Bills.com Blog > Credit Questions > Removing Accounts from Cedit Reports
Question: Can I have accounts that have been paid and closed removed from my credit report?
Answer: Thank you for visiting Bills.com. Here is an answer to your question.
All items remain on your credit report for up to 7 years. A bankruptcy may remain on your credit report for up to 10 years. If something has had no activity for over seven years, you can contact the bureausto request the item be removed. As such, there is no way to guarantee removal of information that is accurate (even if the account is paid and closed).
If the accounts are recent however, you will have a long time to wait. According to the Fair Credit Reporting Act, all trade lines can be reported on each of the credit bureaus. However, the reporting agencies must update and keep accurate data in their credit files. If there is erroneous information (like your collection account, that you believe is inaccurate), you must notify them (typically through a certified letter) and then wait one
reporting cycle (90 days) for the errors to be removed.
There are three major credit bureaus that offer credit reports, if there is something that you want added or removed, you should contact them directly:
Equifax
1-800-685-1111
www.equifax.com
Experian
1-888-397-3742
www.experian.com
Trans Union
1-800-916-8800
www.transunion.com
Your credit rating is calculated based on several variables, including: your payment
history (do you have any late payments, charge-offs, etc.), the amount and type of debt that you owe, if you have maxed out any of your trade lines, and then several other secondary factors like the length of your credit history and how many recent inquiries have been made to look at your credit history.
If you would like more information, please visit our credit resource page at: http://www.bills.com/credit/
We hope that this helped you to Find, Learn, and Save!
Best,
Bill
www.bills.com
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