You can remove a charge off by disputing it. This has to be done directly with the credit bureaus.

A dispute is the consumers' method to challenge the accuracy or validity of a negative mark. There are two methods to dispute a charge off.

1. Write a dispute letter

You can do this yourself. In the letter you must give a reason as to why the charge off is inaccurate such as; not my account, item is out of date, account is closed.

Upon receipt of your valid credit repair letter the bureaus will hold and investigation into the listing. They will contact the lender and verify that the account did exist and the amount's and dates are correct.

Free Credit Repair Letter

2. Hire a professional credit repair company

If you choose this method you will only have to tell the service which items you want to dispute and they will handle the rest. I suggest a service if you have multiple negative marks.

Most firms have credit attorneys on their payroll. This can make all the difference when it comes to a negative mark being removed from your credit.

Credit lawyers will have an expert understanding of credit laws. They can often use these laws and other case precedents to help remove a negative listing from your credit.

In addition credit repair firms are able to use advanced dispute techniques to remove stubborn negative marks. These techniques include; debt validation, escalated dispute information requests and creditor direct intervention.

Charge offs will occur to an unsecured credit card after 6 months of delinquency. This mark will be reported on your credit report for 7 years unless you take steps to remove it.

The lender will "charge off" your account. This means they will have a tax write off. Your account will then be sold to a collection agency and they will be able to create a negative mark on your credit if they are unable to collect payment.

If the agency is unable to collect they will make a negative mark on your credit report and then sell your debt to another collection agency. The process will then repeat, as you can see one delinquent account can become multiple negative marks on your credit. The number of times your debt is sold depends upon the size of the debt.

In sum, a charge off on your credit report will negatively impact your score. However you do not have to live with it for 7 years. You can dispute it and have it removed.

For more credit repair tips or to read an article about credit repair services visit us.