Consumer complaint received 2021-09-15
Company: EQUIFAX, INC.
State: VA
Product: Credit reporting, credit repair services, or other personal consumer reports
Sub-product: Credit reporting
Issue: Problem with a credit reporting company's investigation into an existing problem
Sub-issue: Their investigation did not fix an error on your report

Complaint:
I have contacted Equifax numerous times regarding a discrepancy in the factors they have been using to determine my credit score. Since XX/XX/2021, I have contacted Equifax regarding my credit score. Upon logging into MyEquifax account, my credit score and a section called 'Factors affecting your credit score ' is displayed below the score.

The first sub-section is called 'Helping your credit score ' and list the following : 1. The balances on your accounts are not too high compared to loan limits 2. The date that you opened your oldest account is not too recent 3. You have few or no accounts that were opened recently 4. Date your oldest bankcard or credit account opened is not too recent The second sub-section is called 'Hurting your credit score ' and list the following : 1. Lack of sufficient relevant real estate account information 2. Lack of sufficient credit history 3. You have too many delinquent or derogatory accounts 4. The total of all balances on your open accounts is too high.

The factors listed in the 'Hurting your credit score ' are erroneous as they apply to my credit accounts. The age of my oldest account is 34 years with the average age of my accounts being 5 years. I have 14 o
pen revolving accounts and 3 open installment accounts. I do not have any delinquent or derogatory accounts. All 17 of my open accounts have 0 late payments. I do not have any accounts in collections nor do I have adverse public accounts. I do not have any hard inquiries. Of the 17 accounts, 10 have XXXX  balances. There are 4 revolving accounts with balances. The credit utilizations are 31 %, 6 %, 18 % and 78 %. The account showing 78 % does not have an updated balance at this time. It was reported on XXXX XXXX as {$1900.00}. However, the current balance is {$100.00}, which means it has a 5 % credit utilization. However, the higher utilization on one account should not be more impactful to my score than the lower utilization rates of 16 accounts with exceptional payment histories. 

Given the above facts regarding my credit profile, Equifax is using false factors to determine my credit score. I have sufficient credit history, I do not have any delinquent or derogatory accounts, nor do I have a high balance on my open accounts. 

I have included screenshots of my XX/XX/2021 credit report. I have also included the factors that Equifax is using to determine my credit score. This evidence will prove the facts that I've stated above. 

Further, factors used by Equifax in the Factors Helping your Score section directly contradict factors used in the Factors Hurting your Score. For example, Equifax states 'The date that you opened your oldest account is not too recent ' and 'You have few or no accounts that were opened recently ' in the Helping section but then state 'Lack of sufficient credit history ' in the Hurting section. Once more, Equifax states 'The balances on your accounts are not too high ... ' in the Helping section but then state 'The total of all balances on your open accounts is too high ' in the Hurting section. 

Equifax 's unfair practice of using false factors to determine my credit score has harmed my credit rating, my ability to obtain credit and/or my ability to obtain a reasonable interest rate based upon my credit score. Equifax has failed to take my concerns, complaints and disputes seriously regarding this matter and therefore have not offered an explanation of this unfair practice or a solution to resolve the issue and provide a fair credit rating.

Company response to consumer: Closed with explanation