How to Dispute an Incorrect Background Check
- 1). Contact the consumer reporting agency that conducted the background check. The company or individual who ordered the background check is required by law to provide you with the name, address and phone number of the consumer reporting agency along with the notification that negative information was obtained. You should contact the consumer reporting agency in writing.
- 2). Ask the consumer reporting agency to provide you with your full background check report. This report will be free if you request it within 60 days of receiving notification that it contained negative information.
- 3). State the precise finding of the background check that you are disputing.
- 4). Provide the consumer reporting agency with your justification for disputing the finding.
- 5). Submit any documents the consumer reporting agency requests to verify the truth of your assertion that a portion of the information supplied in the background check was incorrect. You must provide this documentation, or the consumer reporting agency is allowed to dismiss your dispute for "failure of a consumer to provide sufficient information" under Title 15 U.S. Code Section 1681i.
- 6). Wait until you receive a notice from the agency stating that the error has been resolved in its records. The agency has 30 days from receipt of your claim to complete an investigation. The agency is also required to notify the source of the disputed information within five business days of receiving your claim. If the agency notifies you that its investigation failed to substantiate your claim and it has evidence indicating the information disputed is not incorrect, you can request a reinvestigation.
- 7). Request a reinvestigation from the consumer reporting agency. If the reinvestigation returns results again indicating that the information is indeed correct and can be substantiated, you have the right to have a statement of dispute added to your file.
- 8). Contact the consumer reporting agency and ask for instructions about how to file a statement of dispute. This statement will be included along with your other information any time a company requests your background check from the consumer reporting agency.
