Equifax Run Around possibly solved using the Equifax Office of Consumer Affairs

[nolamike]

Hi all,

This just in in my saga With Equifax over a Federal Tax Lien that expired without being refiled under IRC 6325(a). The other CRA's dropped it on the first dispute, but if they do not, then this information might help you. My solution (hopefully) is at the bottom of the page after my explanation.

I am just starting to repair my file and the two things on my file besides 12 student loans that begin paying in August 2016 are a collection that I am trying to figure out why it is on my report and a Federal Tax Lien.

The Fed Tax Lien is a Self-Expiring Tax lien as laid out in IRC 6325(a). Which means that if a Tax Lien is NOT refiled by the date shown in Box E of the lien, it is expired. On the lien itself it says.

"IMPORTANT RELEASE INFORMATION: For each assessment listed below, unless notice of the lien is refiled by the date given in column (e), this notice shall, on the day following such date, operate as a certificate of release as defined in IRC 6325(a)."

This notice is essential to any Federal Tax Lien and has the force of law. Please make sure your lien form has the number Form 668(Y)(c)  in the upper left corner for this to be applicable.

The challenge is that when you call Equifax, their front line operators and even supervisors say the lien is on your report correctly. If you file a dispute, at least in experience with this one, the first dispute response will come back and say that it is showing properly. That is First because they list the "filing date" in their report instead of the Assessment Date from the Form. Secondly, The operators will tell you that another form that the government must provide for them to release the lien.

THEY ARE WRONG!

This link to the IRS manual shows you the reasoning and what you need to know.

https://www.irs.gov/irm/part5/irm_05-012-008.html

you are looking for section 5.12.8.2.1  (10-14-2013) General Overview (as with all laws this section might get new wording or be deleted in the future. Today is 10/24/2016).

That section says"

• The statutory lien arises with a taxpayer's failure to pay their tax liability after demand. If no lien notice is filed, the duration of the statutory lien is dependent solely on whether the statute to collect the tax liability remains open.

• Once a lien notice is filed, the statutory lien has a certain dependence on the notice. While it remains true that the statutory lien is always extinguished when the liability is satisfied or the period to collect expires, the statutory lien can also be released through the self-releasing language on the NFTL. The self-releasing language can be triggered even if the collection period has been extended or suspended.

• The reason for the self-releasing statement is to ensure that the law is met which requires a notification to creditors that the notice is no longer valid because the statutory lien has been released. IRC 6325 requires the Service to issue a release of lien not later than 30 days after the day on which the liability for the amount assessed has become legally unenforceable (or when such liability has been fully paid). When the Collection Statute Expiration Date (CSED) expires, the liability becomes legally unenforceable. Since a release statement must be made within 30 days of the tax liability becoming unenforceable, Form 668(Y)(c) is specifically designed to contain a trigger for the self-releasing statement and the trigger coincides with original CSED. This saves the Service from having to devote resources to manually releasing liens and lien notices when the CSED expires.

• The trigger on the notice is found in column "e" . The last day for refiling ("refile by" date) is the date in column "e" of the NFTL.

It is my opinion that EQ does not tell its upfront people or the people who deal with disputes that they are supposed to, in this circumstance, remove the lien from the report.

The operators try to sound helpful but are limited to what they can do and what they know. They will respond that a lien must stay on the report for 10 years. That does not apply to a self-releasing lien that was not refiled. See the above links.

They will cite FAIR and FACTA as the proof. They are wrong and those are irrelevant to this situation. This is a self releasing Federal Lien and by law if it expires it must be removed as if it never existed.

State liens are different, as are Fed liens that are not self-releasing. Additionally if you get into a payment plan or other type of arrangement with the Fed Gov, the self-releasing option ends and the lien can stay on your report for years even after it is paid.

My Solution (hopefully) has come with persistence on my part. Had I known this earlier I would have gone directly to it and not been frustrated and irritated and discouraged by the front line operators B.S.

Equifax has an Office of Consumer Affairs and they can actually (according to the Manager April) order the removal of items on a credit report.

Today when I called my sequence was

Called-got overseas operator-poor english

Asked for U.S. operator. Waited on hold 15 minutes.

Operator looked at dispute and then the documents I had faxed in. She said the IRC number was irrelevant. I told her no (and much more chatter) and asked for a supervisor. She put me on hold.

15 minutes later a supervior came on. He tried to tell me the box was irrelevant and that he was a Supervisor. He kept saying that the Fed Gov had to file a different form with the Court House. He refused to understand the concept of Self -Releasing Lien as described on the Lien itself (IRC 6325(a)). He said it was irrelevant and that EQ POLICY was that it say on there from ten years from the filing date, not the assessment date. Which is a violation of the law in this circumstance.

I asked for his supervisor or  someone who could address policy.

He said I could speak to his MANAGER. That is the magic word people!

He transfered me, and after another 15 minutes on hold I got a lady who said she was with Experian Consumer Affairs!

I told her the guy said he was sending me to a Manager. She said she is the Manager. BINGO!

I explained the situation and had her pull up the lien I had faxed in. At first she tried the same line as the others. That they needed a different release document from the Fed Gov to be filed at the courthouse and then when they did their next scan (actually they said a dept at the courthouse sent the CRA's updates, which I really doubt) it would update. I told her NO and explained the language of the IRC.

She put me on hold for about 5 minutes and came back and said "You are right, this has to be removed from your file by law."

She went on to say that she had ordered the removal of the lien from my file directly with their tech department that does the removal stuff.

She said a full copy of my file will arrive  in 7-10 business days and that the Credit Report should reflect the Removal in 24-48 Business hours.

I questioned her specifically about the "order to remove" to make sure this was not another dispute that would send me down this rabbitt hole again. She said no, she was the manager and had the power to directly remove things, when justified, from a report.

So my suggestion is that if you have a Fed Lien with a Self-release date in Block (e) that has passed, and you are not in some form of payment plan, aggreement, or court /lawyer dispute with them. Then go on line, file the dispute. When it is rejected do what I did not know what to do and ask to speak to the Office of Consumer Affairs. Avoid all the other operators and discussions. Do not pass GO. Do not collect $200.  Instead go to the people who can actually do something.

I will update this by Friday 10/28/2016 once the report shows it has been removed and then again once I get the physical documents from EQ in 7-10 business days.

Hope this helps someone

Please respond if you find this info helpful and are successful using the tip.

Mike