How to Remove a Dispute Remark from Your Credit Report

Imagine this scenario:

You apply for a home loan, and with your great credit, you’re confident you’ll be approved. But, to your surprise, the mortgage company denies your loan because there is a dispute remark (also known as a dispute comment or statement) on your credit report. They inform you that you must remove this dispute comment before they can proceed with your loan approval, and you’re unsure where to begin.

In this post, I’ll provide you with a template to get that remark removed from your account.

However, DO NOT remove a dispute comment from negative accounts unless a lender specifically requests it.

Here’s why: A dispute comment removes the account from being factored into your credit score. If you remove this comment from an account with a negative history, your credit score could drop. On the other hand, if the dispute comment is removed from a positive account, your credit score might improve.

This article includes the contact details for the credit bureaus, a sample dispute letter, and instructions on how to quickly remove the dispute comment from your report.

But before we dive in, it’s important to understand a few things about dispute comments:

What are Dispute Comments and Why Do They Appear on Credit Reports?

Under the Fair Credit Reporting Act (FCRA), when you challenge the accuracy of an account on your credit report, whether with the creditor or the credit bureaus, the account will be investigated. During this investigation, which typically lasts 30 days, the account will be marked as “disputed.”

What’s crucial is that FICO (Fair Isaac Corporation) credit scoring systems do not factor in accounts that are marked “disputed.” So, even though the account may appear on your credit report, it won’t contribute to your score. FICO scores are calculated based on five factors: payment history, amounts owed, length of credit history, new credit, and credit mix.

Here’s where things get tricky: After 30 days, one of two outcomes may happen:

Scenario 1: The investigation results in the account being deleted. In this case, there’s nothing to worry about. No account and no dispute comment.

Scenario 2: If the investigation does not lead to the account being deleted, the creditor may request that the credit bureaus add a remark saying “consumer disputes account.” As a result, the account stops factoring into your credit score, which can artificially inflate your score.

If you apply for a mortgage loan, the lender will likely require this comment to be removed to get an accurate credit score.

Two Types of Dispute Comments

Variation 1 – “Account disputed” or “Account disputed, investigation in process” When this comment is on an account, it doesn’t impact your credit score. Lenders usually want these comments removed, especially from negative accounts.

If the account shows the first variation of “account disputed,” the dispute comment could remain on your report indefinitely. However, if the investigation is still ongoing, the comment will be updated to indicate that a re-investigation is in process, and the account will still be excluded from the credit score calculation.

Variation 2 – “Account was in dispute – now resolved” This comment appears after a dispute is resolved. With this remark, the account will be factored into the credit score. Lenders typically ignore this type of comment.

When Removing a Dispute Comment Will Increase Your Credit Score

If you have an account marked as disputed (with a variation 1 dispute comment) and it has a positive credit history, removing the dispute comment could lead to an increase in your score.

When Removing a Dispute Comment Will Decrease Your Credit Score

If you’re removing a dispute comment from a negative account, doing so might cause your score to decrease. However, you may need to remove the comment in order to get approved for a loan.

How Long Does It Take to Remove a Dispute Comment?

The time it takes to remove a dispute comment can vary. If you contact the credit bureaus by phone, it could take as little as four business days. If you send a written or fax request, it may take up to 30 days.

Calling the Credit Bureaus for Instant Dispute Comment Deletions

I always recommend calling the credit bureaus first to request the removal of dispute comments. While hold times can be long, it’s often the quickest solution. Here are the contact numbers and prompts:

• EXPERIAN: Call 855-414-6148 (select options 2, 1, 2, 1 after providing your SSN# and DOB)
• EQUIFAX: Call 800-846-5279 (may take a while to get through)
• TRANSUNION: Call 800-916-8800, extension 4, then extension 2.

If you can’t get through using the numbers above, try pulling a credit report from annualcreditreport.com. This will provide a report ID# that can help you get through faster, especially with Experian.

Writing to the Credit Bureaus to Remove Dispute Remarks

If calling the bureaus doesn’t work, you can write to them. Keep in mind that this process may take a few weeks to complete. Below is a sample letter to help you remove dispute remarks from your report.

Date:
Full Name:
Mailing Address:
Date of Birth, SSN#

{If Sending to Experian: P.O. Box 4500, Allen, TX 75013} OR BY FAX : 1-972-390-4908
{If Sending to Equifax: P.O. Box 740256, Atlanta, GA 30374-0256} OR BY FAX : 1-888-826-0549
{If Sending to Transunion: P.O. Box 2000, Chester, PA 19016} – Transunion no longer accepts fax

{Date}

RE: REQUEST TO UPDATE CREDIT REPORT, PLEASE RUSH LOAN PENDING

To whom it may concern,

In accordance with the Fair Credit Reporting Act Section 611 (15 U.S.C. § 1681I), I am practicing my right to “UPDATE” information that does not reflect the current status of certain accounts. More specifically pertaining to comments on accounts. I am requesting that you remove the “disputed comments” on each of the accounts below with immediate effect. The accounts have either never been disputed, to begin with, or are no longer in dispute.

I am asking the dispute comment to be removed from the following items:

{Creditor Name} {ac# }
{Creditor Name} {ac# }
{Creditor Name} {ac# }
{Creditor Name} {ac# }

Once again this is not a request to investigate, but to update, so I expect you to update my file as soon as possible and not the regular 30 day period you’re allowed for disputes

Truly,

{Name}

{Signature}