In our last post (click here to read part 1), we looked at the dramatic increase in consumers’ complaints against the national credit bureaus, Experian, Equifax, and TransUnion. But, of course, we need to do more than know the number of complaints we need to pay attention to. We also want to examine the types of problems that consumers are reporting.
Consumers’ most common complaint is that there is wrong information—information about another person—on their credit reports. While this has been a frequent complaint for years, the number of such complaints has risen. Consumers complained about this more than 400,000 times in 2020.
While incorrect information on a report can be the result of a “mixed file,” when two people’s files are combined (often because they share a common name), in 2020, most people said they were victims of identity theft, and that was the reason for the incorrect information. This isn’t surprising, given the rise of identity theft-related crime. Still, it’s a particular concern because, according to the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau, victims of identity theft frequently deal with its repercussions long after the crime occurred. Ten percent still have related problems even a year after the fact.
Other common complaints include:
- incorrect account status (e.g., debt is not shown as paid off)
- personal information is incorrect
- the credit bureau’s investigation did not resolve an error on a report
- the credit bureau did not notify the consumer of the investigation’s result
- the credit bureau investigation was not completed within 30 days
The bottom line is that if you’re having problems with your credit report and have unsuccessfully tried to resolve the situation, you’re not alone. So don’t wait. Contact an attorney who represents clients like you—a lawyer who can help you repair your record and obtain compensation for any damages you sustained.