Credit Dispute Q & A

Here's a list of common questions asked about credit reporting and how to dispute items concerning student loans on your credit report .

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Q: I have paid off my loan, but it is still showing on my credit report. Why?

A: Education loans will typically remain on your credit history for seven years from the last reported date. The status or reason for loans paid in full include: paid in full by the borrower, claim paid, paid due to consolidation, and paid due to transfer. Example: If your loan was paid in full in March 2005, the final report of paid in full will most likely remain on your credit history until February 2012.


Q: My address changed, and I didn’t receive a bill for several months. I brought the account current when I realized what happened. Can you clear the delinquency that was reported?

A: No, we are unable to remove anything that was reported accurately on your credit. In this case, you are still responsible for any monthly payments on your student loan even if you do not receive a bill. Sometimes, deferment or forbearance can clear delinquency from credit (see next question), but those situations require you to meet specific qualifying criteria. If your address changes, please notify Edfinancial Services as soon as possible to ensure you continue to receive your monthly statements. To notify Edfinancial Services of an address update, submit a request on our website, or contact one of our customer service specialists by phone. Click here to access our contact information.


Q: I had a deferment/forbearance placed on my loan and I am still showing as delinquent for those months that it covered. Why?

A: Deferments and forbearances can allow you to bring your account current without making a payment to do so, but they do not always clear up negative credit reporting that already occurred. Certain eligible deferment periods, such as an in-school deferment, will clear any previous negative reporting if the qualifying deferment period occurred at the same time as the negative reporting period. Forbearances, even if applied retroactively, rarely clear prior negative reporting.


Q: My spouse and I are divorced, and I am no longer required to make payments toward the student loan even though it still includes my name. Will this loan affect my credit if my former spouse doesn’t make his/her payments?

A: Both parties are liable for the loan even if the court declares one party to be solely liable. If your former spouse doesn’t make payments, the delinquency will be reported on your credit history as well as your former spouse’s credit history. Also, any person who is an endorser on a loan is liable and could have negative reporting due to delinquency on an account.


Q: I only have one account with Edfinancial Services, but there are multiple loans showing on my credit report. Why?

A: Although you only have one account with us, each loan that you take out has its own tradeline that is reported to the credit bureaus. (Each loan is called a tradeline in credit reporting.) Also, Stafford Loans may be split depending on subsidy and will report as two separate loans if you have both subsidized and unsubsidized Stafford Loans. Depending on the number of years that you were in school, you may see several loans that will each display separately on your credit report.


Q: What if this information really does not belong on my credit report?

A: If you have researched and discovered that this information truly does not belong on your credit report, you can contact the three credit bureaus either online or by calling their toll-free numbers to dispute the information. The process can take up to two months to be completed, but the incorrect items should be removed from your credit history. Click the name of a credit bureau for more information about credit disputes:

Transunion
Experian
Equifax


Q: My loan defaulted, but I made payment arrangements with the guarantor to get it out of default. Now it is showing up three times on my credit report. Why?

A: Each loan is considered a tradeline to the credit reporting agencies when it is originated. After the loan defaults, it is transferred to the guarantor for reporting, which creates a new tradeline. Once the loan is rehabilitated and taken out of default, the loan returns to Edfinancial Services and establishes a third tradeline for current reporting. You now have three separate tradelines for one loan: the original loan reporting, the guarantor reporting, and the new reporting after rehabilitation.


Q: I have heard that if I continue to dispute the information on my credit that the items will eventually be removed. Is this true?

A: No, this is not true. If the information reported on your credit history is inaccurate, it will be updated with the first dispute that you file. Data furnishers are required to report the account information accurately and in an unbiased manner.