Credit-Repair 'Guaranteed' Upfront Fee Scam
A company promises to erase bad credit or guarantee a higher score for an upfront fee — but charging before results and guaranteeing removals are illegal and ineffective.
Think a message like this reached you? You can check it right now.
What this scam is
A credit-repair outfit guarantees to remove accurate negative items or dramatically raise your score fast, charging a large fee up front. Under US law, credit-repair companies cannot charge before performing services and cannot legally remove accurate information. They often just dispute everything (which you can do free) or vanish with your money. Some also encourage illegal tactics like using a fake 'CPN' in place of your SSN.
What it usually looks like
- A guarantee to erase bad credit or boost your score fast.
- A large fee required before any work.
- Claims they can remove accurate negatives.
- Suggestions to use a new 'credit privacy number.'
Common warning signs
- Upfront fees before services are performed.
- Guarantees to remove accurate items.
- Advice to use a CPN or dispute everything.
- Discouraging you from contacting bureaus yourself.
Example wording scammers use
“We guarantee to delete your negative items and add 100+ points — pay the $600 setup fee to start.”
“Get a fresh start with a new credit number instead of your SSN.”
These are illustrative examples written by ScamSplain, not real messages.
What the scammers want
- A large upfront fee.
- To perform little or nothing.
- Possibly to enroll you in illegal tactics.
What to do
- Know that accurate negative info cannot legally be removed.
- Dispute genuine errors yourself for free with the bureaus.
- Avoid companies charging before results or pushing a 'CPN.'
- Use nonprofit credit counseling for real help.
What to do if you already responded
- Dispute the fee with your card issuer.
- Do not use any CPN; it can be identity fraud.
- Report to the CFPB and reportfraud.ftc.gov.