How to write and mail a credit dispute letter

Choose the correct recipient

A credit reporting company (credit bureau) maintains the report. A furnisher, such as a lender, card issuer, servicer, landlord, or collector, supplies the account information. The Consumer Financial Protection Bureau says fixing an error generally means disputing with both, starting with each bureau whose report shows the mistake.

A bureau must pass your dispute and the relevant information you sent to the furnisher within 5 business days of receiving it. You can also write to the furnisher directly. It must investigate a direct dispute sent to the address it lists on your credit report, to an address it gave you in writing for disputes, or, if it has specified none, to any of its business addresses. If the investigation shows the information was wrong, the furnisher must send the correction to every bureau it reported to.

If the account was opened through identity theft, the CFPB and FTC point to IdentityTheft.gov for the additional reports and recovery steps.

What to include in a credit dispute letter

• Your full name, current address, and phone number, plus any other addresses from the past two years if you moved
• The date and the report or confirmation number shown on your credit report, if there is one
• For each disputed item: the company name, the account number as it appears on the report (a partial number is fine), and the dates involved
• What is wrong with each item and the facts that show why
• The correction you want, such as deleting an account that is not yours or updating a payment status or balance
• A list of enclosures: copies, never originals, of records that support the correction, and the page of the report with the item circled or highlighted
• Your signature and printed name

The mail-in instructions from all three bureaus ask for your date of birth and Social Security number, and the Equifax and Experian instructions also ask for copies of identity and address documents. Without an applicable written agreement with IRIS, do not submit a letter or packet containing a government identifier through IRIS; send it through the bureau's own online, phone, or mail route.

Sample credit dispute letter outline

No special or paid template is required, and filing a dispute is free. The CFPB and FTC publish sample letters for bureaus and for furnishers, and Experian accepts mailed disputes in your own format when they contain the needed information. Use this outline to check that your letter covers each part.

Example item: "1. ABC Bank credit card, account ending 1234. The report shows a 30-day late payment for March 2026. I paid on March 3, before the March 10 due date, as the enclosed bank statement shows. Please correct the payment history to show this payment as on time."

• CFPB sample letters for bureaus and furnishers
• FTC sample letter to a credit bureau
• FTC sample letter to the business that supplied the information

Build a reviewable packet

• The letter, or the bureau's own dispute form if you use it
• A copy of the report page with the disputed item marked
• Copies of statements, receipts, cancellation records, or correspondence that support the requested correction
• Any identity or address copies the recipient's current instructions require
• The current dispute address published by the recipient
• A list of every enclosure

Keep originals and send copies as the recipient instructs; Experian says it cannot return copies sent with a mailed dispute. Credit reports and supporting records can expose account and identity data; do not upload unredacted sensitive packets through the IRIS consumer flow. Without an applicable written agreement, do not submit government identifiers, payment-card credentials, or material requiring unagreed privacy safeguards. If the recipient needs that information, use its accepted direct dispute route.

• Review Experian dispute preparation guidance
• Review Equifax dispute preparation guidance

Credit bureau dispute mailing addresses

These are the mail-in dispute addresses each bureau published on its own site when this guide was checked on October 2, 2026. All three also accept disputes online and by phone.

Addresses change, and published versions differ: the FTC's dispute page, for example, lists Atlanta, GA 30348 for the Equifax box. Before mailing, compare the address with the bureau's current form or dispute page, or use the address printed on your credit report. Furnishers set their own dispute addresses, so use the one on your report or in the company's written instructions.

• Equifax Dispute Request Form (PDF)
• Experian: dispute credit report information
• TransUnion: dispute by mail or phone

What happens after the bureau receives your letter

The Fair Credit Reporting Act sets these periods from the day the bureau receives the dispute, not the day you mail it.

A furnisher can also decline a direct dispute it reasonably finds frivolous or irrelevant: for example, a letter without enough information to investigate, a repeat of an earlier dispute with no new information, a dispute about only identifying details, inquiries, or certain public records, or one it reasonably believes a credit repair organization prepared or submitted. It must tell you within 5 business days of that decision. A specific, documented letter in your own words gives each recipient what it needs to investigate.

If the result does not fix the error

A dispute corrects inaccurate or incomplete information; it does not remove accurate negative information. The FTC notes that correct negative information can generally be reported for seven years and bankruptcy information for 10.

If a bureau's investigation does not resolve the dispute, you can add a brief statement of dispute to that bureau's file; the bureau may limit it to 100 words if it helps you write a clear summary. Later reports that include the item must note the dispute and include the statement or a summary. On request, the bureau must send notice of a deletion or statement to recipients you name who received your report for employment in the past two years, or for another purpose in the past six months. The CFPB notes that a statement applies to disputes filed with a bureau, not disputes sent only to a furnisher.

You can also dispute directly with the furnisher and send any new supporting records. While you dispute an item with the furnisher, it may not report that item to a bureau without noting that you dispute it. The CFPB accepts complaints about credit reporting, and your state attorney general, a lawyer, or a legal aid office can help with your options; time limits apply to lawsuits. This guide is general information, not legal advice.

Keep a mailing record

Save the exact packet, destination, date, and any USPS receipt actually obtained or available tracking history. Because the investigation period starts when the bureau receives the dispute, a delivery event helps you estimate when results are due. The CFPB and FTC suggest Certified Mail with a return receipt; TransUnion says it accepts standard or certified mail. IRIS order status and provider reports are not a postmarked USPS mailing receipt or a Return Receipt artifact. Certified Mail can document USPS acceptance when the appropriate receipt is obtained, but neither tracking nor delivery settles the dispute or guarantees a correction.

Through IRIS, mail only a letter that needs no government identifier, such as a furnisher dispute that identifies the account by company name and partial account number, with any report excerpt limited to the disputed entry. Send a packet that needs your Social Security number, an ID copy, or a full credit report through the recipient's own online, phone, or mail route.