Consumer complaint received 2025-03-11 00:00:00
Product: Credit reporting or other personal consumer reports — Credit reporting
Issue: Problem with a company's investigation into an existing problem — Difficulty submitting a dispute or getting information about a dispute over the phone
Company: EQUIFAX, INC.
State: GA

Complaint narrative:
Dear Equifax XXXX Department, I am formally disputing the reporting of XXXX XXXX XXXX XXXX XXXX XXXX on my credit file. On XX/XX/XXXX, I submitted a dispute regarding this account, yet your response was legally insufficient and contradictory. Your refusal to investigate and continued verification of inaccurate information constitutes multiple violations of the Fair Credit Reporting Act ( FCRA ) and the Fair Debt Collection Practices Act ( FDCPA ). 

15 USC 1681a 2 -Exclusions ( a ) ( i ) is a subsection of the Fair Credit Reporting Act that clearly states Any report containing information solely as to transactions and experiences between the consumer and the person making the report. 

15 USC 6802 is a section of the United States Code that outlines the obligations of financial institutions with respect to the disclosure of personal information. 15 USC 6802 outlines the " Opt Out '' requirements for financial institutions when disclosing nonpublic personal information to nonaffiliated third parties. institutions are required to clearly and conspicuously disclose to the consumer, in writing or in electronic form, that their personal information may be disclosed to third parties. The consumer must be given the opportunity to direct that their information is not disclosed and must be provided with an explanation of how they can exercise that option.

15 USC 1681b ( a ) ( 2 ) is a section of the United States Code that outlines the permissible purposes for which a consumer reporting agency may furnish a consumer report. In general, a consumer reporting agency may furnish a consumer report only under the following circumstances and no other : 1 ) The consumer must give written authorization, and I did not and will not give any creditor the right to add negative, inaccurate and injurious information to my consumer report. 

It is clear that the charge off ( XXXX ) on my consumer report is/are in direct violation of the laws cited above. As such, I am entitled to receive damages for this willful noncompliance. Let me be unequivocally clear, according to 15 US Code1681n, I can charge {$1000.00} for damages if you fail to remove this item immediately, as it is causing me significant harm and distress. 

I demand that you take immediate action and rectify this issue promptly. Any delay or inaction on your part will be considered a deliberate attempt to violate my consumer rights and will not be tolerated. 

I do not expect to receive a verification of the item in question as it is abundantly clear that it is in violation of the law. I demand that you send me an updated copy of my consumer report once the disputed item has been removed. 

Violations by Equifax Failure to Conduct a Proper Reinvestigation FCRA 611 ( a ) ( 1 ) You claim my dispute is frivolous despite new evidence submitted showing that XXXX XXXX XXXX no longer owns this debt as of XX/XX/XXXX. 
Under FCRA 611 ( a ), you are required to conduct an independent reinvestigation. Failing to do so is a willful violation of federal law.

Failure to Accurately Report & Update Information FCRA 623 ( a ) ( 1 ) XXXX no longer owns this account, yet you claim to have verified it with XXXX, proving a false and misleading verification. 
XXXX and XXXX have already deleted this account, yet Equifax continues to report it, violating the consistency requirement under FCRA. 
Failure to Provide Proof of Verification FCRA 611 ( a ) ( 7 ) I formally request documentation showing the evidence Equifax relied on to verify this account.

If no such proof exists, Equifax must delete this account immediately per FCRA guidelines.

Failure to Block Information as Required in Identity Theft Cases FCRA 605B If Equifax refuses to block this account despite evidence of ownership transfer and conflicting reporting, this is an additional legal violation. 

Additionally, Equifax has already been fined by the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau ( CFPB ) for improper reinvestigation practices. Specifically, in a XXXX lawsuit, the CFPB ordered Equifax to pay {$15.00} XXXX for failing to conduct proper investigations and misleading consumers about their dispute rights. This demonstrates a pattern of noncompliance with federal law, and your current actions reflect the same unlawful behavior.

Violations by Equifax Failure to Conduct a Proper Reinvestigation FCRA 611 ( a ) ( 1 ) You claimed my dispute is frivolous despite new evidence proving XXXX XXXX XXXX no longer owns this debt as of XX/XX/XXXX. 
Under FCRA 611 ( a ), you are legally required to conduct an independent reinvestigation. Your failure to do so mirrors the same violations cited in the 2023 CFPB lawsuit against Equifax for improper dispute handling.

Failure to Accurately Report & Update Information FCRA 623 ( a ) ( 1 ) XXXX no longer owns this account, yet you falsely verified it with XXXX. 
XXXX and XXXX have already deleted this account, proving that your continued reporting violates federal accuracy requirements. 
Failure to Provide Proof of Verification FCRA 611 ( a ) ( 7 ) I formally request documentation showing the evidence Equifax relied upon to verify this account. 

Did Equifax simply rely on XXXX or XXXX XXXX response asking, " Is this account the consumers? '' If so, this is a clear violation of FCRA as a reasonable reinvestigation requires actual proof, not XXXX reliance on a creditors claim. 

If no such proof exists, Equifax must immediately delete this account per FCRA guidelines. 
Failure to Block Information in an Identity Theft Case FCRA 605B If Equifax refuses to block this account despite evidence of ownership transfer and conflicting reporting, this is an additional violation under federal law. 
CFPB XXXX XXXX Equifax XXXX XXXX for Improper Dispute Handling In XXXX, the CFPB ordered Equifax to pay {$15.00} XXXX for improper reinvestigation of consumer disputes, including : Failing to properly investigate disputes Providing misleading information about dispute rights Allowing inaccurate reporting to continue

Company response to consumer: Closed with explanation