bank card and score meter

When you apply to open a new credit card, take out a loan, or want a mortgage, you’ll find that the lender you apply to must consider your history to determine if you would be a good party to extend a loan to. As such, they will check your credit score. Odds are, you have a FICO credit score the lender will assess to determine whether or not to extend the loan. The following blog explores FICO scores in more detail and how a San Diego County credit reporting error lawyer can help you if you find mistakes on your report.

What Is a FICO Credit Score?

The Fair Isaac Corporation is a data analytics company that measures the lending of consumers to provide a score based on several factors. This score is then used by creditors to determine whether or not to extend loans to individuals. The factors taken into consideration by FICO when producing a credit score include:

  • Payment history, which makes up 35% of your score
  • Types of credit used, making up 10% of your score
  • How much you currently owe, accounting for 30% of your score
  • The length of your credit history, making up 15% of your score
  • New credit accounts, which make up the remaining 10%

What Can I Do if My Credit Score Isn’t Right?

When checking your credit score, the last thing you may expect is to find that your credit score is incorrect. It’s important to understand that the credit reporting agencies (TransUnion, Equifax, and Experian) all manually plug consumer data into the formula provided by FICO to determine a consumer’s credit score. It’s important to understand that the exact formula used to calculate credit scores by FICO is not known.

As such, if you find that your FICO credit score is incorrect, you may not know what to do. Generally, the most important thing is to file a dispute directly with the credit reporting bureaus. Typically, inaccurate information is the result of errors from either the credit furnisher or the credit reporting agency. As such, when you file a dispute, the agency is legally required to investigate your dispute and issue a response within 30 days.

Unfortunately, if there is an error on your credit report, you should enlist the assistance of an experienced credit dispute attorney. Filing a dispute may seem easy enough, but leaving out important information can result in your dispute being dismissed and the error remaining, further impacting your credit and ability to take out loans.

When you need legal assistance for issues impacting your credit score, the team at Barthel Legal is ready to help. We understand how frustrating these matters can be, which is why our team is dedicated to fighting for you. If your credit score is plagued with mistakes, connect with us today to learn how we can help you through these complicated times.