How to fix an error on your credit report, for free

You pull your credit report before applying for finance, and there it is: a default you’ve never heard of, an enquiry from a company you didn’t apply to, or an old debt still marked unpaid. Before the stomach drop turns into panic, know this: correcting a genuine error is free, you have clear rights, and the process is simpler than it looks.

What kinds of errors turn up on credit reports?

Mistakes happen for ordinary reasons: data entry slips, mixed-up files for people with similar names, or updates that never got sent. Common ones:

Error	Example
Wrong personal details	Misspelt name, old address, wrong licence number
Default that isn’t yours	Mixed-up identity or a debt belonging to someone else
Default not marked paid	You paid it, but the listing still says overdue
Default listed incorrectly	Amount wrong, or listed without the required notices
Enquiry you didn’t make	An application you never lodged, or a duplicate
Account that isn’t yours	Could be an error, or a sign someone used your identity
Repayment history wrong	A month marked late when you paid on time

The OAIC lists how long information stays: enquiries and defaults five years, repayment history two years, financial hardship information one year and serious credit infringements seven years. Errors in any of these can be corrected.

Step 1: Get both reports

Before you do anything, get your free reports from both main credit reporting bodies, Equifax and Experian. Moneysmart confirms you’re entitled to a free copy every three months. The error might appear on one and not the other, and you’ll want to fix it everywhere.

Checking your own file is a soft check; it doesn’t affect your score or show to lenders. Our guide to checking your credit report shows where to go and how to read each section.

Step 2: Work out who listed it

Each entry on your report shows the organisation that provided or requested the information: a lender, a telco, a utility, or another credit provider. That’s usually who you contact first.

The OAIC says you can ask either the credit provider or the credit reporting body to correct information, and it doesn’t matter which you choose. But it notes that going to the credit provider is often the most efficient way to get a correction made, because they hold the original records.

Step 3: Make a clear, written request

Keep it short and factual. A simple structure:

1. Who you are: full name, date of birth, current address.
2. What’s wrong: the exact entry, as it appears on the report (name of listing organisation, date, amount).
3. Why it’s wrong: one or two sentences. “I have never held an account with you.” “This debt was paid in full on 12 March 2025.”
4. Evidence: receipts, a payment confirmation, correspondence, or a police report number if it’s identity misuse.
5. What you want: “Please correct or remove this listing and confirm in writing.”

Email is fine; keep a copy. If you call, follow up with an email summarising the conversation.

Step 4: Know the 30-day rule

Under the OAIC’s guidance, if the organisation is satisfied the information is incorrect, it must take reasonable steps to correct it within 30 days, or a longer period if you agree to one.

There’s no charge for this. Moneysmart warns that some companies may try to charge you to “repair” your credit, when correcting genuine errors is something you can do yourself for free.

While you wait, carry on with anything else you’re doing. If you’re planning to borrow, you don’t need to put that on hold. You can enquire with us without any credit check, mention the error, and we’ll factor it in.

Step 5: If they say no

Sometimes the organisation decides the information is correct. The OAIC says that if they’re not satisfied it’s incorrect, they must write to you explaining their reasons and let you know you can access an external dispute resolution scheme.

Your options at that point:

• Provide more evidence if you have it.
• Take it to external dispute resolution. For many credit providers this is the Australian Financial Complaints Authority (AFCA), which says its service is free to access and recommends raising the issue with the firm first.
• Lodge a complaint with the OAIC if you’re unhappy with how a credit provider or credit reporting body handled your request.

Stay factual and keep copies of everything. Most genuine errors are fixed well before this stage.

Step 6: Check the fix

Once you’re told it’s corrected, request a new copy of your report to confirm it. The OAIC suggests doing exactly this. If the error appeared on both Equifax and Experian, check both.

What can’t be “fixed”?

It’s worth being clear about this, because it’s where paid “credit repair” services sometimes overpromise. Accurate information generally stays for its full period, even if it’s unwelcome. A default you genuinely owed will stay for five years, but it should show as paid once paid. Enquiries you actually made will stay for five years.

What you can do with accurate negative information is explain it. Lenders consider context. Past credit issues are considered case by case, and a two-line explanation (“Phone contract default during a business downturn in 2023, paid in full in 2024”) is far better than silence. Our page on too many credit enquiries covers how lenders read a busy file.

What if the error is a sign of identity theft?

If you see accounts or enquiries you truly don’t recognise, treat it seriously:

• contact the listing organisation straight away,
• ask the credit reporting bodies about protective options on your file,
• change passwords for your email, banking and government logins,
• report it to the police if your identity has been used,
• keep a record of every contact.

Then keep an eye on your report more often for a while. And be careful with anyone offering loans who asks for ID or banking logins out of the blue; see business loan scams.

Should I wait for the correction before applying for finance?

Not necessarily. If you’re about to apply, it’s worth starting the correction straight away, then carrying on. What matters is that the lender hears about it from you first. A short note such as “There’s a default listed by a utility that I’m disputing; I have the payment receipt” is simple to consider. If the correction lands before the credit check, even better. If you’ve got several things to tidy up at once, our 14-day loan-ready plan puts them in a sensible order.

Illustrative example: the default that wasn’t

Illustrative only; no real person described.

A café owner planning a coffee machine upgrade checks her reports and finds a utility default for an address she moved out of three years earlier. She’d paid the final bill; the payment had been applied to the wrong account. She emails the utility with her payment receipt. The utility agrees, corrects its records and updates the listing. A fresh report a few weeks later shows the default gone, and she enquires about the machine with an accurate file.

A clean file, then a calm conversation

Once your report is accurate, the last thing it needs is a string of new enquiries. Our first step adds nothing to it: the enquiry takes about 60 seconds, there’s no credit check when you first enquire, and your details stay with our lending team instead of being passed to a pile of lenders. A real person calls to explain your options in plain English.

Please tell us on the form if a correction is still in progress, and be accurate about anything else that’s on your file. It means the option we suggest will hold up when a credit check eventually happens.

Enquire with your file untouched →