The first thing you should look out for when in need of good credit repair services is the affiliations of the business you are considering. All ethical credit repair businesses will be happy to provide you with their references on request. Here are a few tips to keep in mind in order to steer clear of dishonest credit repair companies.

1. Check to see that the company is a member of the Ethical Credit Repair Alliance (ECRA) or a like-minded regulatory body. It’s often suggested to choose businesses who are members of the BBB (Better Business Bureau) When considering. those agencies that belong to the ECRA are always a good choice.

This organization holds its members to very high ethical standards and any business that gets their approval will give you their best services. All credit repair companies who are members of the ECRA must maintain high standards of ethics in dealing with their clients. As a result this means protection for you from being “taken” by a predatory scammer.

2. Learn a bit about what credit repair is before looking for assistance. Most of those who end up being scammed when hiring help with their credit, have no prior knowledge of what credit repair is all about. Make sure you understand what these services can do for you and what they cannot do.

Only if you know the difference, can you distinguish those companies in which you can place your trust. For example, no one can remove negative remarks entered on your credit report if these can be verified. There are numerous credit repair companies claiming they can completely clean your credit report in as little as a month. Think carefully; is this legally possible? If the answer is negative you would be well advice to run the other way.

3. Never accept unsolicited offers by e-mail. At a time when you find yourself in financial desperation, don’t think for a moment that it’s good fortune that sent you such an e-mail. Such e-mails are sent out by unscrupulous agencies who use unethical means to gather e-mail addresses, and send spam to millions in the hope that they will “catch” a person desperate for help whom they can milk dry!

Don’t be taken in by such tricks. In 99.9 percent of cases these are scammers searching for unsuspecting victims. Trustworthy credit repair professionals will make contact with you through various media only if you have opted in to receive them.

4. Creating a “new identity” is illegal. People are far too eager to believe in this fallacy, mainly because it would seem to solve all their problems. This idea is so widely accepted due to a general ignorance regarding credit repair. This illegal practice is called “File segregation” and will get you in deep trouble with the law!

Your credit score is a reflection of your payment history from the onset of adulthood until the present. So acquiring a “new” history is an impossibility. And if you should do that, would you think it possible that doing so could be legal? So it’s glaringly obvious that the credit repair companies that offer you such a way out of your problems are fraudulent.

5. If an agency wants full payment prior to rendering any services, look out! The Credit Repair Organizations Act (CROA) stipulates that you need to have a detailed written contract from the agency beforehand and the payment is to be after services have been completed. You also have three days time to cancel the contract if you find it unsuitable.

There are companies who do charge an upfront fee for an initial consultation, then continue to charge by the month as they follow up every month with the credit bureaus to improve your credit. But if an agency insist on full payment upfront, the odds are they are doing this because they are keenly aware you will refuse to pay once you become aware that they cannot do what they have promised they would. Companies such as these are ripoffs and you must not deal with them!

6. Credit repair won’t happen overnight. As stated previously, no reputable organization is able to fix credit in a short time or change your credit history entered on the credit report if it can be verified.

In a best case scenario, less serious issues can be fixed within two or three months, by removal of mistakes, and by improving the way you handle your finances and overall payment of bills and loans. More serious negative trade lines like leans and foreclosures remain on your report for 7 years (bankruptcies for 10), notwithstanding the best management of your finances. Bankruptcies cannot be removed for ten years. Do not believe any guarantees of overnight removal.

7. No contract, no pay! Always insist on a written contract; this is your rights under the law. Dishonest agencies would prefer there’s no contract, and if a contract is given, important information will be missing on aspects of the services, the fees charged, and the like. You will learn a lot about these businesses based on the nature of their contract. And if there is no contract.

8. No reputable agency will make guarantees! Not even the most experienced organization will make guarantees in regard to results of their credit services. They may reasonably promise that all legal procedures will be used to improve your credit. But to guarantee results is a different matter entirely.

Unfortunately human nature being what is, people believe what they want to hear and prefer to hire a company who tells them as much, rather than hire a company who is telling the truth. Avoid falling prey to this trap! Even though promises of results are more appealing, credit repair companies that offer guaranteed results are fraudulent.

9. Look for counseling services. Many quality credit repair companies will offer free counseling services.

If the business being considered does not offer counseling services, look a bit beyond. It might not be a trustworthy agency. Trustworthy agencies encourage their clients to become knowledgeable in regard to credit repair. The company performs those services that are for those matters that require professional expertise to effect the best results.

10. Bad advice? Beware! There are companies who will advise you to dispute every derogatory trade line on your credit report claiming “this is not mine..” Even though in the short term the credit score may improve, the creditors whose entries had been disputed may later counter it, and at a later time the credit bureaus will verify it.

Because the credit bureaus do a very bad job of keeping accurate records, there is a very high probability that there are inaccuracies on your credit report. But credit repair companies that have you proclaim “this is not my account” if this is not truthful, are not worthy of your trust.

As you can see, there are plenty of warning signs to alert you to possible fraud. Before anything else, before you hire credit repair companies is to be informed in regard to credit repair, and terms like “credit score” and “credit report”. In addition you need to educate yourself regarding laws pertaining to credit repair before you go for any type of credit repair help. A good beginning is to visit the FTC Bureau of Consumer Protection website and the Ethical Credit Repair Alliance.