Consumer complaint received 2022-08-15
Company: Experian Information Solutions Inc.
State: CA
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:
In XX/XX/XXXX, I moved from Idaho to XXXX XXXX. I opened an account with XXXX. I rarely used this account, as I kept my main bank in Idaho. On XX/XX/XXXX, I went in to their XXXX XXXX branch to make a cash deposit. The teller informed me I no longer had an account at XXXX. I was flabbergasted. She informed me the account had been charged off, and they had closed it. I asked how much it needed to be brought to a {$0.00} balance, she told me it was {$170.00}. I immediately paid it. I was confused and had more questions, but I was rushed out. XXXX had closed several locations due to COVID, leading to more customers visiting one location and less staff. They wanted you to get in and out as quickly as possible.

I later went back to the branch, asking how this was possible. A banker printed off my statements. I had been completely unable to access my bank statements online- I had been locked out of my online account without notice when XXXX charged off my account. Upon seeing the statements, I saw several car insurance payments for " XXXX  XXXX, '' and several fast food or XX/XX/XXXX trips that I know I never made. I also do not have XXXX XXXX, I have had XXXX XXXX ever since I got my drivers license. 

The only person who would be able to do this was my roommate at the time. He used my other bank card ( XXXX in Idaho ) but since there were more funds in that account it did not cause an issue like this. The banker told me the charge off showed on my credit report, which floored me. I asked how to fix it, and he said I could file a dispute, but my chances weren't good since it had been over 60 days since the account was charged off. In XX/XX/XXXX, I filed this dispute, but as I expected, it was denied. 

I continued to try fighting the mark on my credit report with the credit reporting agencies throughout XXXX and XXXX. I couldn't get anywhere, and each dispute resulted in being told to go back to XXXX with my complaint. 

Several visits to XXXX  and conversations with bankers were fruitless. I kept being told I was out of luck since so much time had passed ; they disregarded the fact that their COVID closures made it extremely difficult to talk to anyone. I kept being told I should have checked my statements, which was impossible since my online account was inaccessible and I later discovered my roommate had been discarding the printed statements that had been mailed. 

This lead me to file a complaint with the Better Business Bureau, where I was connected with XXXX XXXX at XXXX ( see attached correspondence ). She has been completely unsympathetic and insists it is my fault for not checking the statements. It has been so incredibly frustrating. Not only was I stolen from, my credit is now destroyed because I was a victim of fraud, and XXXX refuses to fix my report. I have even offered to file a police report against my roommate from XXXX, and I was told it would not affect their decision. 

To summarize, I was a victim of crime as my roommate stole my card and used it to sign up for his car insurance payments, causing the account to close and default. I had absolutely no idea my account was even closed until I was in a branch trying to make a deposit. The teller did not tell me it affected my credit report, so I had no reason to file a dispute. It wasn't until I met with a banker that I found out why my account was closed and that it was on my credit report, but it was now past the 60 day requirement to file a dispute. My appeals to XXXX, the credit reporting agencies, and now the XXXX have gone nowhere. I had a credit score above 700 before this, and am now barely over 600. This is the only derogatory mark on my report, and it's for a crime that was committed against me, which blows my mind, and I can not understand how or why XXXX will not help.

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