Equifax Under Investigation for Sending Lenders Inaccurate Credit Scores Over Three-Week Period
Schubert Jonckheer & Kolbe LLP is investigating major U.S. credit reporting agency Equifax for allegedly sending bank and nonbank lenders, including JPMorgan Chase, Wells Fargo, and Ally Financial, inaccurate credit scores on a vast number of U.S. consumers applying for credit cards, mortgages, and auto loans.
Equifax collects information and compiles credit reports for more than 200 million U.S. consumers. On August 2, 2022, Equifax issued a press release confirming they had identified the coding issue that affected a portion of U.S. consumers who had applied for credit reports between mid-March and early April. The coding error prompted Equifax to send erroneous credit scores to consumers’ chosen lenders when consumers requested credit reports to apply for various loans. According to a class action lawsuit filed on August 3, 2022 in the Northern District of Georgia, almost 25 million credit reports were requested from the major three credit reporting agencies during the implicated time frame, deeming it likely that at least hundreds of thousands, if not millions, of U.S. consumers were affected by Equifax’s mishap. An August 2, 2022 Wall Street Journal article additionally stated that some of the scores were changed by 20 or more points, which is enough to affect the interest rates offered to consumers or result in a rejected loan application.
The Schubert Firm is investigating whether Equifax violated state and federal laws, including the Fair Credit Reporting Act, by reporting inaccurate credit information to lenders. If you applied for credit or a loan between March 17, 2022 and April 5, 2022 and were negatively affected by an inaccurate Equifax credit score, you may be entitled to damages and an injunction requiring the company to reform its credit practices.
If you believe you may have been negatively affected by an inaccurate Equifax credit score between March 17 and April 5, please complete the form below for a free legal consultation.
