Dear Experian,

We filed for Chapter 13 Bankruptcy in June 2009. The Bankruptcy was never approved or discharged, but was dismissed a few months later. We dealt with all of our creditors individually after that. Does the Chapter 13 stay on our credit report even though it was never approved by the court?

- DLV

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Dear Experian,

I recently filed a dispute to get the status of my federal student loans changed. They were reported as delinquent because of missed payments. However there was a forbearance put on the account, and after the dispute, the status was updated to transferred/closed. Should my score improve with this update?

- CMW

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Dear Experian,

Is it true that if more than one mortgage lender requests my credit report within 30 days, it will show up as only one hard inquiry on my credit report?

- BSL

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Dear Experian,

My daughter is trying to get her first credit card as a college student. They have denied her based on a credit report from you. How can a student that has never had any credit of any kind have a negative credit report?

- RYT

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Dear Experian,

Will a period of unemployment hurt my credit scores?

- JNO

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Dear Experian,

Why was I turned down when I asked to remove my husband’s name from our electric bill and place it in my name instead? The electric company told me to contact Experian to see why there was a “hold.”

- SRH

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Dear Experian,

If a family member were to open college savings accounts in my children’s names, would that appear on a credit report? I’ve had to deal with identity errors with my husband, and I’m concerned that my sister would do this using her address and mess up my kid’s identities.

- CLE

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Dear Experian,

I don’t have any open credit accounts, so how do I inform Experian of my new home address?

- VLK

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Dear Readers,

The threat of identity theft this tax season leaves consumers with more to worry about than whether or not a tax return is in the mail. A thief may use sensitive information, such as a Social Security number, to claim a fraudulent tax refund, open fraudulent credit cards or commit other criminal acts. It is especially important to protect the personal financial information found in your tax returns.

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Dear Experian,

I am married for a second time. Can having my maiden name and two married names negatively affect my credit score? My “middle” score is 780 but I am trying to improve to 800 plus.

- TEV

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Dear Experian,

I am a cosigner and the secondary user on a credit card. I am not the primary user. I want my name removed from the account. I called the credit card company, and they will not remove me. Is there a way to remove my name? The primary user tried also, and they still won’t do it.

- WKN

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Dear Experian,

I have been married for many years and have always had credit with my husband. If I ever need to apply for credit on my own, will I be able to get approved based on the good credit I have had with him?

- EDD

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Tweet   Dear Readers, Everyone would like to make a love connection on Valentine’s Day, and online dating sites can be a great way to meet someone. Unfortunately, online dating services and social communities are prime targets for identity thieves who know how to prey upon the vulnerabilities of those seeking relationships. The Federal Bureau [...]

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Dear Experian,

My husband and I had our bankruptcy discharged in March 2012. We are still getting refusals for any type of credit we have tried to apply for, no matter how small. We have one credit card we have never been late on. It has a limit of only $1,500.00, and we have always paid it off so have not been charged any interest. Our denials all state “due to public record.”

- BDJ

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Dear Experian,

I was put on permanent disability between 2009 and 2010. I remember reading on some of my credit contracts that they would be dissolved in case of permanent disability. How can I go about having them removed from my report?

- KEB

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Dear Experian,

I was shopping for a car recently and multiple lenders checked my credit. I have checked my credit report and all inquiries are showing up. I thought when shopping for a car the inquiries count as one?

- SLA

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Dear Experian,

My wife got her credit report and an address that is not ours showed up. We need it removed along with two school loans that are not ours but may be from our daughter.

- LSH

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Dear Experian,

I went through Chapter 13 bankruptcy. I paid all that I owed, and my Chapter 13 was discharged in March 2012. I requested an item be deleted since the seven years was up, and my request was denied. They said it was because the account was brought current. How can that be?

- GLD

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Dear Experian,

My grandson wants us to cosign for an apartment. Does this affect our credit score in any way or just if he doesn’t pay rent?

- MTP

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Dear Experian,

My apartment complex raised my fees because you reported, “APPLICANT: High Probability SSN Belongs to Another. There is an excellent chance that the Social Security number on the application belongs to someone else. This is highly indicative of fraudulent activity. Carefully verify the identity of the applicant before proceeding.” Does Experian make such claims?

- ATR

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Dear Experian,

On one of my student loan accounts this was posted: “Government Claim/Insurance Claim.” What does that mean?

- RSC

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Dear Experian,

If I’m planning to do a short sale but have not yet gone behind on monthly payments, is there any advantage to not going behind on payments? In other words, does your credit get damaged exponentially in that scenario? If it doesn’t really matter, then wouldn’t it be wiser to just stop payments now and save the money?

- MTS

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Dear Experian,

I have been making monthly payments for a hospital bill. The hospital has stopped all correspondence and continues to cash my checks. They have also reported on my credit report with no reduction in debt updated. The report states collection even though they are accepting payment.

- DLR

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Dear Experian,

How can I get my credit file updated? I have paid off two loans and made every payment on time. However, when I tried to get preapproved for a home loan I was told my credit report was inactive because there has been no change to my report in six months.

- PAT

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Dear Experian,

Why is my old creditor pulling my credit report? I had a car that I could not afford after being laid off. I ended up giving the car back and my account was charged off. I have no open accounts with them, so why are they pulling my credit report one year later?

- CLU

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