What Are Derogatory Public Records On Your Credit Report?

iEditorial Note: These blog posts represent the opinion of DoNotPay’s Writers, but each person’s situation and circumstances vary greatly. As a result, you should make sure to do your own independent research. Because everyone is unique, our self-help tools are never guaranteed to help with any specific situation. DoNotPay is not a law firm and is not licensed to practice law. DoNotPay provides a platform for legal information and self-help.

How to Remove a Derogatory Public Record From Your Credit Report

You know that having a on your credit report stands in the way of improving your credit score. That can give you sleepless nights if you can't access money to buy your dream house, make other investments or get employed.

However, DoNotPay will help you remove the derogatory items, clean your report of any other issues, and increase your score in record time. While you can solve the problem independently, your knowledge of the law may be limited. Thus, you might jump from the frying pan to the fire.

What Is a Derogatory Public Record?

Imagine you were supposed to make a payment on your mortgage or credit card last month, but you failed. Thus, your card company or mortgage partner reports you to a credit bureau, which then makes a negative entry on your credit report.

Alternatively, the bureau finds data from the courts where you filed for bankruptcy or were sued for debt and damages. Such evidence is easily accessible. This damaging information is known as . The severity of the accusations determines what happens to your credit score. It could be lowered or retained without a possibility of improvement.

What Is Considered a Derogatory Public Record?

  • Late payments of whatever kind
  • Bankruptcy
  • Foreclosures
  • Tax liens
  • Civil court judgements

How Do I Find Derogatory Public Records on My Credit Report?

  1. Grab your credit report from AnnualCreditReport.com. It's free. You can also email, call or write to Equifax, Experian or TransUnion.
  2. Check the statements for derogatory marks and ensure that the data matches all the statements. If you notice a mistake, immediately dispute the credit report.

What Should I Look For on My Derogatory Public Record?

  • The type of record found
  • Dates and amount of debt
  • Personal information
  • Information from all your accounts

How to Remove a Derogatory Public Record on Your Own

You need to understand that the presence of derogatory public records or collection means both the courthouse and the bureaus are involved. So, you will deal with the two to clear your name.

  • Bankruptcy

Are you the one that filed for bankruptcy? If yes, you need to go back to court and convince them that you made a mistake. That means you will need an expert to find an error in the process you followed when filing for bankruptcy.

If you didn't do it yourself, you will go to court and ask for a written declaration showing that you did not file for bankruptcy. After resolving issues with the court, send a dispute report to the bureaus.

  • Civil Judgment

When it comes to lawsuits, you will have to convince the system that the judgement was inaccurate. Otherwise, you will have to wait 7 years to remove the derogatory record.

  • Tax Liens

Having tax liens means you did not pay your taxes; therefore, you owe the government. Therefore, either you pay your arrears or fill out IRS form 12277 and ask the IRS to withdraw the lien. You can contact and fill out the form here:

IRS Form 12277Fill Out Form
IRS Phone Assistance(866) 699-4096
Tax Lien FAQsFAQS
Understand Tax LienFederal tax Lien Info

Remove a Derogatory Public Record With Donotpay

All the methods described above will require you to have an in-depth knowledge of the law and lots of time to spare. That can be financially and mentally draining, especially when you don't know the protocol. So, DoNotPay will help you file for a dispute or negotiate friendly deals with your creditors. That will save you time, energy and heartache.

Here's how to use DoNotPay:

  1. Search Clean Credit Report on DoNotPay.

  2. Prepare a recent copy of your credit report that you can use as reference.

  3. Let us guide you through the 4 potential options:
  1. If you've already paid off your debt, we'll help you file a Goodwill Removal Request to get it removed.

  2. If you notice any errors in your report (we have a list of common errors you can use!), we'll help you file a credit dispute to the creditor or major credit bureaus.

  3. If there are no errors, we'll check if you're still eligible to file a debt validation request. If they can't validate your debt, they're required to remove it from your report and they can't collect it!

  4. Lastly, if none of the above options work, we'll help you file a pay-to-delete negotiation letter. You can customize the amount you are willing to pay in exchange for getting the item removed.

What Else Can DoNotPay Do?

In the process of from your credit report, DoNotPay will also help you:

Finally, waiting for 7 to 10 years for a derogatory public record to disappear from your credit report is not easy. No one gets into debt deliberately; that's why DoNotPay is committed to helping you remove the negative items from your statements. .

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