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UPDATE
One of our students reported to us that she used the information on how to dispute a negative item on her credit report. The Fair Credit Reporting act states the credit bureau has 30 days to investigate and verify the debt, or remove the item from the credit report. After 45 days the bureau refused to delete the items, claiming it is the responsibility of the creditor to remove it.
That is absolutely, positively wrong!
We sent the appropriate section of the law to the student so she could confront the credit bureau and force them to remove the disputed items if the creditor did not respond and verify the debt within 30 days. We are including that section here, in the event you, too, may need to "remind" a credit reporting agency of their obligations under the law.
From the Fair Credit Reporting Act: "subsection 611. Procedure in case of disputed accuracy [15 U.S.C. § 1681i] (a) Reinvestigations of Disputed Information (1) Reinvestigation Required (A) In general. Subject to subsection (f), if the completeness or accuracy of any item of information contained in a consumer's file at a consumer reporting agency is disputed by the consumer and the consumer notifies the agency directly, or indirectly through a reseller, of such dispute, the agency shall, free of charge, conduct a reasonable reinvestigation to determine whether the disputed information is inaccurate and record the current status of the disputed information, or delete the item from the file in accordance with paragraph (5), before the end of the 30-day period beginning on the date on which the agency receives the notice of the dispute from the consumer or reseller."
Paragraph (5) states: "(5) Treatment of Inaccurate or Unverifiable Information
(A) In general. If, after any reinvestigation under paragraph (1) of any information disputed by a consumer, an item of the information is found to be inaccurate or incomplete or cannot be verified, the consumer reporting agency shall– (i) promptly delete that item of information from the file of the consumer, or modify that item of information, as appropriate, based on the results of the reinvestigation; and (ii) promptly notify the furnisher of that information that the information has been modified or deleted from the file of the consumer."