How to handle: a medical collection that should be off under the new bureau rules
Dispute the medical collection under §611 and note the nationwide bureau policy: paid medical collections, those under one year old, and those with an initial balance under $500 should not appear. Demand deletion if it falls in any of those buckets. Flag clearly that this combines a statutory dispute right with a bureau POLICY (not a statute) so the human does not overstate it.
Caution: The $500 / paid / under-one-year removals are voluntary bureau POLICY, not a statute. Cite them as policy, not law.
Deadline: 30-day bureau reinvestigation clock (45 days if you add documents mid-investigation) — 30 days. The bureau's clock starts when it RECEIVES your dispute (send certified mail and keep the receipt to prove the start date). It is 30 days, extended to 45 if you submit additional information during the first 30 (15 U.S.C. 1681i(a)(1)).
The correct letter
FCRA Credit-Report Dispute to the Bureau (§611) — Sent to a credit reporting agency (Equifax, Experian, TransUnion). Disputes an inaccurate item. The bureau must conduct a reasonable reinvestigation and delete or correct unverifiable information, generally within 30 days (15 U.S.C. 1681i(a)).
The statutes it stands on
15 U.S.C. 1681i(a)(1) — On a consumer dispute, a credit reporting agency must conduct a free reasonable reinvestigation within 30 days (45 if the consumer adds relevant information during the period). [read]
15 U.S.C. 1681i(a)(5) — Information found inaccurate, incomplete, or that cannot be verified must be promptly deleted or modified, and may not be reinserted without certified confirmation. [read]
Nationwide CRA medical-debt policy (2022–2023) — By bureau policy (not statute): paid medical collections are removed; unpaid ones are not reported until 1 year old; and medical collections with an initial balance under $500 are removed. Dispute under §1681i if such an item still appears. [read]
15 U.S.C. 1681e(b) — A credit reporting agency must follow reasonable procedures to assure maximum possible accuracy of the information in a consumer report. [read]
Evidence to enclose
Credit report showing the medical collection and its balance/date
Proof of payment if you paid it
Certified-mail receipt
Draft this exact letter from your own facts — cited to the law, with your deadline computed — for one flat fee of $29.00.
This is a clerical document-DRAFTING tool, not legal advice and not a credit-repair service. DisputeForge is not a law firm and does not represent you or guarantee any outcome (no deletion, no score change). You review, sign, and mail the letter yourself. Verify every date against your own dated notice before sending. We charge one flat fee for the drafted document — we never charge a recurring fee for a promise to improve your credit.