Consumer complaint received 2023-03-14
Company: TRANSUNION INTERMEDIATE HOLDINGS, INC.
State: CA
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:
This is a complaint about Transunion, XXXX and XXXX selling " event trigger '' information -- essentially selling my information to a gazillion lenders just because I applied for a loan ( the " event trigger '' ). The event trigger was also wrong because I wasn't applying for a mortgage, I was applying for a XXXX  loan ( yet I got a ton of unwanted calls all day long sometimes within minutes of each other from people trying to sell me a mortgage loan or refinance ). On XXXX I applied for a XXXX  loan over the phone with a local credit union XXXX XXXXXXXX XXXX XXXX ). On XXXX, a new credit inquiry ( hard credit pull ) was made by " XXXX XXXX. '' On XXXX starting at XXXX XXXX I received over 40 unsolicited phone calls and almost 10 unsolicited text messages ( I am still getting calls while typing this out ). I answered a few of these phone calls, they knew my name and tried to solicit me for mortgage loans and tried to pretend they knew me or that I knew them which made me pause before hanging up -- wasting my time! I was infuriated to find out that people had my name and number and were calling and texting me all day long, interrupting my work flow and calling me without my permission. I was expecting some real calls ( important calls ) and had to check my phone every single time it rang to make sure it wasn't a real call that I needed to pick up. I was infuriated to learn that Transunion, XXXX and XXXX are even allowed to sell " event trigger '' information to lenders. This is so unfair and predatory because if I need a loan, I have to have my credit checked ( no choice! ) and if I have my credit checked, it triggers an " event trigger '' which the credit bureaus then sell as a lead to a gazillion people who can now call me and pretend they know me because they know my name, wasting a ton of my time. I was so angry to find out that this was somehow legalized. I don't think it is fair for credit unions to sell my information like this, especially since if I want a loan I have to consent to a credit check there's no way around it. I learned through my own research after the fact that I have to go to XXXX  to opt out of being a victim of this predatory practice. I shouldn't have to opt out, especially since the damage is already done, my name and number are out there and not everyone will abide by the opt out rules. It should be and opt in not and opt out. If for some reason I wanted to be subjected to nonstop calls harassing me about getting a loan I never asked for and didn't need ( I do not need a mortgage loan or refinance right now ), it should be something I have to choose to Opt In for, not something I have to learn after the fact that I needed to Opt Out of. The average consumer has never heard of XXXX it is not my fault I didn't know about this. I asked a bunch of my friends, many of them are attorneys, they never heard of XXXX. I'm infuriated that nobody is fighting to change the law on this. In order for me to even understand what was happening to me I had to spend a lot of my precious time researching on the internet to even figure out why I was all of a sudden getting obliterated by call after call after call after call after call after call and text after text after text after text and so on. I blocked so many calls and deleted so many texts today. I am so mad at the credit bureaus for selling my information and MIScategorizing me as a mortgage shopper. I am in no way in the market for a mortgage or a mortgage refinance. I called Transunion today, XX/XX/, and asked them why I was getting tons of calls and messages, and right before calling Transunion I got a text from someone saying they got my info because Transunion, XXXX and XXXX reported that I was interested in a mortgage!! The person I spoke with at Transunion never brought up event trigger information, or that it was their fault. The person on the phone was either honestly ignorant or purposely ignorant which is even worse! I explained what was happening and the timeline of events and not one time did they say sorry, it's our fault, we sold your information and incorrectly said you were interested in mortgage loans. Instead they checked to see if any new mortgages were on my credit report which I didn't need because I could check my report online myself. It was extremely frustrating and if the person I spoke to at Transunion honestly didn't know what was happening, then there is a problem with Transunion because they are not providing their frontline employees with information to solve these infuriating problems that they created, it is almost as if they don't want people to know how to solve the problem, willful ignorance. Even opting out on XXXX did not do anything whatsoever to slow the volume of phone calls for me! I opted out this morning and continued to receive call after call after call after call. I received a call while typing this out right now! I don't know what CFPB can do to punish these credit agencies for this behavior, it should be illegal, we need to make it illegal. We need to stop the credit agencies- TRANSUNION, XXXX, XXXX, from selling our information, and then washing their hands clean when the people they sell the information to goes on to sell our information a second time, this time to even more unscrupulous vultures. It should not be something we are required to " Opt out '' of. By default we should be opted out. Please CFPB do something about this, this is why you were established is to help out the little guy, the consumer, because we need someone to have our backs! I can't change the law myself, nobody will listen to me, I don't have lobbyists or a ton of money to get someone to help me out here. 

Here are links to TRANSUNION, XXXX, and XXXX 's websites where they are hocking their event trigger services : XXXX XXXX XXXX XXXX XXXX XXXX XXXX XXXX XXXX Please do something about this CFPB! You guys are supposed to represent us the consumers! I know this may not be an easy one but it's important, it is just so unfair and predatory what they are doing. We don't have a choice if we need loans we have to have our credit checked through these agencies. Nobody wants to be solicited all day for loans, especially when you're not told it's going to happen and you didn't ask for it. I didn't ask for this. I shouldn't have to go to a website to opt out of this, I should automatically be opted out! Please help CFPB!

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