Consumer complaint received 2024-09-23
Product: Credit reporting or other personal consumer reports — Credit reporting
Issue: Problem with a company's investigation into an existing problem — Their investigation did not fix an error on your report
Company: AMERICAN EXPRESS COMPANY (NE)

Follow-Up on Complaint XXXX : Request for Removal of Unverified Charge-Offs XXXX and American Express I am writing to follow up on Complaint Number XXXX regarding the failure of XXXX and American Express to comply with the Fair Credit Reporting Act ( FCRA ) in the reporting of inaccurate and unverified information on my credit report. Specifically, this concerns the reporting of a charge-off by American Express that remains unverified. 

I previously submitted a dispute regarding the American Express account which reflects a charge-off with a balance of {$4900.00}. XXXX claimed that this information was verified, but neither American Express nor XXXX has provided any verifiable documentation to support this charge-off. Under the FCRA, all reported information must be both 100 % verifiable and accurate. Without proper validation, this charge-off should not be reflected on my credit report. 

I believe this debt claim is erroneous, and I have not been provided with any documentation proving its validity. Under the doctrine of estoppel by silence ( as established in XXXX XXXX XXXXXXXX XXXX XXXX XXXX XXXX XXXX XXXX, XXXX ), the lack of response or provision of proof from both XXXX and American Express leads me to presume that no proof of the alleged debt exists. Therefore, the debt itself does not exist, and the charge-off should be removed from my credit report. 

The following federal statutes apply to this situation : 15 U.S. Code 1635 : Requires creditors to provide full and accurate information.

15 U.S. Code 1692g : Mandates that debt collectors validate debts and provide detailed information regarding the debt.

15 U.S. Code 1601 : Requires creditors to disclose the terms of credit, which has not been done.

15 U.S. Code 1681b : Restricts the furnishing of credit information unless permissible purposes are met, which has not been validated in this case.

Specific Violations : 1. Failure to Provide Verifiable Documentation : American Express has failed to provide the original contract or agreement that would demonstrate my legal obligation to repay the debt.

2. Improper Reporting of Charge-Off : Even if the charge-off were legitimate ( which has not been proven ), American Express has not provided a full account history that shows the transactions, charges, and payments applied to the debt. Without this, the charge-off is unverified and improperly reported.

3. Failure to Validate Debt : If American Express is not the original creditor, no evidence has been provided to establish their legal right to report this charge-off. This includes any documentation that demonstrates a proper chain of title from the original creditor to American Express. 

I request that XXXX and American Express either provide verifiable documentation supporting the reported charge-off or remove this unverified charge-off from my credit report within the legally mandated four-day period under the FCRA. 

If this issue is not resolved within the required timeframe, I intend to escalate the matter by pursuing legal action and filing a formal complaint with the Attorney Generals office for violations of my rights under the FCRA. 

The continued reporting of this unverified charge-off has caused significant financial and emotional harm. I respectfully request that the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau ( CFPB ) investigate this matter and ensure that XXXX and American Express comply with federal law. 

Thank you for your attention to this matter. I look forward to a swift resolution.