How do I fix incorrect information on a microchip record?

Wrong information on a microchip record — a stale phone number, a typo in an address — is a significant cause of failure to reunite shelter intake pets with their families.^[1] Wrong information must be fixed at the registry, and typically your vet's office will not be able to do this for you.

Who do I contact — the vet, the manufacturer, or the registry?

The registry, specifically. A vet or shelter can scan a chip and tell you what registry it's found in, but they typically don't have access to change the information on the registration. The chip's manufacturer made the physical hardware but is not necessarily involved in registration. Only the registry that actually holds the record can change it — usually through an account you log into directly, sometimes through a support request if the registry doesn't offer self-service editing.

What if I don't know which registry has the chip?

The AAHA Universal Microchip Lookup Tool searches participating registries by chip ID number and reports back which one has a record^[2] — see checking whether a chip is already registered for the full process.

What if the chip was registered by someone else — a breeder or a shelter?

Typically the registry will have a process that allows the new owner to claim the registration and manage it from their own account. See how transferring a registration works for an example of that process.

Sources

1. Characterization of animals with microchips entering animal shelters Lord LK, Ingwersen W, Gray JL, Wintz DJ. Journal of the American Veterinary Medical Association 235(2):160–167, 2009
2. Universal Pet Microchip Lookup Tool American Animal Hospital Association