Consumer complaint received 2022-07-24 00:00:00
Product: Credit reporting, credit repair services, or other personal consumer reports — Credit reporting
Issue: Problem with a credit reporting company's investigation into an existing problem — Their investigation did not fix an error on your report
Company: Bread Financial Holdings, Inc.
State: FL

Complaint narrative:
To whomever, it may concern at the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau, I am writing regarding an inaccurate report made to the Credit Bureaus from Comenity Bank related to Victoria 's Secret  store card. Comenity Bank falsely reported a late payment to this account, despite the fact that this account has never been late and has rarely not held a XXXX balance throughout the thirteen years that I have had this account open. Despite acknowledging to me on the phone that system updates were likely the cause of this ( clerical error ), months have passed and the report has not been ameliorated. XXXXXXXX XXXX even sent a system-wide email to all Victoria 's Secret card holders related to this issue with payments being properly processed as a widespread problem. 

When I was XXXX XXXX XXXX, I opened the Victorias Secret credit card merely to receive {$25.00} off of a {$50.00} purchase. This card has a {$6000.00} limit and I have long had my account set to pay the entire balance off each statement. For the thirteen years that I have had this account open, I have never missed a payment and have rarely not held a XXXX balance on the account. I have never bought anything on my Victorias Secret credit card that I do not immediately pay off. At XXXX years of age, the main reason I have this card is to contribute to lowering my credit utilization percentage on my overall accounts. 

I am XXXX XXXX XXXX and just finished my XXXX degree. An administrative error from Comenity Bank that falsely reported a late payment has affected my life to the point that perhaps opening that XXXX XXXX at age XXXX may just be one of the biggest regrets of my life. I was preapproved for a mortgage after finishing graduate school. However, when Comenity Bank made an inaccurate report, my credit score immediately dropped XXXX points overnight and I had to renew the lease on my apartment for another year instead of buying a home. 

When I called Comenity Bank to address this issue, the agent was entirely unhelpful. Although he verbally admitted that my account was current on payments and that updates to the system were likely to blame for the report of a late payment that was never actually late, it was merely recommended to me that I make a report to the credit bureaus or mail a letter to Comenity explaining the situation. He was unable or unwilling to properly resolve the situation. I in fact had my account set to automatic payments and have always logged in and paid the entire balance if I buy something at Victorias Secret. The day that I received an alert from my credit monitoring of this late payment, my account held a XXXX balance and said it was current. I then received emails explaining that you were updating the system and some payments did not go through. However, this did not stop Comenity Bank from making fraudulent claims to the credit bureaus falsely a late payment on an account that has never been late. Moreover, the false report was only claimed to be regarding somewhere between $ XXXX {$3.00} ( I do not remember the cents ). I have worked hard to keep my credit in good standing and this injustice needs to be resolved. I am hoping that this can be addressed without seeking legal action against XXXX XXXX. However, I am entirely unwilling to let this stain my credit for the next seven years and will do whatever is necessary to get this fixed.

I appreciate your assistance in investigating Comenity Banks malpractice as it relates to misreporting to the credit bureaus. I am hopeful that a promo resolution can be made. A fair resolution would be to get this false reporting removed from my credit report and to receive some compensation for the XXXX XXXX and financial hardship that this has inflicted upon my life. 

Sincerely, XXXX XXXX XXXX XXXX, XXXX.

Company response to consumer: Closed with explanation