What is a Credit Rescore?

A Credit Rescore is a streamlined way to correct or remove inaccurate information in a borrower’s credit report, either from one or multiple bureaus.

What can a Rapid Rescore update?

• Any tradeline/public record currently reported on borrower’s credit profile
• Liens, bankruptcies, and judgments
• Accounts not associated with the borrower
• Account status and balances
• Remove derogatory information and accounts that were reported in error

Note:  If the ECOA code is “T” for Terminated that means the Bureaus will not update any account information through the Credit Rescore process.  These tradelines can only be deleted.

Processing and Fees

All rapid rescore fees are per person/per bureau/per tradeline

Phone Verify/No Documents

1. Experian and TransUnion charge an additional $20
2. Equifax does not charge any additional fees for this service
3. Experian is the only bureau that will conduct a conference call

Processing Time

Standard is 3-5 business days after you submit a request, while rush is just 1 business day

Rush Processing

Equifax and Experian offer rush processing for an additional $40 fee.  TransUnion does not offer rush processing for rapid rescore orders.

Borrower Authorization

The bureaus won’t accept the standard consent form and may contact the borrower’s creditors directly to verify the request.

To avoid delays, ask your borrower to contact the affected creditors and have their account notated with “authorizing the release or sharing of all account information to Experian, Equifax, and TransUnion.”

This is highly recommended for all requests as a precaution.  If the bureau calls the creditor without authorization, the request may be placed into “investigations” and it could take up to 30 days for the request to be completed.

Removing Dispute Comments

Dispute comments can be removed by submitting:

1. A proof document from the creditor. The letter will need to state “Consumer is no longer disputing account information, all dispute comments have be removed.”
2. Consumer Dispute Removal Letter completed by the borrower

The borrower should also contact the creditors to make sure that the disputes are removed from their system and that they do not get re-reported.

Updating Accounts

The Bureaus will accept a current statement (online printout is okay) and must have a portion of the account number and reflect current date with the exact change (balance) or update needed.

Bureaus require that all documents submitted:

1. Be typed on the creditor’s letterhead
2. Must be addressed to the borrower(s)
3. Come from the creditor reporting the account
4. Include a current date and account number
5. State specifically how the information should be changed or updated
6. Reflect something done already and not something to be done in the future. (i.e. the tradeline for John Doe has been deleted, not the tradeline for John Doe will be deleted)

Removing Account Information 

Removing Authorized User Accounts

The bureaus are unable to accept documents that only state that the borrower was removed as a user.

The bureaus update the account one of two ways: 1) they terminate, which means that the account remains on file, no new reports, the balance is zeroed out, and the status is updated to “T” or 2) they delete the account from the user’s credit file.

To terminate, the letter will need to state that the consumer’s name has been removed as a user AND the account has been updated to terminated.

To delete, the letter will need to state that the consumer’s name has been removed as an authorized user AND the account has been removed/deleted from the borrower’s credit profile.

Removal of Incorrectly Reported Late Payments

Remove incorrectly reported late payments with a letter from the creditor.  The letter must:

1. Be written on a creditor’s company letterhead
2. Be addressed to the borrower and dated
3. Indicate account number
4. Have contact name and phone number for the creditor
5. State specific late date(s) to be removed
   • This can be an exact date(s): “Previously reported late payments for 02/18 and 04/18 were reported in error and have been removed from the consumer’s credit file”
   • This can be a date range: “Previously reported late payments from March 2013 through September 2013 were reported in error and have been removed from the consumer’s credit file”
   • Or it can state that the account has never been late

 Special Requirements: American Express

• The Bureaus will not accept the credit card statements as the credit card number on the statement will not match to the account number being reported
  • They no longer report actual credit card numbers and instead report an Account ID number to the bureaus
• A Credit Verification Release Form is needed and the borrower will need the Account ID number from the credit report
  • The borrower will need to contact AMEX credit bureau division at 800-874-2717 for this form

Special Requirements: Barclays Bank

• The Bureaus will not accept credit card statements from Barclays Bank as the credit card number on the statement will not match to the account number being reported
  • They no longer report actual credit card numbers and instead report an Account ID number to the bureaus
• A letter from the Customer Care department is needed with the following requirements:
  • The letter must have the borrower’s name/address, Barclays credit card number, the account ID that appears on the credit report, and state exactly what information they need indicated on the letter (current balance, dates of late payments, etc.).
  • The borrower must sign and date the letter
  • The letter needs to be faxed to the Customer Care Department at 866-823-8178 (if the letter needs to be faxed back, the fax number needs to be provided as well)

Note: Barclays Bank will not verify or release any account information over the phone

Example

JW Smith

123 Main St, Phoenix, AZ 85202

Credit Card #1234 4564 4565 1231

Account ID # 12345678

To Whom It May Concern – Barclays Bank Customer Care Department

Please provide a letter for the above listed credit card number/account ID showing my current balance and next payment due.

Please ensure that the account ID number is listed on the response letter.  Please fax response letter to 987-987-9871

Special Requirements: First National Bank of Omaha

• The Bureaus will not accept credit card statements from First National Bank of Omaha as the credit card number on the statement will not match to the account number being reported
  • First National Bank of Omaha (FNB Omaha) no longer reports actual credit card numbers, but rather a scrambled account number.
• The Bureaus will verify thru ATM if a complete credit card number is given.

Bureau Investigations

If the credit bureau is unable to verify/obtain information with a creditor, the request may be placed into what the bureaus refer to as “Investigation.”

The bureaus will send an electronic request for validation of the information to the creditor, who then has up to 30 days to respond. Normally, the creditor will respond in 4-10 days.  Informative Research tracks and follows up with the bureaus on all investigation requests every 3 to 4 days and would send statue updates to you.

Documents Not Accepted by the Bureaus

1. Handwritten documents
2. Trustees deed or escrow papers
3. Computer generated payment histories
4. Receipts, canceled checks
5. Divorce decrees
6. Bureau investigation results
7. Internet court record information/documents that are not recorded by the court listed on the credit report
8. Universal data forms
9. HUD 1 statement or settlement statements
10. Information sent via email
11. Informative Research supplements
12. Screenshots from mobile/cell phone apps

For help, reach out via email at creditrescore@informativeresearch.com or call at (888) 819-0007.