3 ways to remove a closed account from your credit report

The information provided on this website does not, and is not intended to, act as legal, financial or credit advice. See Lexington Law’s editorial disclosure for more information.

You can remove closed accounts from your credit report in three main ways: dispute any inaccuracies, write a formal “goodwill letter” requesting removal or simply wait for the closed accounts to be removed over time. That said, removing closed accounts can affect your credit score, so make sure you consider your situation first.

While it’s not always possible to remove a closed account from your credit report, it is straightforward to attempt to do so. However, it’s not always beneficial to remove closed accounts, and in some cases, it could even lower your credit score.

In general, you should try to remove a closed account with inaccurate negative information, but you should probably leave any accounts that are yours that are having a positive effect on your credit history.

Below, we’ll talk about whether you should try to remove closed accounts from your credit report, how closed accounts may affect your credit score and how to remove closed accounts.

Should you remove closed accounts from your credit report?

You should attempt to remove closed accounts that contain inaccurate information or negative items that are eligible for removal. Otherwise, there is generally no need to remove closed accounts from your credit report. Inaccurate information could be pulling down your credit score and should be addressed, but older accounts with a good history may be helping your score.

Even after closing an account—like a personal loan or credit card—the information related to your balances and payment history stays on your credit report for many years. In fact, both accounts closed in good standing and negative items or collection accounts may remain on your credit report for seven to 10 years.

Deciding whether to try to remove a closed account ultimately comes down to understanding the factors that affect your credit score.

Your credit score is calculated based on five main factors: payment history (35 percent), credit utilization (30 percent), length of credit history (15 percent), different types of credit (10 percent) and new credit (10 percent).

Because a credit report includes both open and closed accounts, some of these credit factors can be affected by a closed account being removed from your report. For example, if you made payments on a personal loan for a number of years and that account is removed from your report, your length of credit history could decrease.

Having a closed account removed from your report may not affect your score, but in many cases, it is wise to leave accounts in good standing on your report, as they could have a positive impact overall.

However, closed accounts with negative items eligible for removal and inaccurate information can lead to a lower score, so working to get those accounts removed is part of a sound credit repair strategy.

Read on to learn how to get rid of closed accounts from your credit report.

How to remove closed accounts from your credit report

If you need to attempt to remove a closed account from your credit report—especially one that includes inaccurate information or negative items—there are three ways to do so. You can either dispute inaccurate information with the credit bureaus, write a formal “goodwill letter” to request removal or simply wait until the account is removed after a period of time. Each of these approaches can be useful depending on your particular situation.

Read on to learn more about when to try each of these different methods for getting a closed account off your credit report.

1. Dispute inaccurate information

If a closed account on your credit report includes inaccurate information, you can dispute the information and potentially get the item removed from your report.

You can dispute the information using the following process:

1. Send a letter to the three major credit bureaus—TransUnion®, Experian® and Equifax®—that explains what information you are challenging, why you believe it is inaccurate and that you would like it removed.
2. Similarly, send a letter to the financial institution that provided the information to the bureaus.
3. Wait for responses, then look at your updated report and score.

We have a guide that details the dispute process to help you along the way.

2. Write a “goodwill” letter

A goodwill letter is a formal request to a creditor asking for a negative item to be removed.

Although creditors are not required to remove negative items upon request, they may be willing to do so if you have a long history with them or if there were special hardships that led to the negative item.

However, goodwill letters are generally useful only for late or missed payments rather than collections, repossessions or other more significant negative items.

In addition to goodwill letters, you can also request that an account is removed using a “pay for delete” letter. These letters can lead to an agreement with a collection agency to remove an account in exchange for a set payment. That said, the collection agency may decide not to remove the account, and the original account that went to collections may remain on your report.

3. Wait for the closed account to be removed over time

Closed accounts do not stay on your report forever, so it’s possible to simply wait it out until a closed account is removed.

Accounts that were closed can remain on a credit report for around seven to 10 years.

When an older closed account with negative information is potentially lowering your score, eventually it will drop off your report. Additionally, positive information about closed accounts also leaves your report over time, so it’s important to continue to practice good credit habits with a variety of account types.

If your credit report contains closed accounts with negative items or inaccurate information, the team at Lexington Law Firm can assist you with credit repair. By analyzing your credit report and assisting with disputes, our team can help you make strides in improving your credit score.

Reviewed by Kenton Arbon, an Associate Attorney at Lexington Law Firm. Written by Lexington Law.

Kenton Arbon was an Associate Attorney in the Arizona office. Mr. Arbon was born in Bakersfield, California, and grew up in the Northwest. He earned his B.A. in Business Administration, Human Resources Management, while working as an Oregon State Trooper. His interest in the law lead him to relocate to Arizona, attend law school, and graduate from Arizona State College of Law in 2017. Since graduating from law school, Mr. Arbon has worked in multiple compliance domains including anti-money laundering, Medicare Part D, contracts, and debt negotiation. Mr. Arbon is licensed to practice law in Arizona. He was located in the Phoenix office.

Note: Articles have only been reviewed by the indicated attorney, not written by them. The information provided on this website does not, and is not intended to, act as legal, financial or credit advice; instead, it is for general informational purposes only. Use of, and access to, this website or any of the links or resources contained within the site do not create an attorney-client or fiduciary relationship between the reader, user, or browser and website owner, authors, reviewers, contributors, contributing firms, or their respective agents or employers.