Consumer complaint received 2022-09-30
Company: EQUIFAX, INC.
State: TX
Product: Credit reporting, credit repair services, or other personal consumer reports
Sub-product: Credit reporting
Issue: Improper use of your report
Sub-issue: Reporting company used your report improperly

Complaint:
On the Date of XX/XX/XXXX. I had sent a debt validation letter ( Copy of Letter is enclosed ) via certified mail with the tracking number of XXXX XXXX XXXX XXXX XXXX ( Copy of tracking information is enclosed ) to the debt collection company of XXXX XXXX XXXX  with the account numbers of XXXX & XXXX. Under 15 U.S.C 1692g- Within 5 days after the initial communication with a consumer in connection with the collection of any debt, a debt collector shall unless following information is contained in the initial communication or the consumer has paid the debt, send a consumer a written notice. On this above, date ( XX/XX/XXXX ), I had requested validation on these debts and with 24 specific items within this letter to verify that the alleged debt belongs to me. Included in this request was a copy of the original contract that bears my signature, payoff disclosure, interest rate disclosure, payment history, & Credit insurance. etc. To this date ( XX/XX/XXXX ) none of this information has been sent to me, except for billing statements that has none of the information that I initially requested in the debt validation letter. According FCRA & FDCPA - Any debt that can not be validated after the consumer has informed that debt collection agency and that debt can not be validate with the request, it must be removed. I am asking that these debts be removed from the credit bureaus ( XXXX, XXXX XXXX Equifax ) and from my credit files. XXXX XXXX XXXX or XXXX have had a long history about deceiving consumers in a attempt to satisfy requirements that doesn't satisfy consumers demands and in my opinion doesn't adhere to the FDCRA & FRCA requirements. I have enclosed a brief that was filed by the CFPB in a Administrative Proceeding against XXXX XXXX XXXX, XXXX in XXXX of XXXX - In this brief ( Brief Enclosed ) ( Page 17 in particular ) CFPB - stipulates that " XXXX XXXX XXXX are aware that consumers dispute, challenged, or questioned the validity or accuracy of the Debt and ( Respondent - XXXX ) failed to review information that would be necessary to have a reasonable basis to continue collecting on that Debt '' Also, " XXXX had knowledge or reason to believe, based on contractual terms or past performance or accounts sold by a seller, that a specific portfolio of accounts contained unreliable data, but Respondent ( XXXX ) failed to obtain and review information that would have been necessary to have a reasonable basis to collect on the Debt ''. Lastly, '' the representations are material because they are likely to affect a consumer 's choice or conduct regarding how to respond to an allegedly outstanding Debt and are likely to mislead Consumers acting reasonably under the circumstance ''. This came from the brief that CFPB filed against XXXX - In essence, XXXX is not doing a proper investigation of the claims that by law they are supposed to do. I have requested that they do a proper investigation, but according to your filing and still to this day, they are not doing one. And they are violating your consent order of XXXX. I can not under any other means to rectify my credit reports with this company, because they don't follow the law. I had asked the credit bureaus to conduct an investigation of my dispute, however they came back and said that the accounts are verified, but how can that be when the debt collection agency is not conducting a thorough investigation of my claims. As a consumer, I have the right to challenge any inaccurate information on my credit file and the credit bureaus are not making sure that a legitimate investigation is happening. 15 USC. 1681s2 ( A ) ( 1 ) - A person shall not furnish any information relating to a consumer to any consumer reporting agency if the person knows or has reasonable cause to believe that the information is inaccurate. According to this statue/law this is what XXXX and the credit bureaus are doing to me and I want it taken care of. Also, on XX/XX/XXXX- The FTC & CFPB filed an Amicus Brief defending a consumers Ability to Dispute Inaccurate Items on Credit Reports ( Document Enclosed ) The FTC & CFPB brief says- Under the FCRA " consumers are entitled to be notified about the outcome of their disputes and must be given the opportunity to address any problems with their dispute claims. I want to dispute these accounts on my credit report and this debt collection agency with its history will not allow me to get away with this because they will not do an investigation and the bureaus will not make sure that the investigation adheres to the law. Because of these issues, I have also filed a consumer compliant with the Texas Attorney General office as well ( Complaint Enclosed ). I wanted them to be put on notice of the problems that I am having with this company. Please inform me of the CFPB decision with this matter. Thank you

Company response to consumer: Closed with explanation