BMW Financial Services Hit with Class Action Over Allegedly Inaccurate Credit Report Details [UPDATE]
Last Updated on July 30, 2020
Trim v. BMW Financial Services, NA, LLC
Filed: October 31, 2019 ◆§ 3:19-cv-02081
A consumer claims in a class action that BMW Financial Services is responsible for inaccurate account information included in his credit report.
California
Case Updates
July 30, 2020 – Lawsuit Dismissed
The proposed class action detailed on this page was dismissed on May 7, 2020. The plaintiff’s claims were dismissed with prejudice while allegations concerning the putative class were tossed without prejudice, leaving the door open for a case to be filed in the future.
United States District Judge Cathy Ann Bencivengo’s order granting the parties’ joint dismissal bid can be found here. According to the docket, the plaintiff and defendant requested dismissal pursuant to a settlement.
A San Diego consumer alleges in a proposed class action lawsuit that BMW Financial Services, which does business as Alphera Financial Services, negligently or intentionally reported erroneous information on his credit report and failed to properly investigate the matter.
Filed in California’s Southern District, the Fair Credit Reporting Act (FCRA) lawsuit explains that entities such as BMW Financial Services are bound to “grave responsibilities” with regard to protecting consumers’ privacy and the evaluation of information included in credit reports. Financial entities’ FCRA responsibilities include in no small part a duty to investigate credit report items disputed by consumers, the case stresses.
The plaintiff claims that the defendant has fallen short of its FCRA mandates by systematically issuing credit reports that erroneously show a continual monthly payment obligation for accounts that have been closed and paid in full. According to the case, the plaintiff incurred a debt in December 2010 and paid off the account in full in April 2013, after which the obligation was closed. Despite holding up his end of the bargain, the plaintiff’s February 2019 Equifax credit report continued to show a scheduled payment amount for the same debt that had already been paid off, the suit claims.
The lawsuit alleges that BMW Financial Services never updated the plaintiff’s report, as required by law, with regard to the man’s closed account. According to the complaint, the inaccurate information continues to be reported on the plaintiff’s credit report to this day despite his attorney sending Equifax a written dispute in June 2019. Equifax, the lawsuit says, informed the defendant of the plaintiff’s dispute, yet BMW Financial Services has allegedly failed to correct the information or conduct a reasonable investigation.
All of this amounts to a significant problem for the plaintiff, the case argues, in particular when it comes to potential lenders who may view the man’s credit report and see less-than-ideal information. From the complaint:
“To potential lenders reading Plaintiff’s Equifax credit report, it appears as though Plaintiff has an ongoing monthly obligation of $371. When making decisions on whether or not to extend credit, lenders consider such obligations and borrowers will be unable to obtain financing for necessary things such as vehicles and homes.”
The lawsuit looks to cover all U.S. consumers who disputed with BMW Financial Services or its agents or employees inaccurate information furnished to Equifax that was not properly investigated and/or corrected on their credit report within two years prior to the case’s filing.
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