Consumer complaint received 2023-01-12
Company: EQUIFAX, INC.
State: TX
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:
XX/XX/XXXX Sent Priority Mail and XXXX XXXX XXXX XXXX 
ATTN : Fraud Operations XXXX XXXX XXXX XXXX XXXX XXXX, Utah XXXX XXXX : XXXX Sent Priority Mail Capital XXXX, XXXX. 
XXXX XXXX XXXX XXXX XXXX XXXX XXXX XXXX, XXXX XXXX XXXX, Texas XXXX XXXX Priority Mail XXXX XXXX XXXX XXXX XXXX XXXX XXXX XXXX XXXX XXXX XXXX XXXX XXXX XXXX XXXX XXXX, Texas XXXX RE : Notice of Claims and Demand for Payment relating to XXXX Credit Card ending in XXXX, XXXX XXXXXXXX XXXX XXXX Case No. XXXX, CFPB Complaint No. XXXX, and FTC Report XXXX. XXXX Dear Legal Departments of XXXX XXXXXXXX and XXXX and Company : I represent XXXX XXXX ( XXXX ending in XXXX ). I write to provide notice of my clients claims against XXXX XXXX and XXXX and Company for their fraudulent and grossly negligent conduct and for XXXX XXXX violations of, inter alia, the Texas Debt Collection Act, the Texas Deceptive Trade Practices Act. I hereby demand that XXXX  XXXX and XXXX, jointly and severally, tender payment to my client in the amount of XXXX XXXX XXXX XXXX XXXX AND XXXX/XXXX USD ( {$51000.00} ) and that XXXX XXXX immediately : ( i ) permanently close the XXXX credit card account ending in XXXX ; ( ii ) permanently remove all interest and late fees applied to the account ; ( iii ) cease reporting negative credit activity to the credit bureaus regarding the account ; and ( iv ) take all actions necessary for the credit bureaus to remove all information related to the fraudulent account and fraudulent charges. If these demands are not timely met, one or more lawsuits will be filed against XXXX XXXX and XXXX. 

In XX/XX/XXXX my client became aware that his personal information and social security number had been used by an unknown person ( s ) to fraudulently open various credit cards. The person ( s ) had presented themselves in person at several stores and applied for credit cards when purchasing goods using my clients social security number, address, and telephone number. One of these credit cards was a XXXX credit card ending in XXXX that was used on an approximately {$3200.00} in-store purchase at the time the account was opened. 

My clients credit monitoring service notified him of the fraudulent account openings, and my client immediately contacted XXXX XXXX to resolve the fraudulent XXXX account. After multiple discussions with XXXX XXXX, XXXX XXXX represented to my client in XX/XX/XXXX that my client was not responsible for the charges and that it had had closed the account. This representation was false. Instead, XXXX XXXX has continued to charge late fees to the account, continued reporting balances to credit bureaus, and reported delinquent payment statuses to the credit bureaus each month. Each month since XXXX XXXX false XX/XX/XXXX representations, my client has been required to contact XXXX XXXX to dispute his ownership of the account and responsibility for XXXX XXXX charges. Every month, XXXX XXXX represents to my client that he is not responsible for the charges and that the account has been closed. Despite these repeated representations by XXXX XXXX, my client continues to find himself battling XXXX XXXX to clear XXXX Ones false credit reports. 

Worse, beginning in XXXX, XXXX XXXX came up with a new excusemisrepresenting that XXXX XXXX did not have documentation necessary to review my clients claims. My client again properly completed and submitted an Identify Fraud Information Form, confirming that he : did not apply for or request this account; did not receive a XXXX XXXX credit card ending in XXXX ; did not receive any money, merchandise, or services in association with this account ; has not authorized or directed any individual to seek credit in his name ; and has not authorized any charges, including mail, internet and/or telephone orders on the credit card ending in XXXX. 

Indeed, not only did my client neither open the account nor authorize the charges, but my client also has never been to XXXX let alone ever purchased anything from XXXX. Simply put, the charges XXXX claims my client made is fraudulent. Indeed, it appears that XXXX XXXX and XXXX failed to implement proper controls, training, and procedures to prevent fraudulent in-store creation of credit card accounts. Despite all of this, XXXX XXXX refuses to complete its fraud investigation, to close the account with no charges, fees, or penalties assessed to my client, and to remove the false information XXXX XXXX is currently reporting to the credit bureaus. XXXX XXXX even refuses to respond to my clients complaint to the Consumer Protection Financial Bureau and to provide information to my client that validates the alleged debt. 

The negligence, gross negligence, fraud, and illegal acts by XXXX XXXX and XXXX are causing significant damage to my client. My client, who has never carried a past due balance or had a delinquent credit card, now faces severe impacts on his credit score, which has been lowered approximately XXXX points. This is particularly problematic for my client who is a self-employed financial professional and certified public accountant an otherwise XXXX XXXX track record. 

The actions and inactions of XXXX  XXXX constitute violations of the Texas Debt Collection Act ( TDCA ), which importantly defines a debt collector to include not only to third-party debt collectors but also direct creditors such as XXXX XXXXXXXX here. See Tex. Fin. Code 392.001 ( 6 ). XXXX XXXX has violated the TDCA by : representing to the credit bureaus that my client is willfully refusing to pay a non-disputed consumer debt when the debt is in dispute and my client has notified XXXX XXXX of the dispute in writing ( Tex. Fin. Code 392.301 ( 3 ) ) ; attempting to collect interest, charges, and fees incidental to the obligation without an agreement between my client and XXXX XXXX authorizing such interest, charges, and fees ( Tex. Fin. Code 392.303 ( 2 ) ) ; collecting or attempting to collect after XXXX XXXX received written notice from my client that the check, draft, or payment was unauthorizedand even after my client provided XXXX XXXX his report of the unauthorized account and charges to law enforcement ( XXXXex. Fin. Code 392.303 ( 3 ) ) ; and misrepresenting the character, extent, or amount of a consumer debt ( Tex. Fin. Code 392.304 ( XXXX ) ). 

Capital Ones violations of the TDCA subject XXXX XXXX to liability not only for my clients actual damages but also attorneys fees, exemplary damages, and statutory damages. The TDCA is a Texas Deceptive Trade Practice Act ( DTPA ) tie-in statute, meaning that Capital Ones violations of the TDCA also constitute violations of the DTPA. Tex. Fin. Code 392.404. Thus, XXXX XXXX could find itself liable to treble actual damages ( which include mental-anguish damages ). XXXX XXXX should also be aware that each violation of the Texas Debt Collection Act constitutes a criminal misdemeanor punishable by fines. These remedies available to my client are in addition to the remedies available to my client against XXXX XXXX and XXXX for their grossly negligent conduct that created this problem in the first place. Moreover, XXXX XXXXXXXX is directly liable to my client for the negligent, grossly negligent, and fraudulent acts by XXXX pursuant to the Truth in Lending Act ( TILA ) and Regulation Z. See, e.g., 12 C.F.R. 1026.12 My client has suffered significant economic and emotional harm because of XXXXXXXX XXXX and Sakss actions and inactions. My clients economic damages include, but are not limited to, the time he lost trying to resolve the fraudulent account and the damage to his credit reputation. My client also has and continues to suffer severe humiliation, XXXX, and mental distress since the XXXX XXXX first began fraudulently reporting the accountlet alone the delinquent accountto the credit bureaus. The loss of his credit reputation and lost time has caused my client sleeplessness, loss of appetite, and a strained relationship with his family. Accordingly, on behalf of my client, demand is hereby made that within 60 days of receiving this letter, XXXX XXXX and XXXX pay, jointly and severally, the following amount to compensate my client for the damages XXXX XXXX and XXXX have caused : 1. {$25000.00} for economic damages suffered by my client ; 2. {$25000.00} for mental anguish damages suffered by my client ; and 3. {$1500.00} for legal expenses, including attorneys fees. 

In addition, I demand that XXXX XXXX immediately : ( i ) permanently close the account in question; ( ii ) permanently remove all interest and late fees applied to the account; ( iii ) cease reporting negative credit activity to the credit bureaus regarding the account; and ( iv ) take all actions necessary for the credit bureaus to remove all information related to the fraudulent account and fraudulent charges. 

Please understand that we bring this demand in the spirit of compromise. According to our analysis, our demand represents a tremendous savings to you given XXXXXXXX XXXX and XXXX potential exposure to my client. We hope you view this demand as a good faith, conservative effort on our part to resolve this potential litigation expeditiously on amicable terms. 

We trust you will immediately respond, in writing, to this formal demand letter and comply with all demands made herein within the timeframes specified. If you have any questions regarding this matter or need additional information, please contact me or have your attorney contact me. 

Very truly yours, XXXX XXXX XXXX XXXX XXXX XXXX XXXX XXXX XXXX XXXX XXXX XXXX XXXX XXXX, Texas XXXX XXXX Telephone : ( XXXX ) XXXX XXXX : ( XXXX ) XXXX XXXX cc : XXXX XXXX XXXX XXXX ( XXXX ) cc : Federal Trade Commission ( via additional online complaint ) cc : Consumer Protection Financial Bureau ( via additional online complaint ) cc : XXXX ( online dispute and Priority Mail ( XXXX XXXX XXXX, XXXX, TX XXXX ) ) cc : Equifax ( online dispute ) cc : XXXX ( online dispute and Priority Mail ( XXXX XXXX XXXX, XXXX, PA XXXX ) )

Company response to consumer: Closed with explanation