Credit reporting agencies are responsible for informing businesses and financial institutions about consumers’ creditworthiness. Background checks are essential for lenders who try to protect their profitability by adjusting interest rates based on borrowers’ risk.
However, with credit reporting agencies handling sensitive information regarding people’s finances, a lot can go wrong, costing consumers thousands of dollars in interest. With over a third of consumers in the United States finding errors in their credit reports, thousands of people unjustly lose out on the credit they need.
A credit reporting agency’s mistakes can damage your credit score, causing lenders to charge you higher interest on loans or deny you a mortgage. These mistakes include incorrect personal information and inaccurate account information, such as reporting a credit card account as open that you closed several years ago.
If you find an error in your credit report, you need the help of a consumer rights lawyer to help you dispute the mistake and restore your credit. Mike Agruss Law can help you fix your credit reporting issue and seek compensation for willful misconduct on the part of the credit agency. Contact us for a no-obligation consultation to find out how we can assist you.
What is Experian?
Experian is a major credit reporting agency active in the United States. Besides providing credit reports, the company also offers marketing services, decision analytics, and consumer services under its registered trademarks.
Experian has locations throughout the United States, including its North American headquarters in Costa Mesa, California, and offices in Austin and Antonio, Texas, Franklin, Tennessee, and Sacramento, California.
Experian employs almost 18,000 people in 44 countries who gather information on consumers and relay it to its clients. The credit reporting agency creates complete financial profiles of each person, combining public record data with credit scores.
Experian also offers products that the company claims protect consumers from fraud and identity theft, like dark web surveillance and credit alerts if someone opens credit in your name.
Experian’s Rating With the Better Business Bureau
The Better Business Bureau (BBB) places Experian under the credit reporting agency category. The Experian BBB profile states the company’s Costa Mesa location and notes that the business is not BBB accredited.
Customer reviews on its BBB profile report several issues with a lack of customer service. Customers also complain about inaccurate account information reported by Experian that has negatively affected their credit.
What Are the Most Common Credit Report Issues Consumers Face?
Consumers who don’t regularly ask for credit reports from the major credit reporting agencies cannot locate a credit report problem before it affects their finances. Knowing the common issues that can damage your credit report allows you to take corrective action promptly.
Mixed or merged credit files/mistaken identity
Mistaken identity or merged credit files are common credit reporting issues. This happens when your consumer information closely matches that of someone else.
For example, if your social security number ends in 5876 and another person’s ends in 5786, a creditor may misenter the information, causing their information to cross over into yours. These mistakes are difficult to catch and can require the help of a consumer rights lawyer to sort out and ensure that the agency corrects the error.
Public record mistakes
Civil judgments, bankruptcies, and tax liens are public information that can go on credit reports. An incorrect entry concerning any of these areas is enough to damage your credit. If your credit report contains a record of a tax lien that you didn’t incur, it can affect your ability to obtain a mortgage or car loan in the future.
Erroneous debt collection records
Entering another consumer’s debt collection accounts into your credit report is an error that can result in credit score damage. The law allows debt collection data to remain on your credit history for 7 to 10 years. If another person’s collection data appears on your credit history, it can impact your credit score for a long time.
For example, if someone with a similar name files for bankruptcy, and it appears on your report, you may have trouble obtaining a loan or credit for nearly ten years.
Identity theft
Identity theft is when a scammer fraudulently opens accounts in your name, causing your credit report to suffer. A credit reporting agency may allow a fraudulent account to remain on your credit report because you haven’t notified them.
If you have notified the company, they must verify that the account is fraudulent and receive proof that you didn’t open the account. This bureaucratic administrative process can take time to complete and may require you to consistently follow up with the company until they remove the errors.
How Credit Report Negligence Affects You
Mistakes in your credit report can lower your credit score, negatively affecting applications for mortgages, credit cards, insurance, and employment. If you don’t catch an error on time, you could end up with higher interest rates on loans or even miss out on employment or rental applications.
Take a proactive approach by requesting a free credit report from Experian so you can identify any mistakes. Finding errors in your credit report may warrant speaking with a consumer law attorney at our law firm to fix mistakes and seek damages if misconduct occurred.
Seek Legal Counsel for Credit Report Errors
Finding errors in your Experian credit report can be distressing. If you’ve been counting on a loan or a new job, only to find that negligence from a credit report agency is placing obstacles before your plans, you may want to seek restitution.
Contact a consumer rights lawyer at Mike Agruss Law to dispute mistakes and seek damages from credit report agencies that violate your rights under the Fair Credit Reporting Act (FCRA). While statutory damages are limited to between $100 and $1,000 per FCRA violation, there is no limit to the punitive damages you can seek.
We can help you fight for your rights under the FCRA to:
- Stop debt collection harassment
- Repair credit reporting mistakes
- Pursue compensation from credit reporting agencies
- Put you on the path to repairing your credit
Contact Mike Agruss Law today at (888) 572-0176 for a free consultation to learn your legal options and put you on the road to repairing your credit.
