How to Remove A Judgment from Your Credit Report
Judgments can harm your credit score in a huge way, making it hard for you to obtain credit. Your judgment could be a result of a lawsuit from a former eviction or old debt. Lucky for you, you can have the judgment removed from your credit report even before its expiry date. A civil judgment is the ruling that a court makes during a lawsuit. Judgments commonly occur due to unpaid collections.
On your credit report, the judgments are there as public records. Anyone can see the public record and credit bureaus collect them to show your potential creditors your credit history. A judgment is among the worst things that can be on your credit report.
It occurs when a court orders you to pay a debt. Situations that may lead to a judgment include failure to pay alimony, child support, and other small claim lawsuits. A judgment on your credit report lowers your credit score and potential lenders will not be quick to finance you because you are not likely to pay the debt, according to them.
If you are lucky enough to get credit, you will pay high interest rates. A judgment will stay on your report for seven years. It will, therefore, have a negative impact on your score for seven years. However, its impact lessens with time. If you cannot imagine waiting that long, you can have it removed.
The Different Types of Judgment
Unsatisfied Judgment
This is the most damaging type of judgment. It occurs if you do not deal with the result of the lawsuit and you have not settled the debt.
Satisfied Judgment
This is a judgment that has been settled. It is wise to have your judgment satisfied by either paying it in full or negotiating a settlement.
Vacated Judgment
This is a judgment that has been dismissed through an appeal. This one should not be on your credit report.
Re-filed Judgment
This is a renewed judgment. This means it can keep showing up on your report even after seven years.
Who Should You Pay to Satisfy Your Judgment?
Check your credit report to see who the current owner of the judgment is and how much you owe. Debts get sold and resold, so you must confirm. When an agency sues you, pay the debt quickly to avoid appearing before a judge. The worst mistake you can make is ignoring the lawsuit. If you do not show up for court, your lender wins by default. Also, make a point of talking to a legal professional so you know your options.
How to Delete A Judgment from Your Credit Report
Have the Court Validate the Judgment
Contact the court that issued the judgment through a validation letter, so they can verify the judgment. If the court does not bother or cannot verify, you can have the judgment removed. If the court sends a letter verifying the judgment, go through it with a fine-tooth comb, looking for inaccuracies. In case of any incorrect information, file a dispute with the bureaus. Or you contact a professional company to do all the work for you.
Send a dispute letter to both the institution that provided the information, called the information furnisher, as well as the credit reporting company.
Sample Dispute Letter
[Your name]
[Account Number at company, if available]
[Date of birth or other identifying information requested by company]
[Your return address]
[Date]
[Company Name]
[Company address for receipt of direct disputes]
Re: Disputing error[s] on credit report
Dear [Name of company],
I am writing to request a correction of the following information that appears on my [Equifax, Experian, TransUnion] consumer report:
Dispute 1 [These are examples. Pick the ones that apply to your credit report.]
• Account Number or other information to identify account: [Insert account number or other information such as account holder names and past addresses. This is especially important if you have had multiple accounts with the same company.]
• Dates associated with item being disputed: [Insert the date that appears on your report. This helps ensure that the correct account is identified by the company and to identify which aspects of the report are being disputed. You can still file a dispute if you don’t have this date.]
• Explanation of item being disputed: [Insert a detailed explanation of why the information is inaccurate. Choose one of the choices below if it fits, or add your own description.]
o The report shows I currently owe money to your company that I have already repaid. [Give details about when you paid, and attach a copy of any proof that you have.]
o The date of first delinquency on my report is not accurate. [Give details about delinquency status, including payment history.]
o My student loan shows a period of delinquency when I was actually in an income-driven repayment plan. [Provide documentation, including copies of your billing statements.]
o I’m the victim of identity theft and I don’t recognize one or more of the accounts on my report. [You may wish to include a copy of the FTC identity theft affidavit describing the identity theft.]
o Other [Describe what is wrong with the report. You may include copies of any additional supporting documentation that you have.]
Dispute 2 [Continue numbering for each disputed item on your report and include the same information]
[Include the following sentence if you are including a copy of your credit report or other supporting documentation. “I have attached a copy of my report with the accounts in question circled.”]
Thank you for your assistance.
Sincerely,
[Your name]
Letter to Send to Credit Bureaus
[Your complete name]
[Report confirmation number, if available]
[Identifying information requested by company, typically including:
• Date of birth
• Address
• Telephone number]
[Your return address]
[Date]
[Address of credit reporting company, select one of three below]
[Equifax Information Services, LLC
P.O. Box 740256
Atlanta, GA 30374]
[Experian
P.O. Box 4500
Allen, TX 75013]
[TransUnion LLC
Consumer Dispute Center
P.O. Box 2000
Chester, PA 19016]
Dear [Name of credit reporting company: Equifax or Experian or TransUnion],
I am writing to dispute the following information that appears on my [Equifax or Experian or TransUnion] consumer report:
Dispute 1 [The following examples are meant to be helpful, include all disputes that apply]
• Account Number or other information to identify account: [Insert account number or other information, such as account holder names and past addresses. This is especially important if you have had multiple accounts with the same company.]
• Source of dispute information: [Insert the name of the company, such as the bank, that provided the information to the credit reporting company.]
• Type of disputed information: [Insert category of disputed information such as public records information, unknown credit account/tradeline, inquiry, etc.]
• Dates associated with item being disputed: [Insert the date that appears on your report. This helps ensure that the correct account is identified by the company and to identify which aspects of the report are being disputed. You can still file a dispute if you don’t have this date.]
• Explanation of item being disputed: [Insert details about why you think the information is inaccurate. Choose one of the choices below if it fits, or add your own description.]
o My report includes accounts with a reported name that is different than mine.
o I don’t recognize the accounts in question.
o The report shows I owed money to the company that I have already repaid. [Give details about when you paid, and attach a copy of any proof that you have.]
o The current status of my account is not correct. The report shows that I am delinquent but I have made all of my payments on time. [Include account history or other information that shows the on time payments.]
o I’m the victim of identity theft and I don’t recognize one or more of the accounts on my report. [You may wish to include a copy of the FTC identity theft affidavit describing the identity theft.]
o Other [Describe what is wrong with the report and include copies of any additional supporting documentation that you have.]
Dispute 2 [Continue numbering for each disputed item on your report and include the same information.]
[Include the following sentence if you are including a copy of your credit report or other supporting documentation. “I have attached a copy of my report with the accounts in question circled.”]
Thank you for your assistance.
Sincerely,
[Your name]
