Call Kurtis: A Mistake Hurt My Credit Score

ELK GROVE (CBS13) -- An Elk Grove homeowner says he's always paid his mortgage on time, but when he found a late payment reported on his credit report and the bank wouldn't remove it, it was time to Call Kurtis.

Wells Fargo bought Wachovia, the company he had his mortgage through. Now Walley Tran says they made a mistake affecting his credit score.

There's always something that needs to be done at Tran's home.

"A lot of things to fix, being a homeowner," he said.

And he's kept a record of every mortgage payment he's ever made.

So when he found a late payment from almost five years ago on his credit report, he sent Wells Fargo proof he wasn't late — a receipt showing he paid $10,000 to Wachovia, which used to own his loan on time, which covered the monthly payment and more.

But what he got back was a letter saying "we are unable to change the information reported to the credit bureaus."

"They sent me a letter saying it's still my fault," he said. "I don't know why."

The BBB's Gary Almond said Tran should dispute the mistake with the three credit bureaus who have to investigate mistakes.

"If they can't provide information within 90 days, they have to remove it or amend it."

Before going to the credit bureaus, CBS13 decided we'd reach out to Wells Fargo on his behalf.

Tran said Wells Fargo then admitted the mistake, but they couldn't explain to us what happened.

But a company spokesperson told CBS13, "It's all been taken care of at this point.".

"The damage has already been done," Tran said.

He doesn't know when his credit score dropped but learned why it's important to check your credit report more often.

"I'm glad everything is behind, behind me," he said. "I'm glad they fixed everything."

A mistake like this could hurt your credit score, causing higher interest rates with your credit cards or any loan you get.

You have a right to a free credit report from each of the credit bureaus once a year.