You share the same goal that so many others do at this point, get that credit score raised. Doing so can open up a world of better loans with lower interest rates, as well as cheaper insurance costs that is otherwise closed off to you. You've obtained your credit report already, which was a great first step. You disseminated the information and disputed some of the findings in the hopes of having them stricken from your records.



Unfortunately your written cry of "Objection!" has been struck down with a callous "overruled" by the credit bureaus, who've decided to leave your dirty laundry on your report for any interested passers-by to see, and there's no denying that your tidy whities aren't the whitest in the world. So what now? Short of scrubbing away those pesky stains for months to remove them, what other options are available to you? Let's go back and take a look at your dispute letter and see if we can't get that "overruled" overturned.

First let's take a look at that letter you originally sent. How concise and to the point was it? Bureaus and lenders deal with hundreds and even thousands of these letters a week, and this number continues to rise. Turning your dispute letter into an autobiography detailing your troubled childhood and the role it played on the rest of your life is not a good way to have your letter accepted. Keep it concise and to the point, including only details directly relevant to the specific case.

When contacting lenders, avoiding using legal jargon and trying to be threatening. This will do nothing but make them not want to help you, and will not cow them into submission. Write a professional, but slightly personal letter.

If you didn't include any documentation to back up any of your points, you absolutely have to if you can. Bank statements, receipts, canceled checks, anything you can scrounge up that proves your point will give your case a great fact. Trying to argue on what amounts to nothing but hearsay and conjecture will rarely prove effective.

If your tried skipping the lender and going straight through the credit bureau to contest a point of contention, which ultimately failed, you may be forced to go through the lender to try and have the record removed that way. When it comes to dealing with credit card companies over contested fees that you refused to pay, such as a double billing, this will likely lead to more running around.

Companies that offer fixed low apr rates on their credit card will usually contact the vendor, who will probably report there were no errors, and the credit card company will ultimately side with them in most cases. You'll need to go straight to the vendor yourself to handle this. If you have a receipt you should be in decent shape, otherwise you'll have to hope that you can find someone who remembers the circumstances surrounding your purchase, and can vividly recall that you only purchased one of items which was double billed. When dealing with smaller stores you may be in luck, if we're talking about finding a Wal-Mart associate who will remember you among their thousands of daily customers, you're probably in trouble.