How to Report a Chapter 13 on a Credit Report After Discharge
- 1). First check your credit score. You can request copies of your credit report from the three credit reporting agencies (CRAs) once a year without charge. You can also go through a third-party provider that will get all of them for you at once and provide you with ongoing monitoring. It's important you request all three as each affects your credit and each can be different. You'll probably want to wait at least 30 days until after your bankruptcy discharge has been filed for the information to appear on your credit reports.
- 2). Look for errors. Once you receive your credit reports, go over them carefully, keeping special attention to any items that were included in the bankruptcy. These should be so reflected in the credit report. Also pay attention to any items that are claimed to be a part of the bankruptcy discharge but were not.
- 3). Dispute the mistakes. If you find any inaccurately reported items, you need to challenge them immediately. Write the CRA and provide it with your information and along with evidence that the item was or was not included in the bankruptcy discharge. Always do this in writing, not just over the phone. You will also want to contact the creditor who's item is in error and inform it of the error.
- 4). Follow up. Once you've notified the CRA of the error, it will investigate and either change the item or not. If it does not, you can demand to have a consumer statement included in your credit report. This is a statement of 100 words or fewer in which you indicate your dispute and reasons for it. You can also file a complaint with the Federal Trade Commission.