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As credit report understanding grows, more and more people see a strange line item entry on their credit reports: SYNCB. They’ve also noticed that SYNCB seems to be lowering their credit score unfairly.
What exactly is SYNCB on your credit report, and what does it mean? Let’s break down these questions and find out how to remove SYNCB from your credit report. Let’s begin.
What is SYNCB?
SYNCB (which might also show up on your credit report as SYNCB/PPC) is an acronym that stands for Synchrony Bank or Synchrony Bank/PayPal Credit. Synchrony Bank is a well-known and national online bank and a Fortune 500 company that’s been around for over 80 years.
Most people do business with SYNCB unknowingly due to the vast array of credit cards it produces for various companies like Amazon, Google, Visa, and MasterCard.
Why is SYNCB On My Credit Report?
Now that you know what SYNCB is, let’s get to the real question – why is it showing up on your credit report at all?
In a nutshell, SYNCB has taken on a massive collection of accounts formally owned by PayPal Holdings and some other companies.
This large-scale digital transition of control and wealth has caused some people to find Synchrony Bank items appearing unexpectedly on their credit reports.
If you see SYNCB on your credit report, it’s probably because of one of two potential issues.
Hard Inquiry
Many people are applying for PayPal or Synchrony Bank credit accounts. If this is you, you might also see a hard inquiry to your credit score on your credit report.
Since Synchrony Bank owns many new accounts now, an “SYNCB” line item might crop up on your credit report.
This is an issue since hard inquiries have negative effects on people’s credit scores and can stick around for up to two years.
If you haven’t applied for a PayPal credit account, you might be a victim of identity theft.
Related: Hard Inquiries vs Soft Inquiries
Active or Closed Accounts
Alternatively, a PayPal or Synchrony Bank credit account might appear on your credit report as either active or closed.
If, for example, you had an active account at one time or another, the transition for Synchrony Bank’s new account ownership might have accidentally raised or lowered credit lines and closed accounts for an activity.
Either way, such actions could harm your credit score. Again, if you don’t think you ever had an account with PayPal or Synchrony Bank, you should look into possible signs of identity theft.
How to Remove SYNCB from Your Credit Report
Fortunately, there are a few ways you can remove SYNCB from your credit report if you believe that a hard inquiry or active or closed account is causing unjust damage to your credit score.
This is important to follow up on ASAP, as your credit score can affect things like the loans you can take out and your interest rates for any current loans.
#1. Hire a Credit Repair Company
Firstly, you can use a credit repair company to take care of the issue. Credit repair companies are comprised of professionals who can contact credit item issuers and the three major credit bureaus (Experian, Equifax, and TransUnion) on your behalf.
They’ll contact a credit issuer or institution on your behalf (frequently if necessary) and help to ensure that your credit report is as accurate as possible.
They may also be able to help you locate other credit report errors or issues that you overlooked before.
Most importantly, they can provide sound credit report advice that you can use to repair your creditreport over time.
These organizations are excellent picks if you have more than one issue on your credit report.
#2. Dispute the SYNCB Hard Inquiry with a Debt Validation Letter
You can also try to dispute your SYNCB hard inquiry using a debt validation letter. This essentially involves sending the credit item issuer (SYNCB in this case) a letter with which you contest the reason for the claim and ask them to remove SYNCB’s inquiry from your credit report ASAP.
It’s best to explain the situation as well as you can and include as much detail from your credit report and financial activities as possible.
This may help Synchrony Bank’s employees determine the cause of the issue and prove that you’re telling the truth.
Learn: How to Dispute an Error on Your Credit Report
Ask SYNCB for Goodwill Deletion
Lastly, you can also write SYNCB a goodwill letter, asking them nicely to remove a hard inquiry or active or closed account line item on your credit report for your benefit.
Explaining your financial situation and any hardships you might be experiencing at the time will go a long way to helping their customer service representatives empathize with you.
This may seem like a long shot, but Synchrony Bank is run by regular people when it comes down to it.
They may be willing to overlook an accident or repair a hard inquiry credit error just by asking them.
How Long Does an SYNCB Hard Inquiry Stay on Your Credit Report?
Ultimately, anyhard inquirieson your credit report regardless of the source will remain for up to two years unless you get them removed.
While hard inquiries’ effects on your credit score lessen over time (meaning they have less of a negative impact on your total score), they won’t fully vanish until that time is up.
This is why it’s important to get rid of hard inquiries ASAP. They can all add up over time and make getting good loans all but impossible.
Pro Tip: Consider Credit Monitoring
A credit monitoring service can provide you with regular alerts or updates about your credit score. Such organizations can also scan your credit report periodically to take note of any strange line items, like hard inquiries or active or closed account entries.
Using one of the best credit monitoring services will allow you to get the jump on any credit repairs that may be necessary.
It’s a lot easier to contest a hard inquiry if you do so immediately after it appears on your credit report rather than a year later.
SYNCB Contact Information
- Phone Number: 1-866-419-4096
- Mailing Address: Synchrony Bank, P.O. Box 965003, Orlando, FL 32896-5003
- Website: https://www.synchronybank.com/
Bottom Line: How to Remove SYNCB From Your Credit Report
All in all, removing SYNCB’s hard credit inquiries or active or closed account items from your credit report can be done in a few different ways.
Try each of the above methods and remember to never give up – your credit score is too important to let it be lowered for something that isn’t your fault.
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