Consumer complaint received 2025-02-27 00:00:00
Product: Credit reporting or other personal consumer reports — Credit reporting
Issue: Problem with a company's investigation into an existing problem — Was not notified of investigation status or results
Company: EQUIFAX, INC.
State: VA

Complaint narrative:
Sometime about 4 or 5 years ago, I entered into a deferment for my federal student aid loan balances. I was told I would be notified should a payment requirement ever be made. I haven't heard from XXXX or XXXX since I made this deferment arrangement. At no fault of my own, I do not have access to the XXXX account associated with my XXXX balances. It was disabled and deactivated due to fraud on my accounts. I also no longer lived at the address XXXX had on file as that was a family home in which my family no longer lives. I never received any mail correspondence nor email correspondence from them since my deferment was put into place. Fast forward 4-5 years or so, and I am looking at my XXXX XXXX credit report and my score drops XXXX points because XXXX is now reporting my accounts ( I believe 21 accounts in total ) over 90+ days past due. I contacted them immediately and asked why they haven't contacted me. They tried to confirm my email and address and admitted that they had the incorrect contact information on both of those, but they did, however, confirm that they had the correct phone number ( which they never attempted to contact me on to advise that payments were now becoming due ). Had they told me payments were due, I would've paid my bill. I spent the last several years of my life working on my credit and getting it above a XXXX after some admittedly spotty history. This reporting has totally destroyed my life. I just recently got my mortgage broker 's license in the state of Virginia, and in order for me to sign up with the wholesale lenders I am trying to do business with, most of them require a minimum of a XXXX middle FICO score. Because of this reporting, my score has dropped below a XXXX. The thing that bothers me is they admitted to not having the correct mailing or email addresses, but they had the correct phone number. Why didn't they reach out to me via phone. I would've paid them promptly. This is a classic UDAAP violation in regard to my terms and what I was promised when I entered into the deferment period with them before. This is also a Reg Z Violation as I was never provided any statements to the balance when they've had me at a $ 0 monthly payment for years, and all of a sudden they ask for payment and report me late but I was never personally notified. Furthermore, the representative who I spoke to about this matter told me it is their policy not to report an account late until it is 90 days past due. 90 day lates weigh more negatively on a credit report than 30 day late payments ; it i crazy that this is their policy to not report accurately every month the same way banks are required to report. Are they not governed by similar laws and statutes? Once my brokerage got approved, with really bad timing I was impacted with a drop in my score, and now every wholesale lender I am trying to work with is telling me my credit score is too low and it is basically preventing me from doing my job all because they didn't want to call/text me to advise that my bill was past due ( that I knew nothing about ), and to make matters worse, they waited 3 whole months before doing this. I called them right away, got a temporary forbearnace, and I plan to establish the appropriate payment arrangement after submitting my requested documents, but this is incredibly negligent practice on behalf of XXXX and XXXX XXXX XXXX. I finally got to a place in my life where I was out of the whole my student loan debt helped put me in, and here it comes out of nowhere to utterly make me not able to acquire income to feed my family. I need this updated ASAP. I think the late payment status is erroneous and I dispute it. Do the right thing, update my credit report, and work out a payment arrangement with me now that I'm notified, but don't ruin my credit because we had some miscommunication and some wrong contact info. I would've totally paid this bill had I known I was being asked to start paying again. Someone please help me ; I am desparate. This has been one of the worst things financially that's ever happened to me.

Company response to consumer: Closed with non-monetary relief