Managing Identity Concerns With Credit Repair By Ian Webber At Isnare.com Ezine Articles

That is Not My Account!

Have you found an account on your credit report that does not belong to you? You are not alone. This happens to millions of people annually. Some of these cases are innocent, as in the case of file merger errors. Other cases may be quite serious, as in the case of identity theft. The good news is that there are credit repair solutions to all of your identity concerns. But prior to employing any of these credit repair tools you will need to evaluate the situation properly.

Evaluating the Event

It can be a shock to find a mystery account on your credit report. How did it get there? Will it turn out to be a major problem? Or is it a simple mistake. File merger errors are the most innocent source of mystery accounts and can be dispatched quickly with a little credit repair, while identity theft requires a bit more attention. Here is a quick test that will allow you to determent the nature of the problem and the appropriate credit repair solution.

The Test

Take a moment to examine the balance of your credit report. How many unidentified accounts are there? You might want to highlight the accounts of concern for easy reference. Once you have found all of the issues, you must call the creditors. If you look towards the bottom of the credit report you should find a list of all of the creditors along with their phone numbers. Call them and ask if they have a record of the offending account in your name. If you are a victim of a file merger error the creditor will not have any record of the account. This means that the error is only on the part of the credit bureau, and can be cured with credit repair by writing a letter asking the bureau to block the file merger error. But how did this happen?

What Was The Cause?

File merger errors occur because the software the credit bureaus use to group your accounts for credit reporting allows for a limited number of non-matches within the data fields they use for matching. This means that if another person has enough common identifying characteristics, the non-matching data will be ignored and their file will be merged with yours. It is very common for siblings to have this problem as they may have matching last names, addresses, and similar Social Security numbers. But it is also common for non-related parties to encounter file merger errors as well.

Identity Theft and the FCRA

If your telephone call to the credit takes a different turn and they confirm that they have a record of the account in your name you may be a victim of identity theft. The unauthorized use of your identity is a serious crime and needs to be dealt with quickly. Fortunately, the Fair Credit Reporting Act offers an almost instant credit repair solution that will block fraudulent accounts from showing on your credit reports. You must get a police report listing the bad accounts. You will also need to prepare a letter avowing that the accounts are not due to any transaction entered into by you. Put these together with your identification and send it all to the credit bureaus. Per the FCRA you only have to send the package to one of the bureaus as they are each required to inform the others, but I advise you to send to all three. Once they receive your request they will block the offending accounts within four business days and initiate an investigation of the issue.

Protect Yourself

Anyone who has had their identity compromised, or has a concern about the potential unauthorized use of their identity, should take steps to protect themselves. There are several excellent credit repair tools available to safeguard your credit. The credit bureaus offer the option of inserting a Fraud Alert in your credit report. This alert will request prospective creditors to call you prior to extending credit. Unfortunately, this is not foolproof as many lenders miss these alerts. For real safety you should employ an additional credit repair tool, credit monitoring. Credit monitoring is offered by the credit bureaus and other vendors as well. It is inexpensive and will notify you of every material change in your credit report, from inquiries to new accounts.

Call a Friendly Credit Repair Expert

Perplexed or worried? You do not have to manage the process on your own. Professional credit repair services are very affordable and will make sure that every important step is taken to cure your identity problems and protect you properly against recurrence. Your credit is too important to ignore. If you can’t manage on your own, just hire a credit repair professional!

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