Bill Pushback

Bill Pushback / Credit report

A medical bill on your credit report that looks wrong

If a medical collection on your credit report isn't yours, was paid, shows the wrong amount, or is still in dispute, this letter disputes it with the credit bureau that reports it.

[Your name]
[Your mailing address]

[Today's date]

[Credit bureau]
[Dispute address]

Re: Dispute of an item on my credit report.

To the dispute department:

I am writing to dispute an item on my credit report. The following account is inaccurate:

Company reporting it: [Company name]
Account number as shown: [Account number]

[Why it is wrong: not mine, paid, wrong amount, still in dispute with the provider]

Please investigate this item, correct it or remove it, and send me the results of your investigation.

Enclosed: [copies of the documents that support this dispute].

Thank you,

[Your name]

General information, not legal, medical or financial advice. Ask a lawyer before acting on it.

Before you send it

  • Get your credit reports and find every bureau that shows the item. The Consumer Financial Protection Bureau explains how to get your reports and dispute an error on its credit reports and scores page.
  • Send one letter to each bureau that shows it. If it is on two of the three reports, print two letters.
  • Send copies of your proof, never originals, by certified mail, and keep the receipt.

Ask the collector too

If a collection agency reports the debt, you can also ask it to prove the debt with the collections letter.

Questions people ask next

Can medical debt still go on a credit report?

The rules on medical debt in credit reports have changed more than once. Check the CFPB's credit reports page for what applies now, and read your own reports.

Should I dispute with the bureau or the collector?

You can do both: the bureau for what it reports, and the collector for proof that the debt is correct.

What if the debt is mine and the amount is right?

A dispute is for errors. For a correct balance, you can offer to settle for less or ask for a payment plan.

Do I need to send proof?

Send copies of anything that shows the error, such as a receipt, a letter from the provider or an EOB.

Three pages of the Medical Bill Fight Kit: its cover, the order of steps and the first call scripts

For the phone calls

The Medical Bill Fight Kit

A 9-page PDF you print: the order of steps, word-for-word call scripts for the billing office, your insurer, financial assistance and a collection agency, five letters with blanks (the three free ones here, plus a financial assistance request and a payment agreement confirmation) and a call and mail log.

$9 Buy the kit

If the file doesn't work or isn't what this page describes, write to us within 14 days for a full refund.

More guides

Collections

Ask the collector to prove it.

Negotiate the bill

Offer to settle for less.

Payment plan

Ask for monthly payments.