Consumer complaint received 2024-01-19 00:00:00
Product: Credit reporting or other personal consumer reports — Credit reporting
Issue: Problem with a company's investigation into an existing problem — Difficulty submitting a dispute or getting information about a dispute over the phone
Company: Experian Information Solutions Inc.
State: CA

Complaint narrative:
This has been an arduous complaint slow walked by XXXX  stemming back to XX/XX/XXXX 's lease end at XXXX lockdown and allowance periods where I've asked XXXX to adhere to paragraph 3 of my lease extension contract instead of overinflating their lease-end buyout figures. By failing to deduct all previously made lease payments from the vehicle 's residual value at lease end, and for months after, with expressed repudiation, XXXX unequivocally refused to perform on the terms outlined in our contract. Today, XXXX 's Care manager XXXX XXXX informed me XXXX finally recognizes their errors where I was forced to accept as valid false estimates and to overpay at purchase above and beyond the contracted price. After 3.5 years of stress and hounding, it is now apparent XXXX worked outside the XXXX contracted terms. Unfortunately, XXXX still has more clean up work surrounding the damage they've caused me from anticipatory and actual contract breaches and improper credit reporting. Prior to lease end and my XXXX buyout purchase, the dealership where I leased the vehicle went out of business in XXXX. Paragraph 23D of my lease contract states XXXX shall provide me with another time and place to return the vehicle. XXXX failed in their duty to provide a time or a place even though both parties confirm we were in communication through this period. Instead, while I was awaiting their ACCURATE research on lease end buyout figures XXXX, steadfast with their overinflated buyout numbers, repossessed the vehicle. Here, XXXX wrongfully worked outside the terms of the contract for the lease end return instructions, for the lease end buyouts quotes and for the vehicle purchase using overinflated residual value numbers resulting in repossession and ill-gotten gains. XXXX never provided a breakdown of my purchase, despite numerous documented requests that went unanswered. I'd been challenging and disputing the figures I'd been given since XX/XX/XXXX. Despite years of direct requests in writing, by email and telephone, correspondence to XXXX XXXX, XXXX and XXXX XXXX XXXX XXXX as well as requests thru CFPB complaints, no breakdown ever came until XXXX was forced to provide it to me in the fall XXXX thru a CFPB complaint. It was here that overcharges outside the terms of the lease were revealed and laid bare. Additional breaches : paragraph 9 of the vehicle lease agreement states " You have the option to purchase the Vehicle from us at the scheduled lease end term, AS IS, WHERE IS, from us or a party we designate ... '' Without informing me and in breach of my sales contract, XXXX made material changes to the " as is '' vehicle by dismantling both of my electronic key fobs prior to purchase. I was sold a vehicle without knowing my 2 keys were no longer operational ( {$610.00} in lost value ). And as only discovered thru CFPB complaints in fall of XXXX and also without ever informing me, XXXX placed an additional {$300.00} charge to my account post-sale for 1 working key. Records confirm this {$300.00} post-sale charge was posted to my account XX/XX/XXXX. I have since learned this fee appears as charge-offs on my Experian credit report for XX/XX/XXXX and XX/XX/XXXX and to other credit reporting agencies as well. XXXX acknowledges I had paid off the vehicle months prior ( overpaid actually ) yet never received any information, invoices for payment due or past due or notification of possible negative credit reporting from XXXX. It wasn't until XX/XX/XXXX - after 2 years worth of letters demanding explanation about the negative credit reporting that XXXX explained the fee to me. This is the most basic of consumer right violations under the Fair Credit Reporting Act and it needs correcting immediately. Since XX/XX/XXXX, I've asked repeatedly for an explanation for post-sale charge off reporting in written correspondence to XXXX directly, to all XXXX credit reporting agencies and thru the CFPB. XXXX repeatedly replied without explanation that there are no errors. On XX/XX/XXXX, I asked XXXX Care Specialist XXXX XXXX how XXXX could sell me a car with 2 nonworking keys ( at a price over and above the terms of my contract ) and then turnaround and charge for 1 more without ever informing me, the consumer? XXXX refused to provide complete answers here. To reiterate : XXXX, through multiple contract breaches, failed in their obligation to provide me with a time or place to return the vehicle at lease end after informing them the dealership was no longer. They then over-inflated the lease end buyout quote creating an immediate anticipatory breach to the terms of our contract, which resulted in the repossession of the vehicle as I waited on their fair dealings and accurate buyout research. The subsequent actual breach of contract occurred when they overcharged me at purchase. Later they added the unknown key charge showing as an unpaid balance on my account ; an amount much less than XXXX 's ill-gotten overcharge. If XXXX or their lawyers ever took the time to research MY COMPLAINT and ENTIRE ACCOUNT in earnest, by XXXX they would have recognized the net difference affirms I am owed for XXXX 's over inflated charges and as a result of those overcharges simply math proves I owe nothing further and that negative crediting reporting should have never occurred. Proper research of my lease extension payment history in the Spring of XXXX when I suspected my buyout estimates were wrong would have avoided ALL SUBSEQUENT DAMAGES TO ME AND MY CREDIT SCORES. Unearthed investigations now reveal XXXX was willful and reckless in their credit reporting and research to me, to the CFPB and to the credit bureaus. These violations have been ignored FOR YEARS and carry steep penalties for both XXXX and for the credit bureaus they report to. XXXX 's failure to inform me of any material " as is '' changes to the vehicle at purchase and their failure to serve proper notice for any additional ( bogus ) balances due on a " paid in full '' account created harmful negative credit reporting and only add to the 3.5 years of deceptive business practices I've had to endure.

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