Consumer complaint received 2025-01-24 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: OH

Complaint narrative:
Complaint Against Equifax Subject Line : Illegal and Inaccurate Reporting of Fingerhut/WebBank Account Violations of FCRA Complaint Details : This complaint is being filed against Equifax for its continued reporting of the XXXX account ( ending in 6736 ), despite the fact that such reporting is unlawful under the Fair Credit Reporting Act ( FCRA ).

Here is the legal basis for why this reporting violates federal law : 1. Ownership and Reporting Restrictions Under FCRA : Per 15 U.S.C. 1681s-2 ( a ) ( 1 ) ( A ), only the current owner of a debt has the authority to furnish information about that debt to credit reporting agencies. XXXX sold this account to XXXX XXXX XXXX XXXX XX/XX/XXXX, and therefore no longer has the legal right to report this account on my credit file. If the current owner, XXXX XXXX XXXX, is not actively reporting the debt, then the account can not appear on my report at all. 

2. Negligence by Equifax : As a credit reporting agency, Equifax is required under 15 U.S.C. 1681e ( b ) to ensure maximum possible accuracy of the information it maintains. Furthermore, under 15 U.S.C. 1681i ( a ) ( 1 ) ( A ), Equifax is required to conduct a reasonable investigation of any disputed item. By allowing XXXX to continue reporting this account when they no longer own it, Equifax has failed to meet these legal obligations.

3. Unverifiable Reporting : If the current owner of the account, XXXX XXXX XXXX, is not reporting this debt to Equifax, then the account becomes unverifiable. The continued reporting of unverifiable information is not only inaccurate but constitutes a clear violation of federal law. 

Inaccuracies and Discrepancies : In addition to the unlawful reporting by XXXX XXXX this account contains numerous discrepancies between Equifax and XXXX. Specifically : Equifax lists the account as XXXX with the address XXXX XXXX XXXX XXXX XXXXXXXX XXXX XXXX XXXX. 
XXXX lists the account as XXXX  with the address XXXX XXXX XXXX, XXXX XXXXXXXX XXXX XXXX 

The remarks field is also inconsistent : Equifax states : XXXX Disputes XXXX in XXXX. 
XXXX states : Purchased by Another Lender ; Paid in XXXX a XXXX. 

These discrepancies prove that Equifax failed to conduct a reasonable investigation during the previous dispute process, as required by the FCRA. Despite my attempts to resolve this issue, Equifax verified the account as accurate, which is a clear failure of their legal duty. 

Harm Caused : XXXX decision to allow this unlawful and inaccurate reporting has caused harm to my creditworthiness, denied me access to financial opportunities, and subjected me to emotional distress. 

Ongoing Legal Action Against XXXX : I have already initiated legal action against XXXX XXXX XXXX XXXX XXXX XXXX XXXX XXXX XXXX XXXX Number : XXXX ) on XX/XX/XXXX, with XXXX XXXX XXXXXXXX presiding XXXX This case addresses XXXX unlawful reporting of this account. 

Equifax is now complicit in these violations. By continuing to report this account, Equifax has chosen to neglect its obligations under the FCRA. If Equifax does not immediately delete this account, legal action will be taken against Equifax for knowingly allowing these violations to persist.

Company response to consumer: Closed with non-monetary relief