How To Deal With Negative Items on Your Credit Report

What Are Negative Items on a Credit Report?

Your credit report is a history of all your credit accounts. 

💡 A negative item on your credit report is any record that suggests you didn’t pay a debt as agreed.

The most common negative credit report items are:

• Missed payments

• Late payments

• Accounts in default or collections

• Repossessions

• Foreclosures

• Bankruptcy

• Hard credit inquires (also called hard credit checks or pulls)

Why Do Negative Credit Report Items Matter?

Having negative items on your credit report can drag down your credit score. They also signal to future lenders that you might be a risky borrower. 

If you have a lot of negative items on your report, you may be denied for certain credit cards or loans. 

If you are approved, you’re more likely to face high interest rates or additional requirements like an annual fee on a credit card or a larger down payment or deposit on a loan.

How Long Do Negative Items Stay on Your Credit Report?

📅 Most negative information stays on your credit report for seven years. 

Some things, like a Chapter 7 bankruptcy, can remain for up to 10 years. Hard credit checks (called hard inquiries) have a much shorter life of two years.

Here’s a quick breakdown of how long common negative items can stay on your credit report:

✨ Here’s some good news, though: As negative items get older, they tend to have less impact on your credit score. 

That’s because most credit scoring models give more weight to your recent payment history and activity. 

So, not all hope is lost even if you have some bad marks on your credit! Your current and future financial choices can still help positively shape your score.

Where Do These Time Limits Come From?

These time limits come from the Fair Credit Reporting Act (FCRA).

⏳ The FCRA is a federal law that controls what credit bureaus can report about you and for how long. 

Credit reporting agencies are legally required to remove most negative items once they reach their time limit, but they’re also required to report accurate information. 

That means if a negative item is true, like a missed payment or collection account, it usually has to stay on your report until the time limit runs out. Some creditors make exceptions for one-off missed or late payments. 

👀 The FCRA also gives you the right to access your credit report for free and dispute any errors you find. We’ll go over how to do that soon. 

How Bankruptcy Can Actually Help You Improve Your Credit Score

Under the FCRA, a Chapter 7 bankruptcy can stay on your credit report for up to 10 years, while a Chapter 13 bankruptcy typically stays on for seven years.

That might sound discouraging, but here’s the good news: Your credit is not ruined forever. As time passes, the bankruptcy will affect your score less and less. This is especially true if you start building strong credit habits after your case is closed.

📈 In fact, many people find that their credit improves faster after filing bankruptcy. That’s because they’re no longer juggling debts they can’t afford and no longer dealing with late payments, defaults, or charge-offs — all of which can hurt their credit. 

Once you’ve cleared those debts through bankruptcy, it becomes much easier to stay current on new bills and rebuild your credit over time.

Even with a bankruptcy on your report, you may still qualify for credit cards, car loans, or even a mortgage down the line — often much sooner than you might think. 

🔑 The key is to focus on small, steady wins: Pay all your bills on time, keep balances low, and check your credit reports regularly for errors.

Bottom line: You may not be able to erase the bankruptcy early, but you can absolutely move forward and rebuild a strong credit profile. Many people do — and you can, too.

Can Negative Items Be Removed Sooner?

Sometimes! 

Here’s how it works: If there’s inaccurate information on your credit report, you can dispute the error. The credit bureau has to investigate and remove the item if they confirm it's inaccurate.

If the information is accurate, it’s harder to get it removed because of the FCRA. Some people have success by writing a goodwill letter or pay-for-delete letter. You’re more likely to be successful if the negative item was a one-time thing.

Here’s more information on each of these strategies.

How To Dispute Inaccurate Information

Mistakes on credit reports are more common than you might think. If an account is listed as late when it wasn’t, or a debt is showing up that doesn’t belong to you, you can file a dispute with the credit bureau reporting the error. 

Many people choose to send a written dispute letter by certified mail so they have proof the credit bureau received it. Upsolve provides a free dispute letter template.

🗓️ The credit bureau then has 30 days to investigate (or up to 45 days if you provide more information during the process).

📌 It helps to include copies of any documents that support your case, like payment confirmations or account statements.

Goodwill Letters

If the negative mark is accurate — like a missed payment you’ve since paid — some people try writing a goodwill letter to the lender. 

This is basically a polite request asking them to remove the item from your credit report as a gesture of understanding. 

✉️ In your letter, you can briefly explain the situation that led to the missed payment and highlight your recent positive payment history. 

There’s no guarantee it’ll work, but some lenders are willing to help if the account is now in good standing.

Pay-for-Delete Agreements

In some cases, people try to negotiate with a collection agency to have a negative item removed in exchange for payment. This is called a pay-for-delete letter. 

It’s important to know that credit bureaus discourage this practice, and many collection agencies won’t agree to it. That said, some people have had success with this approach, especially when dealing with smaller or less formal collectors. 

✍️ If you’re considering this, just be sure to get any agreement in writing before you pay.

How To Dispute a Negative Item on Your Credit Report

As mentioned, if you see something on your credit report that doesn’t look right — like a payment marked late when it wasn’t or an account that doesn’t belong to you — you have the right to dispute it. The credit bureau that’s reporting the error is required by law to investigate your claim.

You can file a dispute in three ways:

📲 By phone

📩 By mail

💻 Online with the credit bureau(s) reporting the error

While filing a dispute online might be the most convenient option, sending your dispute by mail gives you a clear paper trail. If you use certified mail with a return receipt, you’ll have proof of when the credit bureau received it. This helps track the 30-day deadline they have to complete their investigation.

Here’s a basic outline of how the dispute process works:

Write a Dispute Letter

✍️ In your letter, explain what’s wrong and why you believe the information is incorrect. Include your name, address, and any account numbers related to the error.

Upsolve has a complete guide to writing a credit dispute letter (also called a 609 letter), which includes a free letter template.

Include Supporting Documents

If you have proof or supporting evidence, include copies of it with your letter. This could be bank statements, payment confirmations, or letters from the creditor.

✋ Don’t send the originals. You’ll want to keep those for your records.

Send It to the Right Credit Bureau

You only need to contact the bureau that’s reporting the error. If more than one bureau is showing the same mistake, you’ll need to send separate letters to each one.

As a reminder, there are three major credit bureaus: Equifax, Experian, and TransUnion. Each compiles information and creates a unique credit report, so you have more than one credit report!

Use Certified Mail

Many people choose to send their dispute letter by certified mail with a return receipt. This gives you proof that the bureau got your letter and helps track your timeline.

Once the credit bureau receives your dispute, they generally have 30 days to investigate and respond. If you send additional documents during that time, the investigation may take up to 45 days.

If the bureau agrees the item is incorrect, they’ll remove or correct it on your credit report. If they don’t, they must explain why — and you can request that a short statement explaining your dispute be added to your report.

Mailing Addresses for the Major Credit Bureaus

Here’s where you can send your dispute:

📍 Experian

P.O. Box 4500

Allen, TX 75013

📍 TransUnion

Consumer Solutions

P.O. Box 2000

Chester, PA 19016-2000

📍 Equifax

Information Services LLC

P.O. Box 740256

Atlanta, GA 30374-0256

How (and Why) To Monitor Your Credit Reports

Once you’ve taken steps to fix or clean up your credit report, it’s important to keep an eye on it moving forward. Monitoring your credit can help you catch mistakes early, track your progress, and spot signs of identity theft before they spiral into bigger problems.

🌐 You can check your credit reports for free every week at AnnualCreditReport.com. This includes full access to your reports from all three major credit bureaus: Equifax, Experian, and TransUnion. It’s one of the easiest (and most important) tools for protecting your credit.

If you spot something suspicious — like a new account you didn’t open — it could be a sign of identity theft. If that happens, report the error and consider placing a fraud alert on your credit reports and reporting the issue to the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) at IdentityTheft.gov.

Keeping tabs on your credit helps you protect your progress, catch errors before they cause damage, and build a stronger financial future — one step at a time.

📌 Tip: If you're looking for extra protection, especially against identity theft, one low-cost option to consider is a credit freeze. Freezing your credit is completely free and blocks new lenders from accessing your credit report, which helps prevent someone from opening accounts in your name without permission. You can unfreeze your credit anytime if you need to apply for something.

Will Your Credit Score Go Up When Negative Items Fall Off?

Often, yes, especially if the item had a big impact, like a collection action or bankruptcy. 

But credit scores are based on your whole report, so your score might only improve a little unless you’re also building positive credit (like making on-time payments and keeping balances low).

Frequently Asked Questions About Fixing Negative Items on Your Credit Report

Here are answers to some of the most common questions people have about removing negative items, understanding what affects their credit score, and taking steps to rebuild.