Updating all three credit reports

Dear Audrey,

Just to let you know, your articles have helped me a great deal and I am on my way to being better educated about my credit. I have only one question for you and I hope you can help. I am currently disputing a few inaccuracies on my credit reports. Why would one credit reporting agency delete an item that was inaccurate and another agency not?

Kelly G.

Dear Kelly,

I am so glad to hear that my articles have proven to be a useful tool in your credit education. Regarding your disputing question, there are three national credit reporting agencies - TransUnion, Equifax and Experian - that each operate separately. These agencies gather credit data independently, so the information on each of your three credit reports can be slightly different.

When you submit your dispute to these agencies, they each conduct an investigation of your claim for 30 days. Depending on what each agency finds, they decide either to remove or leave the disputed item. Sometimes these agencies end up with different conclusions about the accuracy of your data. If your dispute didn't work with one of the credit reporting agencies, I suggest that you try your dispute again following the steps outlined in the dispute section of the Credit Learning Center.

Best wishes,

Audrey O'Dell