Can you repair an error on a credit report in time to save a job?

by Evan Bedard

Your credit report is definitely something that can have an impact on your career, depending on your line of work. This is one reason why it is crucial that all of the information on your report remains as accurate as possible. Since you are entitled to one free copy of this report a year it would be wise to do this to make sure there are no mistakes and creditors are reporting accordingly.

This is especially important for individuals who have a job requires security clearance. Security clearance is a status that allows one to access classified information for their line of work, usually positions where they work directly with the federal government or as a federal contractor. Some of these jobs include the military, police officers, and the CIA. If certain events happen that cause this persons score to drop there is a chance they can be reassigned or possibly even eliminated from their job.

However, this is also quite common for people looking for a job as well because some employers will want to examine the applicants credit history before offering a certain position. You do not want an error on your report to prevent you from landing the position you are looking for.

Should there be some errors on your report, you can correct them quite easily by going through the proper channels due to the Fair Credit Reporting Act. In an effort to keep your credit report and score completely accurate, you should keep a close eye on it before you need to use it to your advantage. A high score will be an advantage in the future if you are looking for a job, trying to secure a loan, or maybe even applying for a credit card. Many financial advisors suggest that people check their credit scores at least once to twice a year to ensure accuracy.

Here the FTC explains why it is important to check your report:
“-Because the information it contains affects whether you can get a loan — and how much you will have to pay to borrow money.
-To make sure the information is accurate, complete, and up-to-date before you apply for a loan for a major purchase like a house or car, buy insurance, or apply for a job.
-To help guard against identity theft. That’s when someone uses your personal information — like your name, your Social Security number, or your credit card number — to commit fraud. Identity thieves may use your information to open a new credit card account in your name. Then, when they don’t pay the bills, the delinquent account is reported on your credit report. Inaccurate information like that could affect your ability to get credit, insurance, or even a job.”

If there is an error on your credit report, you should get the ball rolling to correct it as soon as possible. If you don’t, your chances of getting a new job will be less than impressive.

In order to correct any mistakes, you must file a dispute and request an investigation with the consumer reporting companies. Including your complete name, address, date of birth and social security number, list the name of the company that made the error and make reference to the error itself. Write down why you are filing a dispute, include documents to support your position, and request that the mistaken infomation be corrected or removed immediately.

From there they will investigate the items in dispute, and if they find the items were indeed reported wrong they will forward all information to the company that reported the information. After they receive the notice about the dispute they also must do an investigation to determine whether or not the items were reported properly. If they cannot prove it is accurate they must than inform the consumer reporting companies of this to ensure the mistakes get removed from the consumers file.

Hopefully, if things go right, the credit bureau will recognize the mistake and make the proper corrections. This will get you on your way to your new job with a cleaner credit report and a higher credit score. A higher credit score will always make it easier to get a job, especially if you need the credit rating to improve your life.

Staying on top of repairing any credit errors on your report before you need it will keep you safe from any breaks in the accuracy of your credit report. Fixing these errors is very important to your overall success in the effort to keep a positive credit rating. The answer is yes, you can repair any credit report errors in time to save your job. Providing your employer is compassionate enough to stay with you through the correction process, almost any job can be spared.

It doesn’t take very long to ensure your credit report is accurate either. You can spend the time it takes to ensure all credit marks are accurate and guarantee that any future uses for your credit report will turn up accurate information. Why leave such a thing to chance, get the ball rolling to verify the details of your credit report are completely truthful and legally binding.

SOURCE : www.loansafe.org