Consumer complaint received 2025-03-19 00:00:00
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: EQUIFAX, INC.
State: IL

Complaint narrative:
XXXX XXXX XXXX XXXX XXXX XXXX XXXX XXXX, Illinois XXXX XX/XX/XXXX Subject : Formal Dispute & Demand for Immediate Deletion of Inaccurate Collection Account To Whom It May Concern, I am formally disputing the collection account reported by XXXX XXXX XXXX on my credit report. This account is being illegally reported in violation of the Fair Credit Reporting Act ( FCRA ) 15 U.S.C. 1681 et seq., Metro 2 compliance standards, and Consumer Data Industry Association ( CDIA ) guidelines. If this account is not deleted immediately, I will take legal action against your credit bureau for multiple violations.

FCRA and Metro 2 Violations Committed by the Credit Bureau 1. No Agreement Exists Between Me and XXXX XXXX XXXX Violation of 15 U.S.C. 1681b I never entered into a contract or payment agreement with XXXX XXXX XXXX. 
The only document they provided was a lease agreement with the original apartment complex, which does not grant them collection authority.

Since they purchased or were assigned this debt without my consent, their reporting of this account is unauthorized and unlawful.

2. Failure to Maintain Maximum Possible Accuracy Violation of 15 U.S.C. 1681e ( b ) You are legally required to verify the accuracy and legitimacy of any account reported on my credit file. 
XXXX XXXX XXXX has failed to provide a valid debt assignment agreement proving they own this debt. 
Because there is no direct obligation between me and this collection company, the account must be deleted immediately. 
3. Unauthorized Reporting of Debt Violation of 15 U.S.C. 1681b Credit bureaus can not report accounts from entities that do not have a legal right to collect. 
Since XXXX XXXX XXXX has no signed contract from me agreeing to pay them, this is an unauthorized entry on my credit report. 
4. Failure to Mark the Account as Disputed Violation of 15 U.S.C. 1681s-2 ( a ) ( 3 ) The FCRA requires you to mark this account as disputed during an investigation. If this was not done, you are in direct violation of federal law.

5. Obsolete and Unverifiable Information Violation of 15 U.S.C. 1681c ( Section 605 ( b ) ) If XXXX XXXX XXXX can not provide a legally binding contract with my signature agreeing to pay them, this account is unverifiable and must be deleted immediately. 
6. Violation of Metro 2 Compliance and CDIA Guidelines Under Metro 2 and CDIA reporting standards, you are required to verify that a debt collector legally owns the debt before reporting it. 
Because XXXX XXXX XXXX has failed to provide a valid assignment agreement proving their right to collect, this collection account is non-compliant and must be removed immediately. 
XXXX. XXXX v. XXXX XXXX XXXX, XXXX XXXX XXXX ( XXXX Cir. XXXX ) The court ruled that a credit reporting agency ( CRA ) can not merely rely on the information provided by the original creditor when responding to a dispute. failure to obtain independent verification of this collection is in direct violation of this legal precedent. 



Sincerely, XXXX XXXX XXXX

Company response to consumer: Closed with explanation