Consumer Claims Comcast ‘Surreptitiously’ Obtained Credit Report Without Consent, Permissible Purpose [UPDATE]
Last Updated on January 26, 2021
Shelton v. Comcast Corporation et al.
Filed: April 2, 2020 ◆§ 2:20-cv-01763
A consumer alleges Comcast Corporation obtained his credit report information with neither a permissible purpose nor authorization to do so.
Pennsylvania
Case Updates
January 26, 2021 – Case Sent to Arbitration
The proposed class action lawsuit detailed on this page has been sent to arbitration.
In a nine-page memorandum opinion issued on January 21, United States District Judge Nitza I. Quiñones Alejandro granted the defendant’s motion to compel arbitration on the grounds that the lead plaintiff is bound to the binding arbitration provision in Comcast’s subscriber agreement.
Though the plaintiff asserted that there existed no basis on which he could be bound to Comcast’s arbitration provision given he was not a signatory on the account, which is in his father’s name, the court found that the man “actively sought and obtained benefits provided pursuant to the Subscriber Agreement” and was thereby bound to the arbitration provision therein.
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A Pennsylvania man has filed a proposed class action lawsuit in which he claims Comcast Corporation and Comcast Cable Communications have procured consumers’ credit reports with neither a permissible purpose nor consent to do so. The case alleges Comcast’s “surreptitious” credit report procurement has invaded consumers’ privacy and harmed their credit scores.
According to the suit, Comcast contacted the plaintiff by phone in June 2018 in an attempt to solicit the man into purchasing the company’s services. During the call, the suit claims, the plaintiff was never advised that Comcast desired to review his credit report, nor consented to such. The lawsuit claims that Comcast nevertheless initiated an inquiry into the plaintiff’s Equifax credit report without his consent or knowledge.
Later that month, the plaintiff reached out to Comcast to advise he never consented to have his credit report accessed and demanded the company remove its hard inquiry from his Equifax file, according to the suit. From there, the case says Comcast “not only failed to request removal of the initial inquiry from June 22nd,” but consciously initiated another hard inquiry of the plaintiff’s credit report.
According to the lawsuit, Comcast, in both instances, “falsely certified” that it was looking into the plaintiff’s credit report for an extension of credit despite the absence of any permissible purpose.
“Comcast’s actions resulted in a severe invasion of the Plaintiff’s privacy and caused harm to Plaintiff’s credit reputation and score,” the case alleges.
Comcast’s impermissible credit inquiries constitute a violation of the federal Fair Credit Reporting Act (FCRA), the lawsuit alleges.
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