Class Action Alleges Experian Inaccurately Reports Accounts Discharged in Bankruptcy

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A Florida resident has filed a proposed class action in which he claims credit reporting agency Experian published erroneous information on numerous closed and discharged accounts and then failed to properly investigate the inaccuracies after they had been disputed.

The 15-page lawsuit alleges that Experian Information Solutions has repeatedly listed “negative” or “late” payments on seven accounts that the plaintiff had closed and discharged after filing for bankruptcy in March 2017. These reports appeared months and years after the plaintiff was relieved of any responsibility on the closed accounts, the suit says.

Per the complaint, Experian has allowed inaccurate information to appear on consumers’ reports as a result of its failure to implement adequate policies to screen for and eliminate “logical inconsistencies.”

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The case relays that credit reporting agencies, such as Experian, are required under the Fair Credit Reporting Act (FCRA) to follow “reasonable procedures to assure maximum possible accuracy of the information” on consumer credit reports. According to the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau, agencies that fail to prevent the inclusion of facially false data, including logically inconsistent information, do not meet their FCRA accuracy obligations.

Experian failed to investigate the credit report inaccuracies after the plaintiff disputed them in June 2022, the lawsuit charges. Moreover, the case claims that several furnishers, including defendants Citibank, Kohls Department Stores and TD Bank, failed to investigate these credit report inaccuracies and continued to report logically inconsistent information, even after being notified of the plaintiff’s dispute.

The defendants’ negligence has significantly harmed the plaintiff’s daily life, the lawsuit alleges.

“[T]he Plaintiff was denied credit as a result of the Defendants’ inaccurate reporting of these derogatory accounts, causing the Plaintiff to sustain monetary damages, and has had false derogatory information regarding his credit and creditworthiness wrongfully disseminated to third parties,” the case reads.

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