Ready to cancel your credit card once and for all? Make sure you do it the right way. Here’s what you need to do:

1. To close a credit card account, you first need to make sure that there’s not a balance on the card. Call your credit card company to ensure that you do, in fact, have a zero balance. If not, you’ll need to pay off the card before moving forward.
2. After verifying your zero balance, tell the customer service representative that you’d like to close the account. Be prepared for a lot of offers designed to get you to keep your account open—anything from lower interest rates to no-interest transfer offers. Stand firm, if you are committed to terminating the account.
3. When the service representative closes the account, insist that a letter be sent stating that the account was closed per your request. The reason for doing this is that you don’t want it to look like the bank closed the account, which suggests payment default. As long as you have your letter, you’ll be able to dispute any inaccuracies on your credit report.
4. Stand firm again. That phone call won’t be the last time you hear from the credit card company. Expect to receive lots of plea letters in the mail trying to get you back as a customer.
5. If you have not received the letter you requested after a reasonable time, say 6 weeks, call and request that it be sent again. You are asking the customer-service representative to do something above-and-beyond the normal account closing, so it won’t always happen after the first request.
6. When the letter does come, file it away in a folder. Then you’re all set for any future credit-report inaccuracies.
7. Now you’re free to enjoy life one card lighter. Congratulations!