Hawaii's Better Business Bureau® issued an alert today warning consumers to be aware of companies taking advantage of the credit crunch by promising bogus credit repair services that can be costly and in some cases illegal. With lenders becoming increasingly strict with their loan and credit qualifications, many people are looking for fast, easy ways to fix, or even, erase damage to their credit history.

Consumers are often persuaded by offers for miraculous credit repair in radio, television, newspaper, online and direct mail advertisements. Some offers require consumers to pay large fees upfront and in return promise to erase any blemishes on credit records, get new Social Security numbers for clients, or allow consumers to piggyback on someone else's credit record. BBB wants consumers to know that no one can legally remove accurate and current negative information from a credit report, that it's nearly impossible to get a new Social Security number, and that piggybacking on someone else's credit can be seen as loan fraud.

Complaints to BBB about credit repair companies have increased in the last year. However, 30 percent of those complaints were unanswered, meaning the company refused to respond to the complaint. In all types of businesses, a single unanswered complaint results in an unsatisfactory rating on a company's BBB report.

Before contacting a credit repair service, first check its BBB Reliability Report™ online at www.bbb.org.

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