Disputing negative credit items with the credit bureaus Equifax, Experian, and Transunion can often be a challenge. Many times the bureaus respond to a dispute with a letter indicating they verified the disputed item. Accordingly, you are stuck with the information being reported about you.
Credit bureaus always respond to disputes with a letter where they inform you that you have the right to attach a 100-word statement to your report. Often, people believe this is a good opportunity to explain away their negative information or argue their case.
It is surely tempting to tell your side of the story by way of the “consumer statement.” It appears as your opportunity to explain why you have negative items on your credit report. There probably is a good reason why you were late on that payment. Perhaps you were sick or got laid off from your job.
Do not fall into the trap of adding a consumer statement to your credit. It is almost never a good thing.
Do not mistake the 100-word statement for good faith on the part of the credit bureaus. As you will see, such a statement is usually used against your best interests.
Let’s assume that you were to attach a statement like this: “I was only late on my credit cards because I was laid off from work. Once I found another job I caught up on all my bills and have never been late since.”
It may seem unreasonable to punish somebody for losing her job. Especially if she caught up on all her bills.
However, the credit bureaus and creditors read such a consumer statement entirely different. They don’t see a good person who went through some brief and unexpected hard times.
Her inability to make payments is seen as a sign of weakness and/or irresponsibility. They believe that she should have emergency money to pay bills during times of emergency.
The 100-word statement also has additional hidden dangers. For instance, adding such a statement confirms your guilt. It is direct proof that you were late on those payments. Moreover, you put yourself on perilous footing should you decide to hire a credit correction law firm in the future. The credit bureaus will ignore any future disputes on your behalf because you have already admitted guilt.
As you can see, attaching a 100-word written statement to your credit report could possibly be the worst step you can take. In fact, it is only an option because it was part of the original Fair Credit Reporting Act enacted in the 1970’s. Thirty years ago bankers actually manually reviewed credit applications and read those statements personally.
In today’s digital world most applications are reviewed electronically. Thus, such a statement only serves as another way for the credit bureaus to ignore your credit report dispute.
Briefly, the 100-word statement is dangerous to your credit file. It serves no good purpose for the consumer whatsoever.