Debt Relief - How To Fix Incorrect Credit Card Bills

You have the right to dispute any incorrect or unauthorized charges on your credit card bill

. However, you must follow a formal process to lodge your complaint and seek resolution.

To formally report an error, you must first send a letter to your creditor, outlining your issue. Don't just write an explanation on your statement and mail it back. A formal letter with your name, account number, brief explanation, and dollar amounts involved is required. If you have any supporting documentation, such as receipts, send copies of those as well.

Be sure to send your letter to the address specified for complaints, if there is one. Keep a copy of all materials you send out. You have 60 days from the date of an erroneous bill to dispute the charges.

When making your next payment, you can withhold the portion in dispute, including finance charges. But you must continue to make payments on the portion of your bill not in dispute.

You must receive acknowledgment of your complaint within thirty days, unless corrections are already made. Within ninety days, or two billing cycles (whichever is less), the creditor is required to either resolve your dispute or offer their explanation for not dropping the charges. While your case is pending, automatic payments and finance charges related to the dispute must cease. Payments and finance charges for unrelated purchases are allowed to continue.

Your creditor is not allowed to report the amount in dispute as delinquent to the credit bureau during the investigation period. They also cannot send your account to collections during this time.

The disputed amount can however remain on your monthly billing statements. It can also be applied to your credit limit, decreasing your credit availability. Interest can still accrue on the disputed amount, but the interest must be waived if the dispute is later settled in your favor.

If your complaint is not settled in your favor, you have ten days in which to respond if you are not satisfied Restate your explanation in a second letter sent to your creditor. If your creditor chooses to report your account as delinquent to the credit bureaus as this time, your explanation must accompany the report. They then have to tell you the name and address of anyone they reported the delinquency to.

When the issue is resolved, the creditor must send a notice to everyone to whom it has reported the delinquency. If the creditor fails to comply with any of these measures, it must credit you the disputed amount, plus the interest related to that charge up to $50., even if the bill was correct.

With mistakes happening all the time, don't overlook the importance of reviewing your monthly credit card statements. You can avoid paying inaccurate or unauthorized credit card bills. But you must dispute any such charges within the allocated time and follow recognized procedures. You should never have to pay more than you owe on your credit card bill.

Debt Relief - How To Fix Incorrect Credit Card Bills

By: Mark Andrade

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