Consumer complaint received 2020-07-07
Company: Experian Information Solutions Inc.
State: VA
Product: Credit reporting, credit repair services, or other personal consumer reports
Sub-product: Credit reporting
Issue: Incorrect information on your report
Sub-issue: Information belongs to someone else

Complaint:
On XX/XX/2020 - I sent XXXX, XXXX and Experian certified letters requesting a block of information reporting as Unauthorized Charges from my Credit Report under FCRA 605B as a result of identity theft. I provided all three Credit Reporting Bureaus a copy of my FTC Identity Theft Report, proof of my identity and a copy of my credit report showing the fraudulent items. I requested each Agency to  please block this information from my credit report, as directed by section 605B of the Fair Credit Reporting Act, and to notify all furnishers of this information. 

On XX/XX/2020 - I contacted Experian to check the status of my fraud case after verifying that my certified letter had been received by Experian on XX/XX/2020 at XXXX and signed for by XXXX XXXX. I was notified by Experian Fraud department that they had not received my block information despite the tracking number information I provided. To date, Experian claims to have not received my official complaint package. 

On XX/XX/2020 I contacted Experian again to determine the status of my certified letter w/ my personal identifiable information included in the package. The Experian Supervisor advised me of the status, which at that time, was still unknown. Experian states that they have never received my certified letter & package, although I have evidence contradicting their claim. Furthermore, I provided the USPS Tracking # of the package in an effort to assist w/ locating my package. The Supervisor advised that she would give me a call before the close of business to provide an update. The Supervisor never returned my call. 

On XX/XX/2020 I filed a formal complaint with the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau regarding the aforementioned concerns. 

On XX/XX/2020 I filed an inquiry with the USPS regarding the status of my delivered package containing my personal identifiable information. USPS opened an investigation into the status of my package ( Service Request # XXXX ). 

On XX/XX/2020 I received an initial contact from the Postmaster of the local Post Office in XXXX, Texas acknowledging my inquiry and to provide an update to the current status, which at that time was simply a notification of the investigation. 

On XX/XX/2020 Experian returned the following response to Consumer Financial Protection Bureau ( CFPB ) : Company 's Response Thank you for submitting your complaint on XX/XX/2020 through the CFPB Complaint Portal. We reviewed and considered the information you have supplied through the CFPB portal. Your CFPB complaint regarding your reinvestigation does not appear to have been sent directly by you or to be authorized by you. As a precautionary measure, we have not taken any action on the request. According to the federal Fair Credit Reporting Act, " if the completeness or accuracy of any item of information contained in a consumers file at a national consumer credit reporting company is disputed by the consumer and the consumer notifies the company directly of such dispute, the company shall reinvestigate free of charge. '' Therefore, you can dispute any inaccurate information directly with Experian for free. If you believe that information in your personal credit report is inaccurate or incomplete, please call us at the phone number that displays on your Experian personal credit report, or visit our secure web site at www. experian.com/dispute. You also may write to us at the address on your Experian personal credit report. Be sure to include the following information : Your full name including middle initial ( and generation such as JR, SR, II, III ) Social Security number Complete addresses for the past two years Date of birth One copy of a government issued identification card, such as a drivers license, state ID card, etc. One copy of a utility bill, bank or insurance statement, etc. Make sure that each copy is legible and displays your name and current mailing  address and the date of issue ( statement dates must be recent ). We are unable to accept credit card statements, voided checks, lease agreements, magazine subscriptions, or postal service forwarding orders as proof of your address and identity. To protect your personal information, Experian requires your authorization for any request on your behalf and we do not return correspondence sent to us. Send copies of any documents you wish to provide to us and always retain your original documents. Include the account name and number for any item on your credit report that you wish to dispute, and state the specific reason why you feel the information is inaccurate. The dispute process may take up to 30 days ( 45 days when disputing information in your annual free credit report ). Once we complete the processing of your dispute, we will promptly notify you of the outcome. In addition, there is nothing a credit repair company can do for you, including removing inaccurate credit information that you cant do for yourself for free. We believe it is important to supply you with information about specific credit repair laws. The Credit Repair Organization Act, a  federal law, prohibits credit repair companies from taking consumers money until they have fully completed the services they promised. It also requires such firms to provide consumers with a written contract stating all the services to be provided and the terms and conditions of payment. Under this law, consumers also have three days to withdraw from the contract. Please contact your local Attorney Generals office for further information regarding your specific state laws. For additional assistance, you may call the toll free telephone number provided on your personal credit report obtained directly from Experian, or write to Experian at XXXX. XXXX XXXX, XXXX, TX XXXX. For more information regarding your credit and frequently asked questions, you may visit : http : //www.experian.com/blogs/ask-experian. Please note that you may also submit your request or documents supporting your claim electronically at www.experian.com/upload. You may also visit Experians dispute center by visiting www.experian.com/dispute. Thank you for submitting your complaint through the CFPB Complaint Portal.  It is our policy to respond to consumer complaints swiftly and to take each complaint seriously. We appreciate you letting us know about your experiences with Experian. 

On XX/XX/2020 I called the CFPB back after providing feedback to Experians response. I notified the CFPB that Experians response was unacceptable because there was no way this information could be from a third party as I was the person who filed the complaint and provided the documentation required to justify my complaint. The CFPB advised me that they closed the complaint out because the Company responded irrespective of sufficiency. The CFPB representative referred me to a legal resource in my area for additional assistance. 

On XX/XX/2020 I contacted Experian on a recorded line to question the status of the receipt of my certified documents. The Experian representative stated that my documents were NEVER received nor updated in their system. The representative requested tracking # information for my certified documents. I provided the tracking # and then I, asked to speak to a Supervisor. The representative placed me on hold while she located her Supervisor. I was on hold for roughly 10 minutes before the representative returned to notify me that her Supervisor would be with me momentarily. She asked to place me on hold for another several minutes until the Supervisor became available. After waiting online for another 15 minutes, someone returned to line and hung up abruptly. I called back to Experian and am currently on hold again Holding Time now is 15:10 minutes, still no Fraud representative available to discuss my matter further. 

On XX/XX/2020 I contacted a law firm to mitigate this complaint. 

I am thoroughly disappointed in the way this matter has been handled and request assistance in mitigating my complaint with Experian.

Company public response: Company has responded to the consumer and the CFPB and chooses not to provide a public response
Company response to consumer: Closed with explanation