The most powerful credit repair tactics are based on our civil rights. I know you may be thinking, “what in the world does “civil rights” have to do with credit repair?” Many people are under the impression that “civil rights” exist ONLY to protect civilian’s freedoms and equality, but in all actuality, those aren’t the only civil rights that Americans have. The reality of the matter is that many laws exist to protect our civil rights. And several of them protect consumers from the credit bureaus, creditors, and collection agencies. Such laws are often used when disputing credit accounts listed on the credit report. In essence, what you’re doing is making sure your civil rights have not been violated and are being protected.

Most consumers think that writing and forwarding a dispute letter to credit bureaus is where credit repair starts and stops. While it’s very true that the Fair Credit Reporting Act (FCRA) gives people the right to challenge any credit report item believed to be questionable and while it’s also very true that it requires that the credit bureaus to remove any credit listing that is inaccurate or unverifiable, the task of credit repair does not stop with the credit bureaus and it does not stop with the infamous FCRA. There’s lots of other methods and laws (Consumer Acts) you can take advantage of, some which doesn’t even involve the credit bureaus. So learning what these credit protection laws are can give you a tremendous advantage over the credit bureaus and data furnishers who are reporting inaccurate, unverifiable, or misleading information about you.

Some of the federal laws which exist to protect consumers in credit-related issues include:

* The Fair Credit Reporting Act (FCRA), which basically tells the credit bureaus what they can and can’t do. All credit bureau disputes utilize the FCRA.

* The Fair Credit Billing Act (FCBA), which is a subset of the more comprehensive Truth in Lending Act, which essentially tells original creditors how they should behave. This law is very effective for disputing directly with the creditor.

* The Fair Debt Collections Practices Act (FDCPA), which regulates debt collectors. It forms the basis for the intervention called “debt validation.”

Why learn all the credit repair laws?

If you’re like most people, the mere thought of learning law is probably rather unappealing and possibly even terrifying. Oftentimes, I’ve heard many people say, “I can just search the internet and copy credit repair letters from there.” While this may be true, what happens when 5,000, 10,000, and 20,000 people begin using and sending in the same letter? It’s red-flagged and deemed frivolous by the credit bureaus. So instead of doing this, if you want to be successful in repairing your credit, it’s going to be well worth the time and effort it takes to learn the various credit protection laws so you can create your own disputes and letters. Look at the laws as your basis of the dispute letter.

To give you an idea of how laws are used in credit repair, let’s take a look at a make-believe example. Let’s say there is a pretend law called the Fair Credit Ice Cream Delivery Act (FCICDA) that requires the credit bureaus to:

1. Send you a free ice cream cone every time you order a credit report.
2. Prepare the ice cream cone with genuine whole milk and crushed pecan nuts.
3. Deliver the ice cream to you in 30 minutes or less.

Now the credit bureaus are obligated to follow this whole law – numbers 1 through 3. They can not simple pick and choose which portions of this law they’d like to comply with. If they don’t comply with the entire law, there are serious consequences for their non-compliance. So how could you develop a good dispute letter using the law above and without telling a lie or being misleading?  One way is to ask for documentation that proves they’ve complied with the FCICDA. Check out this sample dispute letter:

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Dear Credit Bureau,

I have recently ordered my credit report and pursuant to the Fair Credit Ice Cream Delivery Act, you were required to send me a free ice cream cone made with genuine whole milk AND crushed pecan nuts. I don’t believe I got that. Please send me proof that you delivered this ice cream cone to me.

Also, please show that you delivered the ice cream within the required 30 minute time frame. And if you are unable to supply this documentation, please re-deliver the ice cream to me immediately.

Thank you in advance for your assistance,

Jane Doe
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This is a silly example, I know, but surely you get the point. The whole point is that you’re essentially asking the recipient to document their compliance with the law. You can use this same approach to create your own dispute letters. Whether you are referring to the FCRA, FCBA, or the FDCPA, you will request that the other party prove they’ve complied and did not break the law. When you create dispute letters like this, you aren’t lying, you are just asking to see proof about how they reported the account to the credit bureaus so you can ensure that none of your rights, at no point in time, have been violated – PERIOD.

Essentially, the reason this works is because most companies don’t want to take the time to respond to your lawful request. Often times, the documentation is scattered and expensive to gather, so they’ll often just remove the account from your credit file or ignore it, rather than go through the hassle of arguing with you.

This approach can be used for multiple disputes:

Credit bureaus: “Hey credit bureau, show me you have complied with the FCRA”

Debt collectors: “Hey collector, show me the complete history and origin of the alleged debt in accordance of the FDCPA”.

Take the time to learn the credit protection laws that are afforded to you so that you can create and develop your own credit repair letters tailored to your specific circumstances and needs. Good Luck!