Consumer complaint received 2023-12-16
Company: EQUIFAX, INC.
State: FL
Product: Credit reporting or other personal consumer reports
Sub-product: Credit reporting
Issue: Problem with a company's investigation into an existing problem
Sub-issue: Their investigation did not fix an error on your report

Complaint:
I am a XXXX veteran and back in XXXX between XXXX and XXXX I was XXXX 4 times. When the hospital asked me about my insurance situation I told them I was covered by the VA for sure and possibly by XXXX XXXX  for the incident in XXXX They took both my VA ID card and my insurance card and photo copied both. For some reason though they marked me as self pay on the paper work. The hospital has admitted all of this and promptly removed {$35000.00} worth of debt in collections with XXXX XXXX XXXX XXXX  This debt was never report to the collection agencies though. 

The debt that was report to the collections bureau was from XXXX XXXX XXXX The doctors that worked on me while I was XXXX. They sold the debt to a debt collection company named XXXX XXXX XXXX, who then issued it to their subsidiary companies XXXX XXXX XXXX, and Ability Collections who then sent the debt to the 3 major bureau 's. I knew none of this because I thought the bills were paid back in XXXX because I reported the incidents to the VA and told the hospital who I gave my insurance information to, to bill the VA. 

In XX/XX/XXXX I applied for a debt consolidation loan I was sure I qualified for only to find I was in fact, not qualified because of recent accounts in collections. I then started the process of going through all this to figure what to do and how to handle this. I talked to the VA and was told I needed to have all the bills sent in to them and they could be denied, but if that happen there were protections for me under the law as long as the reasons for denial were as I had described. VA evidently paid 2 of the four claims and denied 2 claims. I have the electronic EOB statements for each case. 

Initially, I did not have the statements for the credit reporting agencies to attach to my dispute. However I do now and I am at the point were this is the third dispute for all three accounts in collections, with all 3 major consumer reporting agencies. XXXX, XXXX, and Equifax and I have stated to each agency I was a veteran, this issue was being handled by the VA, and I had spoken with the original creditor and was verbally told the accounts were removed from collections. One time on a monitored 3 way call with the VA. I asked XXXX XXXX XXXX to remove the accounts from collections and was told that had already been done back in XXXX. 

My question now is how if the original creditor has {$0.00} balance on all accounts with my name on them are these collections companies able to verify the debt that is owed to the reporting agencies? 

Which is what I was told was done in each dispute disclosure I received for all the accounts that I disputed. Equifax, XXXX, and XXXX have removed 1 account from my report and completed two investigations each. This is holding up my debt consolidation loan I need to get in place so I can afford some major dental work I need done. This is harming me both physically and mentally and a violation of federal law. 

I would like to assist the credit reporting companies in order to expedite there investigations. I ask the CFPB to intervene and ensure they actually do the type of investigation that they say they are doing in my dispute disclosures. Which I find difficult to believe because all of the actions I have taken to address these issue shows the investigations should be coming back in my favor. Unless someone is lying to me. If that's the case I need to know that as well.

Company response to consumer: Closed with explanation