The instruments
What to send, to whom, and on what clock. Each entry names the rule that creates the deadline. Where a deadline is an agency’s published service target rather than a legal duty, that is stated, because the difference matters when the date passes.
This is a description of the rules, not legal advice, and no page on this site creates a lawyer’s relationship with you.
Notice of Error
RESPA, 12 C.F.R. § 1024.35
- Send it to
- The servicer's designated address for notices of error — which is frequently not the payment address. If the servicer has designated one, sending elsewhere does not start the clock.
- Clock
- Acknowledgement within 5 business days. Substantive response within 30 business days, extendable by 15 business days on written notice.
- When
- A payment was misapplied, held in suspense, refused, or the account was reported delinquent while funds were being held.
Request for Information
RESPA, 12 C.F.R. § 1024.36
- Send it to
- The servicer's designated address for information requests.
- Clock
- Acknowledgement within 5 business days. Response within 30 business days, extendable by 15 business days on written notice.
- When
- You need the payment history, the transaction code key, the escrow analysis, or the disbursement ledger. This is how you get the documents that become exhibits.
Direct dispute with the furnisher
FCRA, 15 U.S.C. § 1681s-2(a)(8) and 12 C.F.R. § 1022.43
- Send it to
- The furnisher — the servicer or lender that reported the tradeline — at the address it has designated for direct disputes.
- Clock
- 30 days from receipt to investigate and report the results.
- When
- The tradeline is inaccurate. Dispute the specific months, with the amount tendered and the date returned, not "the account."
Dispute with the credit reporting agency
FCRA, 15 U.S.C. § 1681i(a)(1)
- Send it to
- Equifax, Experian, and TransUnion — separately. They do not share dispute files.
- Clock
- 30 days from receipt. Extended to 45 days only if you supply additional relevant information during that initial 30-day period.
- When
- Running in parallel with the direct dispute. The bureau must forward the dispute to the furnisher within 5 business days.
Request for the date of first delinquency
FCRA, 15 U.S.C. § 1681c(c)
- Send it to
- The furnisher, in writing.
- Clock
- No separate clock; fold it into the direct dispute so the § 1681s-2(a)(8) 30 days applies.
- When
- The seven-year reporting period runs from this date. If the date moves between reports, that movement is itself a documented fact.
CFPB complaint
Consumer Financial Protection Bureau complaint process
- Send it to
- consumerfinance.gov/complaint.
- Clock
- 15 days for the company to respond, 60 days to close. This is the Bureau’s published process, not a statutory duty — it is a service target, and nothing in it creates a right of action.
- When
- The response becomes a public record in the complaint database, and the company’s answer is itself an exhibit.
State regulator complaint
Varies by state and by charter
- Send it to
- The regulator with jurisdiction over the entity — for a California-licensed servicer, the Department of Financial Protection and Innovation.
- Clock
- No response deadline is generally imposed on the company. Do not expect one, and do not publish a countdown against a rule that does not exist.
- When
- Licensing consequences are the pressure a private dispute does not create.
Send everything by a method that produces a delivery record, and keep the record. On this docket the tracking number is part of the entry, and the clock running out in public is the point.