Consumer complaint received 2020-08-21
Company: EQUIFAX, INC.
State: IL
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: Investigation took more than 30 days

Complaint:
The Fair Credit Reporting Act, 15 U.S.C. 1681, is U.S. Federal Government legislation enacted to promote the accuracy, fairness, and privacy of consumer information contained in the files of consumer reporting agencies. It was intended to protect consumers from the willful and/or negligent inclusion of inaccurate information in their credit reports. To that end, the FCRA regulates the collection, dissemination, and use of consumer information, including consumer credit information. Together with the Fair Debt Collection Practices Act, the FCRA forms the foundation of consumer rights law in the United States. It was originally passed in XXXX, and is enforced by the US Federal Trade Commission, the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau and private litigants. 

This complaint is to advise that Equifax has failed to honor our rights under the FCRA act which gives  us the right to obtain a FULL, COMPLETE, PRINTED copy of our credit reports upon request! The option to dispute, delete, suppress and opt out of inaccurate consumer reporting. 

On XX/XX/XXXX, my daughter and I submitted an online request at XXXX to receive copies of our credit reports! We were denied access because we failed to answer security questions correctly due to the information not belonging to us. Her report was asking questions about me and my report was asking questions about her. We were also being asked questions that we thought didn't apply to us because neither of us have accounts associated with some of the security questions asked. That same day, we called Equifax and spoke to someone over the phone and requested to receive copies of our credit reports to be mailed to us! The agent was not from the United States so there was a language barrier issue. The agent continued to ask us NONE specific questions like, do you have a car loan, student loan or mortgage that was obtained within the last 2 years and if so, what is the name of the provider, original loan amount and monthly payment due. Every time we gave him our student loan information he would ask if we had anything else. Any other loans. We continued to name each student loan listed on our XXXX XXXX accounts because we didn't have physical copies of the reports and needed them to see the accuracy of everything. We continued to fail verification even though we provided information exactly as presented on the XXXX XXXX app. The agent was confused about how to pronounce the words, when we asked him to spell things, he got mad and eventually hung up on us. 

On XX/XX/XXXX we tried calling Equifax again requesting copies of our credit reports. We received another NONE United States agent. This time the questions made a little more since but the agent still was confused about the difference of HAD and HAVE. We asked him if he was saying H.A.D as in old and closed or H.A.V.E as in current and opened. He said either one would be fine. So we gave him our CURRENT account information and failed verification again! We requested a supervisor and he hung up on us instead! 

On XX/XX/XXXX we called Equifax to request a copy of our credit reports and spoke to another NONE US Citizen. She was very polite at first and then got upset when we asked her speak a little slower so that we can understand what she was saying. She said that she had other calls that she needed to take and didn't have time to keep talking to us. We asked for her supervisor and she said that there wasn't an available supervisor but she could take our number and have one call us back. We told her that we didn't have a phone so we'd like to just continue waiting on hold. She hung up on us. 

On XX/XX/XXXX, we called Equifax and spoke to an agent that was able to assist us properly. He was understanding of our concerns and promised that we'd receive our credit reports within the next 7-10 business days. We never received a copy of the reports. 

On XX/XX/XXXX, my daughter and I called CFPB and submitted a complaint # XXXX against Equifax and it read as follows : " My complaint is that the credit report is adding us as aliases of one another so my information is on my daughter credit report and her information is on my credit report. We have send in documentation several time to proof that we are not the same individual, they have refuse to separate us. Even though we have different last name, different social security and different date of birth. They have refuse to send us both copies of our most resent credit report. We requested they put a freeze on both of our credit report and they haven't done so. They have fails to verify the accuracy of the information that they are adding to both of our credit report. This causing us both to be denied credit, apartments and other assistance the information that we giving them is not matching with the information that is been reported to our credit report. We have requested the they separate us and they haven't done so. '' The CFPB agent didn't include exactly what we advised her to say but, it was close enough! So we just waited for a response from Equifax. On XX/XX/XXXX, Equifax responded to the CFPB that they needed more time, they were still working on the complaint, that they would do an investigation and send us copies of our credit reports after the investigation was done. On XX/XX/XXXX, 35 days later, the company closed out the complaint stating that they needed more information from us. Therefore, refusing to send us copies of our credit reports and no information regarding the investigation. So basically, they just stalled out the process only to deny us access to our credit reports again! 

On XX/XX/XXXX, we filed another complaint # XXXX with CFPB because Equifax kept reporting incorrect information. The complaint read as follows : " Company reported the incorrect balances in XXXX, XXXX & XX/XX/XXXX. Investigation didnt resolve the problem. Only made it worse. My credit score decreased by 79 points because the company reported balances that were not equivalent to the actual statement balances. Theyre reporting balances AFTER the statement closes which are higher. I was denied credit and denied credit line increases because my utilization has been at 58 % or higher because of their errors instead of being at the recommended 30 % or less. '' Equifax responded on XX/XX/XXXX stating that they'd completed the investigation and send us the results after the credit card companies respond to them. We have received no results, no credit reports, no information from the credit bureau at all. Another refusal to give us access to our reports! 

On XX/XX/XXXX, I registered and paid for the 3-in-1 report and scores from XXXX  because I was not successful with Equifax directly. I reviewed the report and called Equifax to request deletion of all incorrect personal information. I asked that ALL misspelled names, addresses, phone numbers, employers, fraud alert and inquiries are removed, deleted and suppressed effective immediately. I also requested to be permanently removed and opted out of all soliciting, marketing, promotional offers and information sharing or selling. I advised the agent that I did not want anyone to be able to access my credit report without my permission. We added a security freeze! I was not provided with a pin number nor was I able to create my own. I also requested to receive a NEW, FULL, COMPLETED, PRINTED copy of my report AND a separate copy of the investigation. As of today, XX/XX/XXXX, I have received nothing. No credit report or investigation results. 

On XX/XX/XXXX, I printed, mailed and faxed a dispute letter to Equifax regarding incorrect information being reported on my credit report. As of today, XX/XX/XXXX, I have not received a response, no investigation results, no new credit report. ( Letter Attached ) On XX/XX/XXXX, my daughter and I called Equifax again! Requested the same information above less the security freeze! We requested a FULL, COMPLETE, PRINTED copy of our credit reports and to be opted out of soliciting, information sharing, marketing and for our files to be suppressed. This company is fraudulently reporting incorrect information for my daughter and I. They are fraudulently reporting that we are the same person. They are illegally reporting that we are aliases of one another. We do have the same first name only and different last names. She's my daughter so we have resided at the same addresses and we've been authorized on each other 's credit cards, etc BUT we have different date of birth 's and different social security numbers. This company has failed to verify any type of facts before sharing personal information and details. Because the names are similar, they never take the time to confirm and verify if it is the same person or not. They have caused my daughter and I to be declined credit, declined rental assistance, rejected applications and higher interest rates and security deposits. They have never verified if we are the same person or not even though our information is completely different. Both of our information is listed on each other 's credit reports, public records, background checks, employment history, 3 major credit reporting agencies, insurance reports, etc ... We are requesting that this company completely remove all incorrect information listed in the attached letters effective immediately! We are requesting that the company sends each of us SEPARATE copies of our credit reports and files for us to each review. We are requesting that a security freeze is added to both of our files so that no further misleading, misinformation, incorrect, fraudulent information is reported again. We are requesting that they refund us for the extra time and money that we had to pay out of pocket to dispute, repair and correct our profiles only for them to submit the incorrect information illegally again. We are requesting a refund of the extra interest rates that we were charged because our scores decreased due to incorrect reporting. We are requesting that this information is completed expeditiously and that it is not delayed or held up any further. This company stated that they have no control over what other company 's submit to them or have no control over what my score is or what my report reflects. This company continues to report the wrong name, spelling of my name, wrong last name, wrong addresses, wrong phone numbers and wrong credit information. This company has failed to send us a physical paper copy of our credit reports. I have called them consistently requesting a paper copy of my report. WE WANT A PHYSICAL COPY OF THE REPORT! WE DO NOT HAVE A PERSONAL COMPUTER, PRINTER, COPIER OR FAX MACHINE! SEND A PAPER STATEMENT OF THE ACTUAL REPORT! They have also failed to remove any incorrect information for me including personal information, credit inquires and credit accounts. WE NEED AN EXPEDITED, CURRENT COPY OF OUR CREDIT REPORT TO BE SENT TO US VIA OVERNIGHT SHIPPING EFFECTIVE IMMEDIATELY! '' They ask for our names, addresses, social security numbers and if we want to add a phone number to the profile. Each time, we tell them that we DO NOT WANT TO ADD A PHONE NUMBER TO THE PROFILE! We need a FULL, COMPLETE, PRINTED COPY TO BE MAILED US so that we can see what's actually in the report BEFORE we dispute it! OUR FULL NAME, SOCIAL SECURITY NUMBER, PHONE NUMBER, CREDIT ACCOUNT INFORMATION, ADDRESSES and EMPLOYERS need to ne CORRECTED IMMEDIATELY! WE NEED TO BE SEPARATED EFFECTIVE IMMEDIATELY! 

Equifax wants us to verify INCORRECT, INVALID INFORMATION THAT THEY HAVE LISTED IN THE CREDIT REPORTS! IT IS WRONG! IT IS NOT US! FIX IT! 

We don't get to choose what is or isn't reported. This explains why I was a victim of identity theft! They volunteer personal, sensitive, private information to individuals. They sell, market and share your information with anyone! I am requesting that the CFPB assists me with filing a lawsuit against this company effective immediately because my information has been listed on the dark web, emails and phone numbers have been comprised and cloned. I have been a victim of identity theft and could not figure out until now how individuals were able to obtain my information so easily. I have had to pay credit monitoring services, been denied credit, credit scores are at an all time low and I am consistently fighting with the credit bureaus regarding accounts, inquiries and information that doesn't belong me. This letter is to inform, request and advise Equifax that the personal information and accounts being reported by your company on our credit reports are inaccurate, incorrect and do not belong to either my daughter or myself and that I am officially notifying you that I am disputing the information and demanding that it is all deleted, removed and suppressed effective immediately! I recently disputed these accounts and personal information with the credit reporting bureaus that you are currently reporting to and the information was reported as verified and accurate. Im sure we both understand that most disputes are often conducted using software such as e-Oscar and that mistakes can and often are made during that process, it is a known fact that the software can have limitations when it comes to completing a proper investigation of records. We are disputing the information directly with you, the furnisher of information and I am requesting that you conduct an investigation as outlined in the FCRA Section 623 : If youre unable to perform a reasonable investigation and are unable to locate the necessary documents to investigate my disputes, then you are required by the FCRA to remove the negative information from our credit reports which can also include complete removal of the account. If you were able to conduct a proper investigation of the records for these accounts and have identified the information that was being incorrectly reported, you were supposed to furnish me with the proof immediately. But since you failed to supply us or furnish the reports immediately upon our requests and delayed sending us the information, you didn't abide by the FCRA law! We are also requesting that you send us an explanation of the methods used and a description of the records reviewed when you conducted your investigation ; including sending copies of that information to us so that we can conduct our own investigation into the accuracy of your records and verify that a reasonable investigation was completed. This letter was submitted to you via CFPB website complaint portal. If need be, the items will also be faxed, emailed and sent via US Mail. This letter is an attempt to correct the false or misleading information you are reporting on our consumer credit reports and to correct your records NOW! ALL INCORRECT INFORMATION REMOVED! ALL INCORRECT INFORMATION SUPPRESSED! WE NEED TO BE OPTED OUT OF YOUR MARKETING TACTICS! DO NOT SHARE, SOLICIT OR SELL OUR INFORMATION TO ANYONE ELSE! DO NOT REPORT INFORMATION TO ANY OTHER COMPANIES OR INDIVIDUALS EFFECTIVE IMMEDIATELY!

Company response to consumer: Closed with explanation