topic Re: Suing the credit bureaus and creditor - anyone been through process? in Rebuilding Your Credit

Suing the credit bureaus and creditor - anyone been through process?

Anonymous — Tue, 10 Feb 2015 21:02:57 GMT

After several attempts to remove a tradeline on my husband's credit reports (was trying for a GW deletions, simply because it would be the least troublesome for ALL parties - they refused), we alerted them to discrepencies between all three bureaus. We last sent a round of certified letters to each bureau, including a detailed list of what was different between the reports (i.e. two bureaus show the tradeline as "closed", one shows as "open"; two shows the start date of the tradeline as 08/01/05, one shows as 08/25/05; each shows DIFFERENT information month to month - for instance - April 2011, one shows no data at all, one shows "OK" and one shows "30" [days late]).

I have now received responses from two of the three bureaus, each saying the tradeline was "updated", but as I searched for the April 2011 example, I saw that NOTHING was updated. IT IS STILL INCORRECT.

I've had it with these jokers and would like to drag everyone into court. This is beyond infuriating and I am sick of my husband's credit being held hostage by morons. Has anyone taken the bureaus and a creditor to court in a similar situation? Can you offer any advice or tell me what steps you took?

My blood is just boiling now. Thanks for reading.

Re: Suing the credit bureaus and creditor - anyone been through process?

Anonymous — Tue, 10 Feb 2015 21:17:38 GMT

As RobertEG likes to say, you are simply arguing over placement of the deck chairs. Aside from one 30 being on only one report (which is actually in your favor), none of these things are really of any consequence, and are simply the result of how data is entered by the furnisher - for instance, 08/25/05 vs 08/01/05 - to me it simply appears that in one instance the month and year was reported, and in the other the month, year and day was reported - how is that 'incorrect'? In order to sue, you have to show that the incorrect reporting has somehow harmed you - how 'exactly' would the difference in those dates harm you?

Correction of the April discrepancies would likely result in a 30 day late on all three reports - is that REALLY what you want?

Re: Suing the credit bureaus and creditor - anyone been through process?

Anonymous — Tue, 10 Feb 2015 22:00:44 GMT

It's my understanding that reports have to be 100% accurate. When they are not, and they have been informed of the error or errors, and they are not corrected, is it not a failure to follow the law? It's not just one month where someone shows a 30 and the others don't, it's that they are all off. If he is going to take the hit for 30 days late in April, he shouldn't be taking the hit in April for 2 or the reports and May on the other report.

Re: Suing the credit bureaus and creditor - anyone been through process?

RobertEG — Tue, 10 Feb 2015 23:01:40 GMT

The requiremtn under the FCRA is not that a party must be 100% complete in their reporting.

The requirement under FCRA 623(a)(1) is that any reporting must not knwoingly be inaccurate.

The additionaly requirment, as stated in section 623(a)(2), is that once information has been reported, then it must be corrected if necessary to maintin its current accuracy.

They can, for example, choose to report all monthly delinquencies to one CRA, and omit one or more in their reporting to another CRA.

Total consistency in your credit report with each CRA is not a requirment of the statute.

Re: Suing the credit bureaus and creditor - anyone been through process?

Anonymous — Tue, 10 Feb 2015 23:27:52 GMT

OK, so we have a 30 day late from almost 4 years back - is it only one late?

Just to be clear - because it shows as april in one report and may in another, does not make it look like two lates as far as scoring is concerned. A score is generated from one single bureau report. Even during a manual review it would be obvious that its a single late that for whatever reason got reported late to one of the bureaus. And consider this - what if the payment date was April 1st, and the payment was received May 1st? Thats thirty days late, but is it a thirty day late for may or april? I don't know but I could make the argument for either month. And being four years old, if its the only late on the report, its impact is nil after 24 months. Again before you start talking lawsuit, you have to demonstrate that the incorrect data is actually damaging you in some way.

It seems to me though, that your issue is not really with the bureaus but with whatever entity is reporting the data. Have you actually gone back to the furnisher to get the reporting corrected?

Re: Suing the credit bureaus and creditor - anyone been through process?

Anonymous — Wed, 11 Feb 2015 13:39:32 GMT

No, it's not just one from four years back. This has to do with a mortgage loan that DH's ex-wife was ordered to refinance out of his name, of course she didn't and decided to pay whenever, and until we were able to get her into court and have it fixed, he took years of dings on his credit. Trying to work with the mortgage company did nothing - he gave them his updated contact info, they sent him not one statement, the only thing that gave him insight on what was going on was his credit reports. He was able to open a secured credit card to try and do SOMETHING to repair his credit, but he's been turned down for any unsecured lines. It's been a long, frustrating journey with this.