Consumer complaint received 2024-10-28 00:00:00
Product: Credit reporting or other personal consumer reports — Credit reporting
Issue: Incorrect information on your report — Old information reappears or never goes away
Company: Experian Information Solutions Inc.
State: KY

Complaint narrative:
Experian XXXX XXXX XXXXXXXX XXXX XXXX XXXXXXXX Subject : NOTICE OF DISPUTE FCRA VIOLATION 15 U.S.C. 1681c ( a ) ( 2 ), Dear Sir/Madam, I am writing to formally dispute the reporting of a judgment on my credit report by your agency. Despite clear FCRA guidelines, this obsolete judgment remains on my credit report with Experian and XXXX, creating a misleading and inaccurate credit history. This ongoing reporting violates 15 U.S.C. 1681c ( a ) ( 2 ), which restricts civil judgment reporting beyond the statutory seven-year limit. According to the Fair Credit Reporting Act ( FCRA ), judgments should remain on a credit report for a maximum of seven years from the date of the judgment. 
Furthermore, XXXX has deleted this judgment from my credit report due to its inaccuracy. As such, you are obligated under 15 U.S.C. 1681i ( d ) to notify the other consumer reporting agencies ( XXXX and Experian ) of this deletion. I have previously raised disputes and filed complaints with the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau ( CFPB ) regarding the continued reporting of this outdated information. However, I received only a generic, template response from Experian, which failed to address or resolve the specific issue at hand. 

Given that the judgment is now over XXXX XXXX XXXX, I request that you remove it from my credit report immediately. The continued reporting of this outdated judgment is inaccurate and violates the FCRA guidelines. As XXXX has appropriately removed this outdated judgment in accordance with FCRA regulations, I request that Experian and XXXX follow suit, ensuring my credit report is accurate, complete, and compliant with federal law. 

Please confirm the removal of this judgment from my records and provide a written response to this letter. Please send me an update consumer report. 

Thank you for your attention to this matter. 

Sincerely, XXXX XXXX XXXX Copy of Judgment Previous Communications with CFPB Potential Conflicts of Interest : Data Furnishers and Payment : CRAs receive information from data furnishers like creditors, banks, and government agencies, child support agencies, and they charge these entities for access to consumer credit reports. This creates a relationship where CRAs may be incentivized to favor the interests of those who pay them for access to data. 

Impartiality and Objectivity : Because CRAs profit from the entities that report to them, there may be a perceived or real risk that they could compromise the objectivity of their reporting. For instance, if a child support agency pays for access to consumer data, it raises questions about whether the CRA is truly neutral in its data reporting or whether it prioritizes the needs of its paying clients over the privacy rights of individuals FAIR CREDIT. 

Consumer Protection Concerns : The Fair Credit Reporting Act ( FCRA ) mandates that CRAs provide accurate information and protect consumers rights, but the dynamic of being paid by data furnishers can complicate enforcement. If a consumer disputes information reported by a data furnisher, the CRAs financial relationship with that entity might affect its willingness to thoroughly investigate the dispute Specific Violations Cited Failure to Remove Obsolete Information : Under 15 U.S.C. 1681c ( a ) ( 2 ), reporting outdated judgments beyond the seven-year period is prohibited. The judgment in question exceeds the allowable reporting period by more than XXXX  years, rendering its continued presence on my reports unlawful. 

Failure to Investigate Dispute in Good Faith : By providing a boilerplate response to my dispute, Experian has failed to conduct a genuine investigation, violating 15 U.S.C. 1681i ( a ) ( 1 ), which requires CRAs to investigate and correct inaccurate information. 

Failure to Ensure Maximum Possible Accuracy : As stipulated under 15 U.S.C. 1681e ( b ), consumer reporting agencies must adopt reasonable procedures to ensure maximum accuracy of information. Reporting an obsolete and unverifiable judgment contradicts this obligation. 

Failure to Notify Deletion to All CRAs : Since XXXX has already removed this judgment, the furnisher of information is required by 15 U.S.C. 1681s-2 to update all CRAs and notify of deletion, ensuring consistency across all credit bureaus. This failure perpetuates inaccuracies across my reports. 

Noncompliance and Liability for Damages : Given these repeated violations, both Experian and XXXX are in noncompliance, subjecting them to civil liability under 15 U.S.C. 1681n and 1681o. This includes liability for actual, statutory, and punitive damages due to negligent or willful FCRA noncompliance.

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