Credit Repair Lawyers Australia 2026

Why credit repair is legal work, not paperwork

Credit repair in Australia is a legal process. Credit providers and credit reporting bodies have specific obligations under the Privacy Act 1988 (Cth), the Privacy (Credit Reporting) Code (CR Code) and the National Consumer Credit Protection Act 2009 (Cth). When they don’t meet those obligations, the listing on your credit file is non-compliant and has to be corrected or removed.

So the work is about evidence. We identify the specific procedural breach that happened when the listing was placed, then put the credit provider on notice that it has to fix it. Negotiating, sending angry letters or using a “credit repair script” doesn’t remove a lawful listing, and anyone selling you that is selling hope.

The credit repair industry in Australia has two tiers. Most operators are non-lawyer credit repair companies. They hold or work under an Australian Credit Licence issued by ASIC, and case managers do the paperwork. Then there are law firms. MyCRA Lawyers is the only law firm in Australia that does credit repair and nothing else. Case managers can handle the easy files. The hard ones need lawyers, because hard files end up in AFCA complaints, OAIC referrals or court.

ASIC has warned consumers about untrained operators in this industry since at least 2016, when it released REP 465 (“Paying to get out of debt or clean your credit”, Australian Securities & Investments Commission, January 2016). The report found many operators didn’t understand the relevant laws. It is still a good summary of what to look for in a credit repairer, and what to walk away from.

Who MyCRA Lawyers is

MyCRA Lawyers is the trading name of the legal practice operated by Legal Practice Holdings Group Pty Ltd (ABN 12 615 900 788), an incorporated legal practice registered with the Queensland Law Society. Graham Doessel founded the brand as MyCRA Pty Ltd on 26 November 2009, and it became MyCRA Lawyers on 4 November 2013 when the legal practice structure was put in place. We are the only law firm in Australia whose exclusive practice area is the removal of non-compliant credit reporting listings under the Privacy Act framework. We act for clients in every state and territory, and most matters run by phone and online.

The firm operates as an incorporated legal practice under the Legal Profession Act 2007 (Qld), regulated by the Queensland Law Society and answerable to the Legal Services Commission of Queensland. Our Legal Practice Director is Ryan Alexander Vanderaa, an admitted solicitor of the Supreme Court of Queensland, whose details are verifiable on the QLS register of solicitors. Our professional indemnity insurance is held with Lexon Insurance, the approved insurer for Queensland legal practices under the Queensland Lawyers Mutual scheme. We are not a credit repair company that has retained a lawyer. We are a law firm that does credit repair work.

Corporate and licensing structure

Credit repair work sits across two regulatory regimes, so we have a two-entity structure:

• Legal Practice Holdings Group Pty Ltd (ABN 12 615 900 788) is the incorporated legal practice. It holds Australian Credit Representative authority (ACR 535627) and is a member of the Australian Financial Complaints Authority (AFCA member 83703). LPHG operates the MyCRA Lawyers brand.
• East Coast Finance Pty Ltd holds the parent Australian Credit Licence (ACL 564856) issued by ASIC, and is also an AFCA member (AFCA member 98431). LPHG operates as an authorised credit representative under this licence.

This matters in practice. Credit repair companies usually operate under an ACL alone. We operate under an ACL representative authority and as a regulated legal practice, and each framework carries its own obligations and remedies if we fall short. When you instruct a law firm, your communications about the matter are also protected by legal professional privilege. A non-legal credit repair company can’t offer that.

Independent audit

MyCRA Lawyers commissioned an independent audit of our credit file removal outcomes. It verified a 91.6 per cent success rate across the audited sample of consumer defaults we accepted. We are the only credit repair law firm in Australia to have submitted to, and published, an independent third-party audit of this kind. You can read it on our audit certificate page.

Our postal address is PO Box 169, Aspley QLD 4034. Our national line is 1300 667 218.

Equifax, Experian and what happened to illion

Until recently Australia had three main consumer credit reporting bodies: Equifax, Experian and illion. Experian bought illion (the ACCC said in August 2024 it would not oppose the deal), and the two bureaus have since been combined. According to CreditSmart, from 1 April 2026 there are two consumer credit reporting bodies, Equifax and Experian. An Experian report from that date includes the information previously held by illion, plus some data from the old Experian report, including credit enquiries. The OAIC now lists Equifax and Experian as the bureaus to request your report from.

What this means for you:

• For a current clean-up you need two reports, Equifax and Experian. You don’t need a separate illion report.
• If a lender’s letter still mentions illion, it probably means the new Experian report. Lenders are still updating their paperwork.
• Some older enquiries and accounts may have appeared on your Experian report for the first time after the merger. They aren’t new, but they are worth checking for accuracy.
• Equifax and Experian hold different data. A default can be listed with one bureau and not the other, and removal at one doesn’t automatically flow to the other, so we deal with both.

Our guide How Credit Enquiries Affect Your Credit Score in Australia explains how enquiries are scored on each bureau.

How to get your free credit report

Under the credit reporting rules, each credit reporting body must give you your consumer credit report free once every 3 months (OAIC). You can also get a free copy if you have been refused credit in the past 90 days, or if your credit information has been corrected.

• Equifax: 138 332, or order online at equifax.com.au
• Experian (now including former illion data): 1300 783 684, or order online at experian.com.au

Ask for the full credit report, not just a score. Score apps are handy for tracking, but they don’t show you the notices, dates and account details you need to dispute a listing. Checking your own report doesn’t count as a credit enquiry and won’t lower your score.

Once you have both reports, write down every default, judgment, enquiry and late payment, with the dates. That list is what we audit.

The laws that govern your credit file

Credit reporting in Australia is governed by several overlapping statutes, codes and regulators. Working out which one applies to your listing is half the job. Most DIY attempts fail because the consumer raises the wrong objection under the wrong instrument, gets a form-letter rejection, and has nowhere to take it.

Privacy Act 1988 (Cth), Part IIIA

Part IIIA of the Privacy Act 1988 is the main statutory framework for credit reporting. It sets out what credit providers and credit reporting bodies can collect, how long they can keep it, and what notices the consumer must get before a default can be reported. It also gives you the right to ask for incorrect information to be corrected. The Office of the Australian Information Commissioner (OAIC) enforces it.

Privacy (Credit Reporting) Code (CR Code)

The Privacy (Credit Reporting) Code is the binding code that sits under Part IIIA. The OAIC administers it, and it supplies the operational detail the statute leaves out: notice periods, what counts as a default, and the obligations on the credit reporting bodies (Equifax and Experian) to investigate and correct listings.

National Consumer Credit Protection Act 2009 (Cth)

The National Consumer Credit Protection Act 2009 (NCCPA) governs how credit providers behave. In credit repair work the relevant parts include s 47 (general conduct obligations of licensees) and the licensing requirements in Part 2-1. A credit provider in breach of the NCCPA has problems that go beyond the credit reporting question.

National Credit Code (NCC)

The National Credit Code is Schedule 1 to the NCCPA and governs the credit contracts themselves. Sections that come up again and again in our files are s 20 (form of credit contracts), s 36 (statement of amount owing), s 88 (default notice required before enforcement) and s 185 (copies of contracts on request). A defective s 88 default notice is one of the most common breaches we find.

Australian Consumer Law

Where a default was listed through misleading, deceptive or unconscionable conduct, the Australian Consumer Law (Schedule 2 of the Competition and Consumer Act 2010) gives another avenue for relief, including through the ACCC and state fair trading regulators.

The regulators and dispute bodies

• Office of the Australian Information Commissioner (OAIC): enforces Part IIIA of the Privacy Act and the CR Code. If a credit reporting body or credit provider refuses to correct a non-compliant listing, this is the federal regulator to go to.
• Australian Financial Complaints Authority (AFCA): the free external dispute resolution scheme for financial services complaints. AFCA can make binding determinations against its members, within set limits.
• Australian Securities and Investments Commission (ASIC): licenses credit providers under the NCCPA and regulates their conduct. In serious matters an ASIC complaint can run alongside the OAIC pathway.
• State civil and administrative tribunals: QCAT, VCAT, NCAT and their equivalents hear some consumer matters and lower-value debt disputes.

What we can remove from your credit file

These are the listings MyCRA Lawyers works on. In every case, removal depends on finding a specific compliance failure in how the listing was placed. We don’t promise to remove every listing. We assess your file first and tell you whether a listing is realistically removable before you commit. Our initial Zoom appointment is not free, but it is capped at $139 and is credited towards any credit repair work that comes out of the appointment.

Defaults

A default is a listing that a consumer credit payment of $150 or more is at least 60 days overdue. Before a credit provider can list it, the law requires specific written notices, including the notice of intention to disclose the default to a credit reporting body and, for consumer credit regulated by the National Credit Code, a s 88 default notice. If any of those notices are missing, defective or not properly given, the default was listed in breach and must be removed. A default stays on your file for five years. Paying it updates the status to “paid” but doesn’t remove it. Read more on default removal or our step-by-step guide, How to Remove a Default From Your Credit File in Australia.

Court judgments

Court judgments come onto credit files from public court records. Where the underlying matter has been resolved or the judgment is contested, removal usually needs a court application to set aside or vacate the judgment, followed by an instruction to the credit reporting bodies to update the record. That is law firm work, and it is one of the main reasons you shouldn’t try judgment removal through a non-legal credit repair company. See judgment removal.

Clearouts and serious credit infringements

A serious credit infringement (SCI), also called a clearout, can be listed where a credit provider reasonably believes the consumer acted fraudulently, or showed a clear intention not to meet their credit obligations, and the provider hasn’t been able to contact the consumer for at least six months despite taking reasonable steps. An SCI stays on a credit file for seven years, two years longer than an ordinary default. The Privacy Act and the CR Code set strict evidence requirements before an SCI can be listed. When those requirements aren’t met, the listing can be removed.

Credit enquiries

Each credit application is recorded as an enquiry and stays on your file for five years. Lots of enquiries in a short time can lower your score and make lenders think you are shopping around for credit. Some enquiries are made without the consumer’s proper authority, for example where a broker or finance company lodged applications without consent. Unauthorised enquiries can be removed. See enquiry removal.

Repayment History Information (RHI)

Under comprehensive credit reporting, licensed credit providers report your monthly repayment status on consumer credit accounts, and that information stays for two years. Only credit providers holding an Australian Credit Licence (unless exempt) can report repayment history, which is why telcos and energy retailers don’t report RHI. Inaccurate RHI often comes from things that weren’t your fault, like mail redirection failures, bank processing errors or a direct debit the credit provider failed to run. The credit provider has to correct inaccurate RHI once notified. See repayment history information.

Comprehensive credit reporting (CCR) errors

Comprehensive credit reporting expanded what gets reported, and with it the ways things can go wrong. Account status flags, financial hardship information and the treatment of joint accounts are all places where errors turn up regularly and where your circumstances may not have been recorded correctly.

Bankruptcies and Part IX/X arrangements

Bankruptcies and personal insolvency agreements generally can’t be removed while the retention period under the Privacy Act is running. Mistakes in how they are recorded on credit files do happen, though, and those can be corrected. We look at these case by case.

How default removal works

The credit reporting industry spent years telling consumers that credit repair is impossible. It isn’t. Part IIIA of the Privacy Act gives you the right to ask a credit reporting body or credit provider to correct information that is inaccurate, out of date, incomplete, irrelevant or misleading (s 20T and s 21V), and the CR Code sets out how those requests must be handled. So the real question is whether your particular listing is removable, and that depends on whether the credit provider followed the procedure when it listed you.

Simplified, the work looks like this:

1. Get the credit files. We obtain your Equifax and Experian reports so we are working from the same records lenders see.
2. Audit each listing. We check every adverse listing against the requirements that applied when it was placed. That means comparing the dates on the file with the CR Code notice periods, the NCC notice obligations and the credit provider’s licensing status at the time.
3. Identify the breach. Common breaches include defective s 88 NCC notices, a missing notice of intention to disclose, listing inside the required waiting period, listing an amount different from the amount actually overdue, listing without a valid contract under s 20 NCC, and listing by an entity that didn’t hold the required credit licence.
4. Put the credit provider on notice. We notify the credit provider of the breach and require correction within the timeframes the CR Code allows. Most credit providers correct at this stage, because fighting an OAIC or AFCA complaint costs them more than removing the listing.
5. Escalate if needed. If the credit provider refuses, we lodge a complaint through the right channel: AFCA for financial services credit providers, the OAIC for privacy breaches, ASIC for licensing and conduct issues, and a tribunal or court where the matter needs a formal determination.
6. Confirm removal. Once the credit provider has acted, we can check the listing is gone from both Equifax and Experian. Removal at one bureau doesn’t automatically flow through to the other.

Lawyers run this process because step three is a legal question, and steps five and six involve exercising statutory and regulatory rights where mistakes have consequences. It is also unlawful in Australia for someone without a current practising certificate to give legal advice, and the courts have treated this kind of work as legal work. In Van der Feltz v Legal Practice Board [2017] WASC 2, a man who advertised help preparing court documents while saying he was “not a lawyer” was found to be engaging in legal practice and fined. We explain how this applies to credit repair in “I am not a lawyer and I do not give legal advice”, said the ad; oh yes you do, said the court and in why credit repair work is, by its nature, legal work. For a plain-English walk-through of how we run a file, see how it works.

MyCRA Lawyers vs credit repair companies vs DIY: an honest comparison

Most people with a credit problem have three realistic options. Each has trade-offs, and the right one depends on how complicated your file is, what delay will cost you, and how much certainty you want.

Doing it yourself

You have a legal right to ask a credit reporting body or credit provider to correct your credit information (Privacy Act s 20T and s 21V). They generally have 30 days to deal with the request. For one simple listing with a cooperative credit provider, DIY can work.

The risk is that people who raise procedural arguments they don’t fully understand often raise them in a way the credit provider can easily knock back. Once a ground has been formally rejected, raising it again later through a lawyer is much harder. The cheapest path can become the most expensive one if you burn your best argument by stating it badly.

Non-lawyer credit repair companies

Several Australian companies offer credit repair under ASIC credit licences, often on a no-win-no-fee basis. Case managers do most of the work, with a smaller number of qualified staff supervising. Where the breach is obvious and the credit provider cooperates, they can get results.

The case manager model has limits when the matter is contested, involves a court judgment, needs escalation to the OAIC or a court, or where legal professional privilege would help. Some companies run these matters up to a point and then drop them. Others pass them on. A specialist law firm runs them from start to finish under one engagement.

MyCRA Lawyers

We are a specialist credit repair law firm, and the only one of our kind in Australia. Our fees are fixed, with no surprise extras within scope. Our founder has spent sixteen years working only in this area. We can take a matter from credit file audit through an OAIC complaint to court without handing it off. Our upfront fee is higher than a budget credit repair company, but it doesn’t go up if the matter gets complicated, and that is usually the point where other fee structures become the consumer’s problem.

Our honest view: if you have one minor default, no court matters, no history of failed disputes, and a small creditor with a cooperative compliance team, a credit repair company or a DIY letter may be enough. If your file is more complicated than that, or getting it wrong would cost you a house, a business loan or months of your life, use a law firm whose entire practice is credit repair.

Fixed fees and our Money Back Guarantee

MyCRA Lawyers works on fixed fees. We agree the fee at the start and it doesn’t change however long the matter takes. We do it this way on purpose, because the credit repair industry has a long history of bill shock and scope creep.

A fixed fee also lines up our incentives with yours. If we remove your default in seven days, good. If it takes six months because the credit provider digs in and we end up at AFCA or the OAIC, you pay the same fee, as long as the work is within scope. We carry the cost of the complexity.

We also offer a Money Back Guarantee. The terms are set out on that page and in your client agreement, so read them before you sign.

The “no-win-no-fee” model common among non-lawyer credit repair companies charges a success fee for each listing removed. It sounds consumer-friendly, but it has two problems. It rewards claiming partial wins on matters that haven’t really been resolved. And on a file with several listings, the total can end up well above a fixed fee.

You get a written quote at the end of the initial assessment, before you commit to anything. That quote is the price. For more on how our fees work, see how much does it cost?

Our process, step by step

1. Initial suitability assessment. Book a Zoom appointment with our team. We can request your credit files for you, or you can send them in. We tell you honestly whether the listings on your file are realistically removable.
2. Written quote. You get a written engagement letter setting out the fixed fee, scope and expected timeframes. Nothing proceeds without your sign-off.
3. Engagement and audit. Once you engage us, we audit each listing against the requirements that applied when it was placed.
4. Notices and removal. We issue compliance notices to the credit providers. Most removable listings are resolved at this stage.
5. Escalation if required. Contested matters go to AFCA, the OAIC, ASIC or court as appropriate, within scope. Your client agreement sets out what is included at no extra charge. Some matters, for example certain OAIC or AFCA processes or court hearings, may fall outside scope and need additional legal fees.
6. Verification and close. Once listings are removed, we can check they are gone from both Equifax and Experian and provide clean credit files as confirmation. Providing clean credit files is outside scope and carries a small additional fee.

Prefer to talk first? Book a 15-minute intro call.

Results, and what the numbers mean

We publish the following results from more than sixteen years of practice, with the context they need. Credit repair headline numbers without context are usually misleading.

• 91.6% success rate on the consumer defaults we accept after our initial assessment. This is the independently audited removal rate on accepted consumer defaults, not a rate across every enquiry or every listing type. The assessment screens out matters where removal isn’t realistic, and we tell people at that stage if their matter is unlikely to succeed.
• 29.4% of removals are completed within 7 days of our first contact with the credit provider. Some are same-day removals, where the breach is so clear that the credit provider corrects the file as soon as it is notified.
• Most matters resolve within 30 days. Escalation to AFCA or the OAIC can stretch that to 60 to 120 days or more. Because the fee is fixed, that doesn’t cost you more.
• 230+ Google reviews from past clients at a 4.8-star average, on our public Google reviews listing.

Past results don’t guarantee the outcome of your matter. Every credit file is different, and the initial assessment is where we tell you honestly what is likely in yours.

About Graham Doessel

Graham Doessel is the Founder and Chief Executive Officer of the MyCRA Lawyers brand and the founder of Armstrong Doessel Stevenson Lawyers, a generalist law firm with strong family law, wills and estates practices. Both firms operate under Legal Practice Holdings Group Pty Ltd, where Graham is Non-Legal Director under the structure the Queensland Legal Profession Act 2007 permits for incorporated legal practices.

Practice timeline

• 26 November 2009: Founded MyCRA Pty Ltd as a credit repair business. As a finance broker he had watched good clients get knocked back for finance because of listings that didn’t meet the legal requirements for being on their files.
• 4 July 2013: Founded Armstrong Doessel Stevenson Lawyers, a generalist law practice.
• 4 November 2013: MyCRA Pty Ltd became MyCRA Lawyers when the incorporated legal practice structure was put in place, so the credit repair work could be done as legal practice.

Industry involvement

Graham is a past Queensland State President of the Finance Brokers Association of Australia (FBAA). He founded the Credit Repair Industry Association of Australasia (CRIAA) to try to set up a self-regulatory body and ethical code for the Australian credit repair industry. It didn’t last, because most non-legal operators at the time found the proposed standards unworkable. That experience led to the decision to move MyCRA into an incorporated legal practice in 2013, where the Queensland Law Society regulates conduct instead of an industry body.

Submissions and policy work

On behalf of MyCRA Lawyers, Graham has made formal submissions to:

• The PricewaterhouseCoopers Three Year Review of the Privacy (Credit Reporting) Code 2014
• The Senate Economics References Committee Inquiry into Credit and Hardship

Media commentary

Graham comments regularly on Australian credit reporting law and consumer credit. Media appearances include:

• Television: Today Tonight Brisbane (Seven Network)
• Radio: ABC Mackay, ABC NSW, 4BC Brisbane Afternoons
• National press: Sydney Morning Herald, The Age, Brisbane Times, News Ltd / news.com.au
• Industry press: The Adviser, Broker News, Smart Company, Australian Banking + Finance, Investigate Magazine
• International: TVNZ (New Zealand)

MyCRA was a finalist in the Smart Company Start Up Smart Awards in 2012 and 2013. Our full media archive is in our media centre.

Role clarification

Graham is not an admitted lawyer. The legal work at MyCRA Lawyers is done by admitted solicitors led by Legal Practice Director Ryan Vanderaa, under the structure Queensland’s incorporated legal practice rules permit. As Founder, CEO and Non-Legal Director, Graham looks after business strategy, marketing, technology, regulatory engagement and ownership. The Legal Profession Act 2007 (Qld) expressly allows this structure for incorporated legal practices.

Credit repair guides

Practical guides from our team on the problems we see most often:

• How to Remove a Default From Your Credit File in Australia (2026 Guide): the notices a creditor must give, how to dispute, and when AFCA comes in.
• How Credit Enquiries Affect Your Credit Score in Australia: why applications hurt your score and which enquiries can be removed.

Our services, explained:

• Default removal
• Court judgment removal
• Credit enquiry removal
• Repayment history information (RHI)
• How it works
• Money Back Guarantee

More guides are on the MyCRA blog.

Frequently asked questions

Contact our credit repair lawyers

For an assessment of your credit file, contact us:

• Phone: 1300 667 218
• Email: docs@mycralawyers.com.au
• Postal: PO Box 169, Aspley QLD 4034

Liability limited by a scheme approved under Professional Standards Legislation. This page is general information only and is not legal advice. For advice on your situation, book an initial assessment.

Don’t spend another month stuck in Credit Prison. Call our credit repair lawyers on 1300 667 218 or book a 15-minute intro call at https://mycralawyers.com.au/15min-credit-repair-intro-call/ . If we think your chances are low, we’ll tell you straight.