Consumer complaint received 2023-02-07
Company: EQUIFAX, INC.
State: CA
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:
According to Title 15 USC 1681 ( a ) ( 1 ), it's important for the banking system to have accurate and fair consumer reports. After reviewing my own consumer report, I noticed that it contains inaccurate information and I was never notified about it. This lack of notification has led me to question the procedures and reliability of your company, and as a result, I will no longer be extending credit. If this information is not removed, I no longer want my information to be included in your company 's database.

Title 15 USC 1681 ( a ) ( 2 ) says that your company has a responsibility to act with fairness and impartiality, but this mistake has caused harm to my reputation and has negatively impacted my credit worthiness.

Title 15 USC 1681 ( a ) ( 3 ) states that your company can not assume the role of reporting information without my permission or a court order. The fact that you failed to investigate the accuracy of the information and assumed it was valid is a violation of my consumer rights.

Title 15 USC 1681 ( a ) ( 4 ) requires that the information included in my consumer report must be accurate, but your company failed to ensure this. You made a one-sided decision without consulting me and as a result, my privacy was breached, which is a violation of my right to privacy. 

Title 15 USC 1681a ( d ) ( 2 ) ( A ) ( I ) says that transactions between the consumer and the person reporting the information should not be included in the consumer report. The information that your company is reporting without investigating its validity is a transaction between the consumer and the person making the report, and therefore should not be included in my report, which is a violation of my consumer rights.

Title 15 USC 1681a ( d ) ( 2 ) ( A ) ( III ) requires that consumers be given the opportunity to deny information included in their consumer report. However, I was never given this opportunity, which is another violation.

Title 15 USC 1681a ( B ) states that authorization for a specific extension of credit such as a credit card should not be included in the consumer report. The information that your company is reporting without investigating its validity falls under this category and should not be included in my report. 

Title 15 USC 1681a ( e ) outlines the requirements for producing an investigative consumer report, including conducting thorough investigations and verifying information from multiple sources. The Fair Credit Reporting Act ( FCRA ) regulates the production of consumer reports and sets strict guidelines to protect consumers from inaccurate or incomplete information. Companies producing consumer reports are required to conduct reasonable investigations, provide consumers with a copy of the report upon request, and inform the consumer of the sources of the information included in the report. 

In short, my consumer report contains inaccurate information and I was never given the opportunity to correct it. This is a violation of my consumer rights and the laws set forth by the FCRA. It's important for companies to conduct thorough investigations and ensure the accuracy of the information in consumer reports to protect the rights of consumers. 


On XX/XX/XXXX a FRIDAY a dispute was opened. By XX/XX/XXXX the investigation was complete. XXXX was a weekend. Banks and final institutions are closed including your company! By XX/XX/XXXX you had results of an investigation! It took you 3 days to investigate a error in my report. How extensive and thorough was your investigation?? You took a decision without asking for my opinion and because of that, my privacy was broken. This means that my right to keep my information private was not respected. You also didn't check to see if the information was true before using it, which is against my rights as a consumer. 

Pursuant Title 15 USC 1681a ( e ) - The production of an " investigative consumer report '' involves obtaining information about a consumer 's character, reputation, personal characteristics, or lifestyle through personal interviews with their neighbors, friends, associates, or others who may have knowledge of the consumer.

Which one of my neighbors, friends, associates, or others did you interview aside from the creditor? Seems like you didn't investigate much at all.

It seems to me like anyone can cause me harm and apply for accounts under the name XXXX XXXX XXXX and have it reported to my consumer report without your company verifying or investigating much. At this point anyone can use my private and personal information and any company can self verify the information and claim ints valid. 

In conclusion, the production of an investigative consumer report requires a thorough investigation to ensure the accuracy and reliability of the information included in the report. The FCRA provides the legal framework for the production of consumer reports and helps to ensure that consumers are protected against the dissemination of inaccurate or incomplete information. 

FAILURE TO ACT WITH FAIRNESS, IMPARTIALITY AND RESPECT TO MY PRIVACY WILL RESULT IN A DEFAMATION LAWSUIT.

Company response to consumer: Closed with explanation