Your phone number and other personal information are updated when you apply for a line of credit or when you update your phone number with your creditors. When your creditors send their information to the major credit bureaus (Equifax, Experian and TransUnion), they will include your new phone number and the credit agencies will update your credit reports.
Although it doesn’t hurt your credit to have an outdated phone number on your credit report, you may want to keep your number current. Let’s take a look at a couple of ways to update your phone number on your credit report, and why you might consider doing so.
Two Ways to Update Your Phone Number on Your Credit Report
You can change your phone number on your credit report in one of two ways:
- Update Your Number With Your Creditors.
When you change your number with your creditors, they will give the credit bureaus your new phone number when they submit their monthly updates. Be patient, it could take 30 to 45 days for your creditors and the major credit bureaus to update your information.
- Change Your Phone Number With the Credit Bureaus Directly.
You can also bypass your creditors and change your information directly with the reporting bureaus. Here’s how to update your phone number with each of the three major credit bureaus:
- Equifax – Log into their Member Center and click on “My Account.” Then click “My Profile” and change your contact information yourself.
- Experian – According to Experian, you can change your phone number and other contact information by calling or writing them using the contact information on their credit reports. They will allow you to delete an old phone number online, but they must help you to add or change your number.
- TransUnion – Update your phone number by calling TransUnion directly at 800-916-8800.
Does an Old Phone Number Impact Your Credit?
While it’s a good idea to keep information current on your credit report, having an old number does not directly impact your credit health Your credit report is connected with your Social Security number and it will continue to operate as usual even if your name, address or phone number is outdated.
Once you update your telephone number on your reports, your old number is likely to stay on your credit reports as supplementary identifying information.
Updating your phone number helps potential new creditors to match you with your credit report. Even so, credit reports are not intended to display an exhaustive history of your personal contact information. Thankfully, most companies understand that and don’t expect a complete up-to-date history of your contact information.
The Bottom Line
Having a current phone number isn’t one of the factors that make up your credit score so don’t worry if the current number doesn’t appear on your credit reports right away. Nevertheless, it’s good practice to keep the information on your credit report current so update your phone number with your creditors promptly. The sooner they update your information, the sooner they can report the change to the credit bureaus.
