Equifax Hit with Class Action Over ‘Unavailable’ Status in Credit Reports

New to ClassAction.org? Read our Newswire Disclaimer

A proposed class action claims Equifax has inaccurately reported accounts in consumers’ credit reports with a status of “unavailable.”

The lawsuit alleges the credit reporting agency has run afoul of the Fair Credit Reporting Act (FCRA) by failing to maintain reasonable procedures to ensure the “maximum possible accuracy” of the information it reports about consumers. According to the 12-page case, Equifax “negligently, knowingly, and/or willfully” reported inaccurate information by listing the status of consumers’ credit accounts as “unavailable.”

The plaintiff is an Arizona resident who the suit says filed for Chapter 7 bankruptcy in August 2021. Per the case, the bankruptcy court discharged the plaintiff’s debts in late December.

The plaintiff says that when she checked her Equifax credit report in January 2022, “much of the information on that report was inaccurate.” More specifically, the case claims Equifax reported a status of “unavailable” on the plaintiff’s Synchrony, Capital One, Comenity Capital, Regional Acceptance Corp. and Westlake Service accounts that were discharged in bankruptcy.

“Equifax’s reporting of the above-mentioned accounts was inaccurate because the accounts should have been reporting as included in bankruptcy in the status section,” the complaint specifies.

Per the case, the “unavailable” notation made it impossible for potential creditors to determine the status of the plaintiff’s accounts and evaluate her creditworthiness.

“That said, Plaintiff’s overall financial wellbeing has been severely affected by Equifax’s inaccurate reporting,” the suit reads. “In fact, it has added insult to the injury she already experienced with her bankruptcy.”

The lawsuit notes that Equifax was sued over “the very same issue” in July 2021 and thus should have known about the problematic “unavailable” status.

“Therefore, Equifax’s actions as to Plaintiff and the putative class were willful,” the complaint concludes.

The lawsuit looks to represent anyone in the U.S. whose Equifax credit report was inaccurately reported with a status of “unavailable” within the last two years.

Get class action lawsuit news sent to your inbox – sign up for ClassAction.org’s newsletter here.