If you feel that a credit bureau is wrongfully reporting your credit history, you can file a lawsuit to get the bureau to remove that information. This article discusses one such case where a son’s tax liens were wrongfully reported on his credit report by his father. The case also claims that Equifax and Experian failed to do a reasonable investigation and did not notify the data furnisher of the dispute. TransUnion also violated a law enforcement order from 2017 by failing to report a tax lien to the credit bureau.
Equifax refused to remove the father’s tax liens from the son’s credit report
The Plaintiff is a California resident who had his credit applications denied after Equifax refused to remove his father’s tax liens from his son’s credit report. He filed a class-action lawsuit against Equifax, claiming that they breached the Fair Credit Reporting Act (FCRA). This lawsuit asserts that Equifax placed the responsibility of maintaining accurate records on the consumer rather than Equifax.
Since the ruling, all three credit reporting companies have been forced to remove tax liens from the credit reports of millions of Americans. According to LexisNexis Risk Solutions, a unit of RELX Group, about five million liens are being removed from American consumers’ credit reports. By removing tax liens, borrowers appear to be more creditworthy and thus are more likely to obtain new loans.
Experian did not conduct a reasonable investigation
The Dalton case focuses on the question of whether Experian failed to conduct a reasonable investigation and how the results of such an investigation could harm consumers. The district court found that Experian failed to conduct a reasonable investigation of the complaint and the debt by relying on an unreliable third-party source, Equable. Although Experian’s response and investigation were not unreasonable, the fact finder could find that the company did not discharge its obligations.
During discovery, Collins found that Experian did not conduct a reasonable inquiry into whether the creditor had given the plaintiff’s report to a third party. Although Experian claimed that it had violated SS 1681e(b), Collins dropped that claim before the district court entered a summary judgment. Further, there was no evidence that Experian had provided a credit report to the third party in violation of the law.
Equifax did not notify the data furnisher about the dispute
If you feel that you have been inaccurately listed on a credit report due to inaccuracies by a financial institution, you may dispute the information. You can do so in writing to the credit bureaus. This is particularly important if you have already received your credit report in the past six months. After disputing the information, the bureau must notify the data furnisher of your dispute in writing, and they must remove any inaccurate information from your report.
However, if you have already contacted your creditor, you may not have to escalate the dispute. However, if you believe that the creditor did not adequately respond to your complaint, you should call the credit reporting agency and report the dispute to them. These agencies have toll-free numbers and can handle consumer disputes. You can also visit the website of each bureau for more information. In addition to these toll-free numbers, each credit reporting agency also has a dispute hotline you can call to file a dispute.
TransUnion violated the 2017 law enforcement order
CFPB’s investigation of TransUnion found that the company violated a 2017 law enforcement order by knowingly providing inaccurate information to consumers. The order was filed against TransUnion and two of its subsidiaries in 2017. It also involved John T. Danaher, a longtime executive at TransUnion who served as president of Consumer Interactive between 2004 and 2021. Danaher was bound by the law enforcement order to stop deceptive marketing practices at the company.
The Consumer Financial Protection Bureau recently filed a lawsuit against TransUnion and two of its subsidiaries, along with TransUnion CEO John T. Danaher. The lawsuit claims that the companies violated a 2017 law enforcement order that prohibited them from deceptive marketing of credit scores and related products. The lawsuit alleges that TransUnion violated additional consumer financial protection laws. To learn more about the suit, read on:
Equifax violated the 2017 law enforcement order
The U.S. government has charged four individuals with violating a law enforcement order that requires the company to protect sensitive information. The alleged breach exposed millions of names, Social Security numbers, and physical addresses, which could have led to identity theft or fraud. The Equifax breach was a result of the company’s failure to implement basic security measures. This included failing to implement a policy to ensure that security vulnerabilities were patched, and failing to segment database servers once a breach occurred. Additionally, the hackers stole passwords and network credentials stored in plain text, including identifying information about consumers.
The resulting settlement is a result of a multistate coalition led by Attorney General Becerra. It includes other settlements announced today by the Federal Trade Commission, the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau, and private litigants. The Equifax settlement includes restitution for California consumers, additional staff, and $175 million in fines. The settlement requires the company to hire a Chief Information Security Officer to oversee information security across all of its business units.
Experian violated 2017 law enforcement order
Experian violated a federal law enforcement order by deceptively marketing its credit score. Under the Consumer Financial Protection Act, it is illegal to engage in unfair, deceptive, or abusive acts to obtain personal financial information. The company violated the order by advertising its PLUS Score, a credit score for educational purposes, as the same as the credit score used by lenders. It also violated the law by requiring consumers to view advertisements before receiving a free credit report.
Turner alleges that the company reported inaccurate information regarding her late payments to three different creditors. The three largest accounts that Turner claims were held by Experian include Bank of the West, Macy’s, and Kohls. In support of her allegations, the company provided evidence of fifteen reinvestigations. The company also cited evidence that Equifax and Trans Union confirmed the accuracy of Turner’s reports.