Consumer complaint received 2020-09-17
Company: EQUIFAX, INC.
State: TX
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:
I am the victim of identity theft. I received a letter dated XX/XX/XXXX from XXXX XXXX which I received on XX/XX/XXXX " welcoming me to the XXXX XXXX family '' and " thanking me for cashing the convenience check they recently sent me. '' There was a section on the letter referring to the " details of your loan. '' I was utterly in shock and contacted the number on the letter immediately to find out what this was regarding. I spoke to the branch manager, XXXX XXXX. I told him I had no idea what this letter was regarding. The check they were referring to turned out to be an unsolicited pre-approved " live check '' that was mailed and made payable to me but was stolen from my mailbox and apparently cashed by the thief. I told XXXX XXXX that there had been more than one instance of our neighborhood mailboxes being broken into and that our Homeowners Association had video surveillance proving this which had been provided to both the USPS Office of Inspector General and the XXXX XXXX Sheriff 's Office.  XXXX XXXX informed me that I would need to come to his office in XXXX, Texas and fill out an affidavit stating that I was not the person who cashed the check. I dropped everything and immediately drove to his office. An employee gave me a photocopy of their check dated XX/XX/XXXX in the amount of {$2400.00} which had absolutely no visible endorsement on the back. They asked me to take this photocopy along with an " Affidavit of Check Fraud by Payee '' to their bank, XXXX XXXX, and have the affidavit notarized stating that I was not involved in any way with cashing this check. I immediately drove to their bank and had the document notarized and returned it immediately to XXXX XXXX and handed it to him personally. He asked me to complete a form titled " Forged Endorsement Victim 's Complaint and Affidavit '' while he witnessed me filling out the form and signing and dating it on 5 separate lines for signature comparisons. I gave him both of the affidavits he required and he made a photocopy of my drivers license. He also asked that I email him a copy of the police report which I had previously filed. I emailed him this police report immediately while sitting there talking to him. He confirmed he received the police report I emailed to him. As an extra measure of precaution, on XX/XX/XXXX I mailed, via certified mail, copies of all of the documents along with a letter stating that I was a victim of identity theft and that I was disputing the fraudulent account to XXXX XXXX XXXX  corporate office at XXXX XXXX XXXX, XXXX XXXX, XXXX, SC XXXX. Several days later, I received a letter from XXXX XXXX in XXXX, SC stating that they were in receipt of my Forged Endorsement fraud claim and that the " tradeline '' will be coded to reflect that the loan is in disputed status with the credit bureaus until the investigation is complete. The letter asked that I provide a copy of the police report, forged endorsement affidavit, drivers license, and forged endorsement victim 's complaint and affidavit. These are all of the same documents which I had already submitted both in person and via certified mail. I called XXXX XXXX and informed him I had received this letter and he told me that all of the documents had already been submitted for my claim and that I did not need to worry about this additional letter I had received from his corporate office. On XX/XX/XXXX, I received a notification from XXXX   that the XXXX XXXX account had been reported under my name. This caused a significant drop in my credit score. I immediately filed a dispute with XXXX  stating that this was a fraudulent account and I provided the police report and FTC Identity Theft Report. On XX/XX/XXXX, I received a notification from Equifax that the XXXX XXXX account had been reported under my name. This caused a significant drop in my credit score. I immediately filed a dispute with Equifax stating that this was a fraudulent account and I provided the police report and FTC Identity Theft Report. On XX/XX/XXXX, I inquired on the status of my dispute with XXXX  and was informed that XXXX XXXX had responded to my dispute that the account was accurate and that it would not be removed from my credit report. I was confused and livid at the same time. I have provided every shred of evidence that was requested to prove that this account does NOT belong to me! XXXX  informed me that they could open up another dispute and that I would need to mail copies of all of the documents to them. I immediately typed a letter and made copies and mailed everything to XXXX  via certified mail. On XX/XX/XXXX, I contacted Equifax to inquire on the status of my dispute and was informed that XXXX XXXX had responded to my dispute that the account was mine and would not be removed. I hereby demand that XXXX XXXX and/or XXXX XXXX STOP reporting this account under my name and social security number and remove the account from all of the credit bureaus. Having been a victim of identity theft and having to spend so much time and money mailing documented proof by certified mail has been a huge and stressful burden on me especially during the current pandemic. I never asked for any loan from this company, and I can not be held accountable for their practice of not even attempting to verify people 's identity before issuing loans under their name. This is a horrible business practice that negatively impacts consumers and it is exactly why we need the United States Congress to pass SB 3734 titled " Unsolicited Loan Act of 2018 '' : A bill to amend the Truth in Lending Act to prohibit the distribution of any check or other negotiable instrument as part of a solicitation by a creditor for an extension of credit, to limit the liability of consumers in conjunction with  such solicitations, and for other purposes. XXXX XXXX needs to stop wasting my time with this nonsense fraudulent account otherwise I will seek punitive damages. I will file a complaint with the Texas Attorney General 's office and I will contact my Congressmen regarding this matter.

Company response to consumer: Closed with explanation