It's not just the negligent who can end up with having a bad credit rating. Courtesy fraudsters, you can have a bad credit rating even if you have been making all your payments in time and taking all precautions. Whatever landed you with a bad credit rating, the important question is how to repair it.

Let's start with the scenario where you have been doing everything right and still ended up with a bad credit rating. First thing to do in any case is get a copy of your credit report from your national credit bureau (e.g. three major US credit bureaus are Experian, Equifax and TransUnion) and check it thoroughly for discrepancies, if any. If you have been tricked by a fraudster, then report it immediately to the bureau. There are fraudsters who somehow retrieve information about an individual and use it to apply for credit cards in his/her name and then obviously default on payments.

However, if you are the one responsible for spoiling your own credit rating, then the following recipe needs to be put to use to prevent any further damage and improve the credit rating:

1. If you can, then wipe off any long standing debt on your credit card account as soon as possible

2. Ensure that you are making timely payments of your monthly installments for any loans or home mortgages that you might have taken.

3. Do not apply for too many loans or credit cards all at once.

4. Do not overspend on your credit cards. In fact try to remain within 70-75 of the total credit limit available to you.

5. Opening a credit card account with a department store you shop with frequently can also help in repairing your credit rating. Just make sure that you make the payments with the newly acquired credit card and pay your credit card bills in time.

6. Ensure that you are following all the safety and fraud protection instructions to prevent yourselves from becoming a target of the fraudsters. These include basic things like signing at the back of your credit card when it first arrives and destroying all the credit account related documents before binning them.

7. If you find it difficult to handle the situation all by yourselves, don't hesitate to take professional help. Even though you have to shell out a small fee for such an advice, it can benefit you a lot in the long run and save much more for you.

Remember that a good credit card rating can go a long way in making your future credit requests/transactions smooth and a bad one can be an obstacle. So give it the attention it deserves. Also, a good credit rating cannot be gained overnight but only through a responsible and disciplined attitude towards your credit related transactions over a period of time.