Continued from Part 1 of Recovering From Identity Theft…

1. Construct your letter of dispute, a personalized and professional letter (not some template downloaded from the Internet) for each of the incorrect entries on your credit report and each CRA that you’ll be sending your letter to. In brief, describe your dispute issue in the letter. Do not bother with explanations as to why you are disputing an entry; CRAs will ignore them in favor of their own investigations. Add your credit report, a copy not the original, showing the error highlighted, along with any supporting documentation (copies, not originals) you may have in your possession. In the instance of identity theft, include copies of the police report that you filed and any other documents (copies, not originals) that support your claim that the entry on the report is an error. Order more paper and keep deep breathing!

2. Cover your back and make sure your have proof at every stage of the process by sending your letter using certified mail. By using certified mail you will have a tracking number, essential when you are endeavouring to clear up the mess following identity theft, everything needs to be tracked. Send only copies of documents and retain the originals. Also, track phone calls, paper and all electronic correspondence too. Keep notes in a diary or log about time, dates, content of any conversations and who you spoke to. Keep everything together so you can access it and refer to it easily.

3. Get in touch with all other financial institutions. Once you have initiated the process of dispute for incorrect entries on your credit report, contact all the financial institutions affected in writing, as soon as possible, to inform them of your situation. Write another letter similar to that sent to the CRAs, again include copies of police reports and all other pertinent documentation. [Order more paper; keep deep breathing!

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