Miniscule # of Complaints About Credit Repair in 2012

The Federal Trade Commission[1], who along with the help of the Consumer Finance Protection Bureau, has long been the watchdog of the credit repair industry.  In the past five years, the number of complaints by consumers about unfair dealings with credit repair companies has diminished each year.  In 2012, there were about 2,000,000 complaints across all sectors of business.  There were less than 2,000 complaints against companies engaged in this work, with 999 out of 1,000 related to something other than credit repair work.

In the past, many of the companies who advertise these services have, in their zeal to get their message out there, promised things that are not possible or unlawful.  Guaranteeing that a specific item or a specific type of item can be removed from a consumers reports, charging for their work up front, and suggesting alternative identities are the kinds of practices that have pretty much been stopped by the top firms.

One of the ways this has occurred is that companies like KC Credit Services, who is one of the oldest firms in this field at 22 years and counting, have joined forces with other like-minded companies to create a voluntary oversight organization called the National Association of Credit Services Organizations[2] (NACSO).  Companies who want to do business the right way join this organization and abide by its guidelines and compliance requirements.

NACSO President, Randall Chesnutt, recently said “Credit repair has never been more important for consumers, especially in this economy, where identity theft and errors in credit reporting are rampant.  NACSO has maintained this view and recent Federal Trade Commission reports affirm the same with data.”

Identity theft is the number one complaint by consumers received by the Federal Trade Commission in

2012.  The top offenders across all categories on their list include debt collection agencies, banks and lenders, shop-at-home and catalog sales.

According to Donna Perkins, President of KC Credit Services and Secretary of the current NACSO Board of Directors “identity theft is widespread and growing, so consumers should check their credit reports frequently.  If consumers find they have erroneous, outdated or unverifiable listings on their credit reports, they should act immediately.”

Ms. Perkins continued “mistakes on the credit reports are costing consumers thousands of dollars in higher interest rates on credit cards, car loans and mortgages.”  If you suspect there are errors on your reports, you should contact an experienced credit restoration firm.