A Guide to Fixing Credit Report Errors

Credit Report Errors: Key Time Limits and Costs

These are the limits and costs that matter most when you dispute an entry on your credit file.

What Counts as a Credit Report Error?

A credit report error is any entry that is wrong, out of date or belongs to someone else.

Common Examples of Credit Report Errors

Typical examples include:

• A misspelt name, a wrong date of birth or an old address.
• A late or missed payment that you did not miss.
• An account that is not yours, such as one created through a mix-up with someone who has a similar name.
• A closed account that still shows as open, or the same account listed twice.
• A financial link to a former partner or housemate that should have gone.
• A debt you have paid that still shows as owing.

Our guide to what information is on a credit report shows what each section means. Our guides on how to find out if you have a default and how to find out if you have a CCJ can help.

Why Your Three Reports May Differ

Not every difference between reports is a mistake. Lenders choose which agencies they report to, so your three files can vary.

The FCA found that the three large agencies held consistent default counts for only around 30% of matched individuals. That finding comes from its Credit Information Market Study final report (December 2023). Compare the facts on each file: names, addresses, accounts and payment histories.

How Credit Report Errors Affect a Mortgage Application

A wrong entry can lower the amount a lender offers, push you towards a specialist lender or lead to a refusal. Lenders look closely at your file because it shows how you have handled credit.

For example, say you apply for a £500,000 mortgage and your file shows a missed payment from last year that you did not miss. A lender may treat that as adverse credit. The same application with a clean file might have gone to a mainstream lender.

A refusal costs more than time.

Each full mortgage application leaves a search on your file, so fixing the error first can save a second attempt. Some lenders also run a final credit check before completion. Read what lenders want to see on your credit report to see which entries matter most.

Getting Your Credit Report From All Three Agencies

You can get your credit report from Experian, Equifax and TransUnion, and the statutory version is free.

How to Request Your Report

The Information Commissioner’s Office (ICO) says you can ask verbally or in writing, and agencies usually have an online form. Unless they need more information from you, they have one month to respond. In certain circumstances they can take up to two extra months, but they must tell you why within the first month.

Awareness is low. The FCA’s final market study report of December 2023 found that 43% of consumers did not know they could request a free statutory credit report.

Start with our guide to the free statutory credit report. If you want to check more often, some paid credit report services show all three files in one place. Check the monthly cost before you start a free trial.

Do You Need All Three Reports?

Day to day, one report may cover every account, so ask your lenders which agencies they report to. Before a mortgage application, check all three, because lenders choose their own agencies. Our page on the credit reference agency explains how they differ.

What to Check on Each Report

When you have your reports, check these items in order:

1. Your personal details, including name spelling and every address.
2. The balance, status and payment history of each account.
3. Defaults, court judgments and any account you do not recognise.
4. Financial links to other people.
5. Searches by companies you have not dealt with.

How to Dispute a Credit Report Error Step by Step

To dispute a credit report error, collect your evidence, tell the agency in writing what is wrong and contact the lender that supplied the data. Keep a record of every call and letter.

Step 1: Collect Your Evidence

Gather bank statements, letters from lenders, settlement letters or court papers. Send copies, never originals. Note the exact entry you are disputing, including the lender’s name and the account details.

Step 2: Tell the Agency What Is Wrong

Each agency has an online process for disputes, and you can write to them instead. Say which entry is wrong, why, and whether you want it removed or amended. Under section 159 of the Consumer Credit Act 1974, the agency has 28 days to reply. It must say whether it has removed the entry, amended it or taken no action.

Step 3: Contact the Lender Too

The ICO says the company named on an entry is usually responsible for it. The agency cannot amend that data without the company’s permission. Each agency gives lenders the tools to change their own entries. A lender that agrees can correct its own entry.

Step 4: Keep Records and Chase

Delays are common. In the FCA’s Financial Lives 2024 survey, 35% of adults who raised a query or dispute with an agency heard back within one month. Another 27% waited more than three months. The findings appear in the FCA’s February 2026 consultation paper CP26/7.

Diary the 28-day date and chase in writing if it passes. The FCA has also proposed that lenders must answer an agency’s investigation within 14 days. That consultation has closed, and the FCA is still considering responses at the time of writing.

Timing is the hard part if you are buying a home.

The 28 days run from the day the agency receives your notice, and a fix that needs the lender’s input can take longer. A purchase with a deadline may not wait for a correction that is still in progress. If you are close to applying, ask a broker early which lenders would still consider you with the entry on your file.

What Is a Notice of Correction and How Do You Add One?

A notice of correction is a statement of up to 200 words. You add it to an entry on your credit file to give your side of the story.

The right comes from section 159 of the Consumer Credit Act 1974.

When to Use a Notice of Correction

Use one when the agency has taken no action and the lender will not change the entry.

Typical cases include a debt on an account linked to an ex-partner, or a default you are still disputing. The notice sits next to the entry on your credit file. Anyone who looks at that entry will see it, and the ICO says they should take it into account when you apply for credit.

A notice of correction does not remove the entry. It adds your explanation. Before a mortgage application, a broker can point the lender to your notice and explain it, so speak to one early.

Notice of Correction Time Limits

The timings are strict:

1. You have 28 days after the agency’s reply to ask for a notice of correction. If the agency never replied, the 28 days start when its own reply period ends.
2. The agency then has 28 days to confirm that it will add your notice.
3. If it does not confirm in time, you can apply to the data protection regulator (the ICO) and pay a fee. If the agency thinks your notice is unsuitable, it can make that application instead.

What If the Agency or Lender Will Not Correct the Error?

If you can show the entry is wrong and neither the agency nor the lender will fix it, you can complain to the ICO. It expects you to have contacted both first.

The ICO deals with the accuracy of data. It does not settle financial disputes.

If the real argument is whether you owe the money, you will need to settle that with the lender first. The ICO says it needs evidence, such as written confirmation from the company or a ruling from a regulator or court.

You can also make a formal complaint to the lender. If you are unhappy with its final answer, you may be able to take it to the Financial Ombudsman Service. Ask the lender for its complaints process in writing.

Identity Theft and Accounts That Are Not Yours

If an account on your file is not yours, treat it as possible fraud until you know otherwise. The ICO says most of these cases are a mix-up between people with the same name at the same address, but some are fraud.

How Common Identity Fraud Is

Cifas members recorded more than 444,000 cases to the National Fraud Database in 2025, according to Fraudscape 2026. The same report shows that over 242,000 of them (54%) were identity fraud. In the first six months of 2026, Cifas recorded more than 220,000 cases, according to its six-month update. Identity fraud made up 59% of them, the update says.

What to Do If Someone Used Your Details

If you think someone used your details:

• Tell the lender and the agency, and ask them to investigate.
• Report the crime to Report Fraud if you live in England, Wales or Northern Ireland. In Scotland, call Police Scotland on 101.
• Tell one agency that you are a victim of fraud. The ICO says each agency has a victim of fraud team, and they share this information with each other.
• Consider Cifas Protective Registration. It costs £30 for two years at the time of writing (October 2026). It adds a warning flag to your details and does not affect your credit score. Genuine applications can take slightly longer while lenders check your identity.

Financial Links and Linked Addresses

A financial link joins your file to another person’s, and lenders may then consider their credit history as well as yours.

A joint account can create one, and it can stay after a split.

The ICO says agencies are responsible for financial links, linked addresses and aliases, so you can ask them to investigate directly. Our guide explains how to remove financial associations from your credit report after a split or a move out of shared housing.

How to Stop Credit Report Errors Coming Back

A little routine work keeps your file clean:

• Check all three reports regularly, for example twice a year, and before you plan a mortgage application.
• Tell your lenders and the agencies when you move house or change your name.
• Check your electoral roll details, because they appear on your file.
• Keep written proof when you settle or close an account.
• Review your credit score if it changes without a clear reason.

Our guide to your credit report covers each of these in more detail.

When Should You Speak to a Mortgage Broker?

Speak to a broker well before you apply if you have an open error, a disputed default or a notice of correction on your file. A broker who reviews your file first can spot problems early and tell you which entries a lender is likely to question.

A broker can also tell you whether to apply while corrections are in progress or wait until everything is sorted. Read our guide to applying for a mortgage to see what to expect.

Respect Mortgages is not a broker and cannot give advice. If you plan to apply for a mortgage soon, contact a mortgage broker through us and we will introduce you to an independent, whole-of-market broker. They can review your credit report with a lender’s eye and help you deal with any issues before they affect your application.