If you choose to do business with a credit repair company, take these steps first:

• Contact the Better Business Bureau for a reliability report on the company.
• Inspect the company's certificate of registration. This will inform you of any litigation commenced or of any complaints filed with any governmental authority of California, any other state, or the federal government and how they were resolved.
• Find out and be sure you understand what the company will and will not do. If you take a copy of your credit report to them, you can ask them exactly what information they will change or remove. Remember that the law requires a written contract, so get these promises in writing.
• Also bear in mind that if you are told any accurate information will be changed or erased, you are not being told the truth.

If you are considering using a credit repair company, beware of companies that engage in these practices:

• Wanting you to pay for credit repair services before any services are provided.
• Not telling you your legal rights and what you can do yourself--for free.
• Recommending that you not contact a credit bureau directly.
• Advising you to dispute all information in your credit report or take action that seems illegal, such as creating a new credit identity. If you follow this kind of advice and commit fraud, you may be subject to prosecution.

Additional information on the Federal Trade Commission's Fair Credit Reporting Act is available from the FTC or the Better Business Bureau.