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Credit Report Information
The Bankruptcy Court has no jurisdiction over credit reporting agencies. The Fair Credit Reporting Act, 6 U.S.C. Section 605, is the law that controls credit reporting agencies. The law states that credit reporting agencies may not report a bankruptcy case on a person's credit report after ten years from the date the bankruptcy case is filed. Other bad credit information is removed after seven years. The larger credit reporting agencies belong to an organization called the Associated Credit Bureaus. The policy of the Associated Credit Bureaus is to remove chapter 11 and chapter 13 cases from the credit report after seven years to encourage debtors to file under these chapters.
You may contact the Federal Trade Commission, Bureau of Consumer Protection (external link) in Washington, D.C. by calling (202) 326-2222. This office can provide further information on reestablishing credit and addressing credit problems. For information on credit practices, contact the Division of Financial Practices at (202) 326-3224.