Consumer complaint received 2022-10-06
Product: Credit reporting, credit repair services, or other personal consumer reports — Credit reporting
Issue: Improper use of your report — Reporting company used your report improperly
Company: EQUIFAX, INC. (AZ)

This is a notice of dispute pursuant to the Fair Credit Reporting Act, section 623, subsection ( 8 ) ( D ). The specific information being disputed is the derogatory nature of the information you have furnished to the credit reporting agencies in connection with the above mentioned account. The basis for my dispute is your company was required to notify me prior to, or no later than 30 days after furnishing the negative information to the consumer reporting agencies, in writing ... that such furnishing of information was going to take place. This notification is required under the FCRA, section 623, subsection ( 7 ) ( A ). However, I am unable to locate documentation you complied with this requirement. 
Therefore, provide me proof of notification ( i.e. a copy of the actual notification sent ), and proof that it was delivered to me in a timely manner ( i.e. a dated certified mail delivery confirmation with my signature ). 
If you can not provide proof of notification and date of receipt, then you can not substantiate you followed the procedures required under the Fair Credit Reporting Act. In addition, by not being able to substantiate you performed your duties imposed under that title, you are now in direct violation of it. 
Therefore, the continued reporting of negative information to the credit reporting agencies in connection with the above mentioned account may constitute the furnishing of false information with malice or willful intent to injure me. 
To correct this error I suggest you modify the account accordingly, report the results of your investigation to the consumer reporting agencies to which you furnished the information, and provide me written verification thereof. 
You have 73 hours from the date you receive this notice to complete your investigation and respond pursuant to the Fair Credit Reporting Act, section 623 ( 8 ) ( E ) ( iii ).

In the event you fail to respond to this dispute or provide insufficient proof of notification and date of receipt, I will have no other choice but to seek administrative enforcement with all applicable agencies identified in section 621. In addition, I may also seek the assistance of a legal firm specializing in class action lawsuits. 

The FCRA prohibits information furnishers from providing information to a CRA that they know or have reasonable cause to believe is inaccurate. However, the furnisher is not subject to this general prohibition if it clearly and conspicuously specifies an address to which consumers may write to notify the furnisher that certain information is inaccurate. Sections 623 ( a ) ( 1 ) ( A ) and ( a ) ( 1 ) ( C ) If at any time a person who regularly and in the ordinary course of business furnishes information to one or more CRAs determines that the information provided is not complete or accurate, the furnisher must promptly provide complete and accurate information to the CRA. In addition, the furnisher must notify all CRAs that received the information of any corrections, and must thereafter report only the complete and accurate information. Section 623 ( a ) ( 2 ) If a consumer notifies a furnisher, at an address specified for the furnisher for such notices, that specific information is inaccurate, and the information is, in fact, inaccurate, the furnisher must thereafter report the correct information to CRAs. Section 623 ( a ) ( 1 ) ( B ).

If a consumer notifies a furnisher that the consumer disputes the completeness or accuracy of any information reported by the furnisher, the furnisher may not subsequently report that information to a CRA without providing notice of the dispute. Section 623 ( a ) ( 3 ).

The federal banking and credit union regulators and the FTC will issue regulations that will identify when an information furnisher must investigate a dispute made directly to the furnisher by a consumer. Once these regulations are issued, furnishers must comply with them and complete an investigation within 30 days ( or 45 days, if the consumer later provides relevant additional information ) unless the dispute is frivolous or irrelevant or comes from a credit repair organization. The FTC regulations will be available at www.ftc.gov/credit. Section 623 ( a ) ( 8 ). If a furnisher reports information concerning a delinquent account placed for collection, charged to profit or loss, or subject to any similar action, the furnisher must, within 90 days after reporting the information, provide the CRA with the month and the year of the commencement of the delinquency that immediately preceded the action, so that the agency will know how long to keep the information in the consumer 's file. Section 623 ( a ) ( 5 ).

Any person, such as a debt collector, that has acquired or is responsible for collecting delinquent accounts and that reports information to CRAs may comply with the requirements of Section 623 ( a ) ( 5 ) ( until there is a consumer dispute ) by reporting the same delinquency date previously reported by the creditor. If the creditor did not report this date, they may comply with the FCRA by establishing reasonable procedures to obtain and report delinquency dates, or, if a delinquency date can not be reasonably obtained, by following reasonable procedures to ensure that the date reported precedes the date when the account was placed for collection, charged to profit or loss, or subjected to any similar action. Section 623 ( a ) ( 5 ).