are denied credit because of your report, you must be told and told which bureau was used.
FDCPA § 809: Dispute a debt in writing within 30 days and the collector must stop collecting until it verifies the debt.
FDCPA § 805: You can tell a debt collector in writing to stop contacting you.
FDCPA § 806–807: Debt collectors may not harass you, threaten you or lie to you.
CROA § 404: No credit repair company may charge you before its services are fully performed.
CROA § 407: You have 3 business days to cancel a credit repair contract without penalty.
ECOA: Creditors may not discriminate against you for race, color, religion, national origin, sex, marital status, age, or receiving public assistance.
TILA: Lenders must clearly disclose the true cost of credit — including the APR — before you sign.
SCRA: Active-duty servicemembers can cap interest at 6% on many debts taken on before service.

Credit problems

Inaccurate Information on Your Credit Report

Credit reporting errors are more common than most people think. The FCRA requires “maximum possible accuracy” — and gives you the right to insist on it.

By Richie Barrett · Published September 26, 2026

The accuracy standard

FCRA § 607(b) requires credit bureaus to follow reasonable procedures to assure the maximum possible accuracy of the information about you. Companies that furnish information have their own duty not to report information they know or have reasonable cause to believe is inaccurate, and to correct and update what they report (FCRA § 623).

The most common errors

Personal information: misspelled names, wrong addresses, employers or Social Security number variations
Mixed files: someone else’s accounts on your report — common with similar names or family members
Duplicate accounts: the same debt listed twice, or by an original creditor and collector both with balances
Wrong balances or credit limits, which can distort your utilization
Wrong dates, especially the date of first delinquency
Wrong status: closed accounts showing open, paid accounts showing unpaid, or accounts you closed shown as “closed by grantor”
Authorized-user accounts reported as if you were responsible
Outdated information past the reporting periods in FCRA § 605

How the dispute process works

When you dispute with a bureau (FCRA § 611), it must conduct a reasonable reinvestigation — generally within 30 days — and forward your information to the furnisher. It must correct or delete information it finds inaccurate or can’t verify, and send you the results within 5 business days of finishing. You may add a brief statement to your file if a dispute isn’t resolved.

If you believe a bureau or furnisher didn’t investigate properly, you can request a description of the procedure used, file a complaint with the CFPB, and — when violations cause harm — the FCRA allows you to seek damages (FCRA §§ 616–617).

Start with our Credit Report Error Checklist.

Sources: Fair Credit Reporting Act, 15 U.S.C. §§ 1681c, 1681e(b), 1681i, 1681n, 1681o, 1681s-2.

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Common questions

What is a mixed file?

A mixed file happens when information belonging to another person ends up on your report, often because of similar names or identifying details.

What if the bureau says an item was “verified”?

You can ask for a description of how it was verified, dispute again with new information, dispute directly with the furnisher, or file a CFPB complaint.

Know where to go — the credit bureaus and the agencies that protect you

Links go to each organization’s official website. Kaironeek Financial is not affiliated with or endorsed by any of them.