Georgia consumers who are working on improving their credit scores should regularly check their credit reports and know how to read them. When looking over your credit reports, you’ll see that each account listed is marked with certain letters. Some of these letters are ECOA codes. ECOA stands for “Equal Credit Opportunity Act,” and ECOA codes indicate your relationship to a particular account. It’s important to know what ECOA codes stand for because it’s possible for these codes to be wrong. If an incorrect ECOA code is assigned to an account on your credit report, this is an error that can and should be disputed. Finding credit report errors and having them removed is, after all, the fastest way for Georgia consumers to improve their credit scores.
Interpreting the ECOA Codes on Your Credit Reports
If you find all of those letters and abbreviations on your credit reports confusing, you’re not alone. One of the reasons why more consumers don’t check their credit reports is because they can be difficult to interpret. However, with the right resources on hand, Georgia consumers who are concerned about their credit can decipher all of the information in their credit reports and see what a lender might see.
Here’s a brief rundown of ECOA codes:
A – Authorized User
This letter indicates that you are authorized to use the account indicated, but are under no contractual responsibility for the account. Still, your positive or negative activity will have an impact on both your credit score and that of the primary account holder.
I – Individual Account
An account marked with a letter “I” is your account and yours alone. No one else is authorized to use the account, and you are the only person responsible for managing the account.
J – Joint Account
Only married couples have accounts marked with a “J” on their credit reports because you can only share a joint account with a spouse. Both you and your husband/wife are contractually liable for joint accounts.
M – Maker
On accounts marked with an “M,” you are responsible along with a co-signer who is not your spouse. This cosigner has agreed to assume joint liability for the account.
P – Participating Account
This letter indicates an account is technically a joint account, but contractual liability is not determined.
S – Signer
For accounts marked with “S,” you are the cosigner, but the primary borrower is not a spouse. Also, you are liable for the account if the primary borrower defaults.
T – Terminated
A “T” beside joint or cosigned account means that your association with an account is no longer valid. Therefore, you are no longer responsible or liable.
U – Undesignated
Accounts marked “U” indicate that the primary owner is unknown.
X – Deceased
On a credit report, the letter “X” indicates the death of the report owner. Obviously, this is a mistake.
One of the best ways to ensure accuracy on your credit reports is to verify properly designated accounts. If you see that any of them are not, or if you find credit report errors of any type, you can get a FREE credit repair lawyer to have them removed. Georgia consumers are working hard to improve their credit scores, and at Credit Repair Lawyers of America, we want to do everything we can to help.
The Free and Legal way to Get Better Credit
Don’t let errors on your credit reports bring your credit score down. At Credit Repair Lawyers of America, we’ve been cleaning up credit reports for consumers since 2008 for free. How do we do it? All of our fees come from the defendants in settled cases. This is why our clients pay nothing for the work we do.
Let’s start the conversation about what we can do for your credit. Set up your free consultation today by calling Attorney Gary Nitzkin at (404)591-6680 or sending him a message through our contact page.
