This month, for the first time, I noted a disparity between the statement balance on one of my Discover cards and the balance that was reported by all three credit bureaus.
It wasn't a minor difference. The reported balance was almost $300 more than my statement balance on the Discover app and website. It was as if the CRAs were using a balance reported a couple of days after my statement cut. As a result, all three CRAs reported a balance increase rather than the balance decrease I was expecting to see.
Has anyone else seen this phenomenon before? If so, what explains it? I'm accustomed to my statement balances being identical to what is reported by the CRAs. That goes for Discover in addition to all my other cards. What could be the cause of this disparity?
Thanks!
Update: I may have found the source of the error. It appears that Discover erroneously reported my February statement balance rather than my April statement balance!
I called Discover to report the discrepancy and ask them to correct it. They immediately agreed to report the correct April statement balance, which should set the record straight with the credit bureaus.
The whole thing is very strange, but hey, everyone makes mistakes. Has anyone else ever had a previous statement balance erroneously reported to the CRAs?