Posts Tagged ‘Ftc’

The Pros And Cons Of Using A Credit Repair Letter Template

If you are getting bothered by debt collectors or if you have discovered that there is an error on your credit report, then you already feel shaky enough as it is. Perhaps you feel off balance and wonder how these mistakes were made. Under this kind of mind set, you don’t really want to try and learn a new skill, such as trying to write a credit repair letter. Templates of these kinds of letters are available online. But should you use them?

Things To Avoid

If you enter “credit repair letter template” into any search engine, you’ll come up with literally thousands of free templates for you to choose from. Or, should you ditch a template entirely and go with copying the FTC’s recommended credit repair sample letter up on their website?

There are many clues as to what kind of credit repair letter templates or samples to avoid. These are the ones that threaten legal action in words such as, “I’ll sue”. You also don’t want to follow any credit repair letter templates or samples that could in any way be construed as threatening. “You better pay attention to this letter, or else,” is an example of just such a threat, even if you haven’t expressly spelled out what the “or else” means.

You also want to avoid a credit repair letter template that has sentences containing ENTIRTELY CAPITAL LETTERS LIKE THIS. This is not only considered rude, it’s also considered the mark of either an amateur or a scam artist. Letters containing a lot of capitalized words or exclamation points are not taken seriously because they look like they are written by a child.

When Worse Comes To Worse

If this is all very confusing, then you should forget filling in the blanks in a credit repair letter template. Just keep in mind that you need to keep your letter as brief as possible. If you want, it’s all right to say, “Dear So and So: This is a credit repair letter. I want to (whatever you want accomplished).” If you have an accountant, then by all means ask for their advice or for their recommendation of what credit repair letter template to use.

When you are writing your credit repair letter, pretend you are a lawyer. You want to write like a lawyer and not like someone who is angry, upset or frightened. Keep calm, just state the facts and don’t get personal.

Finding A Sample Credit Repair Letter On The Web

You got your credit report and notice there’s a big error. You need to write a credit repair dispute letter to that agency to get any hope of the situation being resolved. Or, perhaps you’re being hounded by debt collectors or even just one person who insists you owe them money. You need to write letters in order to get them off of your back and to back up your case, should it ever go to court. How do you write these important letters? You could go online and check out a sample credit repair letter.

Federal Trade Commission

The FTC offers a lot of free services on their various websites, including free sample credit repair letters. When you look at the sample credit repair letter to a credit bureau, you might wonder if such a short letter is all there is to writing a credit repair letter, but it is. You do need to send it snail mail and not email. You also need to include a copy of the place in the credit report that you are disputing.

It’s best to go with the FTC’s sample credit repair letters because some other sample letters on the web are not written very well and are not good examples to imitate. You never want to threaten legal action to a credit bureau or a bank. That makes you look really guilty in their eyes. As the old saying goes, you can catch a lot more flies with honey than with vinegar.

Other Tips

Other kinds of sample credit repair letters you can find are letters that you write directly to who you owe money to or to the debt collection agency working on their behalf. Did you know that under American law, a debt collector has to stop contacting you once you send a cease and desist letter? An excellent sample cease and desist letter is at About.com.

No matter what kind of sample credit repair letter you are looking for, ignore the example if it threatens legal action. The most you can threaten anyone with is “If you do not stop, I shall be forced to file a complaint with the FTC and my state’s Attorney General’s Office.” Don’t write in all capital letters, too. This is considered rude.

Don’t plead your case that you are innocent of fraud or identity theft, either, even if you are entirely innocent. This makes you look as if you have something to hide. Make a copy of your letter and a copy of any threatening letters from the creditor or collection agency. Keep them all together, just in case your case goes to court.

The Best Credit Repair Letter Samples Are Free

When people are scared and desperate, they will willingly pay for stuff that they should be able to get for free. One of these things is a credit repair letter sample. There are many credit repair do-it-yourself kits for sale that include several credit repair letter samples. If all you need is to know how to write a simple credit report dispute letter or even a cease and desist letter to pesky bill collectors, then you can get those things for free on the Internet.

Short And Sort Of Sweet

The best credit repair letter samples do not make the most scintillating of reading material. They seem like they are completely devoid of emotion, as if they were written by a robot. This is precisely what you need. You don’t need to go into any great detail wit these kinds of important business letters. You need to make your case as quickly as possible and sign off.

A credit report dispute letter is one of the most common kinds of free credit repair letter samples on the Internet. One of the best free credit repair letter sample is given by the American government on the website of the Federal Trade commission (FTC). Although the American government is not usually known for their accuracy and efficiency, this is one exception. There is also a toll-free phone number to call for more information.

Copies Only

Here’s another tip you need to follow when sending off these kinds of letters — make copies. Make copies of the dispute letter, the credit report or bill or any other kind of paperwork that is necessary for your particular circumstance. Never send the originals. You need to keep the originals just in case there is court case. Also, some documents required to clear up an error could be a birth certificate or a Social Security card. You need those in real life. Don’t risk sending them through the mail.

About.com

Other kinds of accurate and free credit repair letter samples are up on About.com, which is considered one of the best places to go to on the web for accurate and brief information. This writer especially recommends the sample cease and desist letter up on the site. When you go to About.com, click on the Business and Finance section, and then click on Credit/Debt Management. Or, you could cheat and just enter “About.com cease and desist letter sample” into your favorite search engine.