Mixed Credit Report Lawyers
- Personal identifying information such as name variations, addresses, phone numbers, birthdays, and/or social security numbers that are not yours?
- Credit card account(s) that are not yours?
- Mortgage(s) which do not belong to you?
- Student loan(s) that do not belong to you?
- Accounts for auto loan for a vehicle that you never purchased or leased?
- Debt collection account(s) with an original creditor who you never did have any accounts with?
A MIXED CREDIT REPORT COULD MEAN FINANCIAL COMPENSATION
A mixed credit report occurs when someone else’s financial and personal information appears on your credit file. Learn how to identify red flags like unfamiliar accounts, incorrect details, and security questions that don’t apply to you. Discover why these errors happen, how to dispute them with credit bureaus, and when legal action may be necessary. If left unresolved, mixed credit reports can impact loans, mortgages, and financial opportunities.
What you’ll learn below about mixed credit reports:
- Do you have a mixed Credit Report?
- What is a Mixed Credit Report?
- How Does a Mixed Credit Report Happen?
- What Situations Do Mixed Credit Reports Happen?
- Long-Standing Problem of Mixed Credit Reports within the Credit Reporting Industry
- What Should I do If My Credit Report Includes Information for One or More People other than Myself?
- Lawsuits that have resulted from Mixed Credit Reporting
- Get Help Removing Somone Else’s Information if it is Appearing on Your Credit Report
Do you have a mixed Credit Report?
Have you recently reviewed your credit report and noticed any of the following:
- Personal identifying information such as name variations, addresses, phone numbers, birthdays, and/or social security numbers that are not yours?
- Credit card account(s) that are not yours?
- Mortgage(s) which do not belong to you?
- Student loan(s) that do not belong to you?
- Accounts for auto loan for a vehicle that you never purchased or leased?
- Debt collection account(s) with an original creditor who you never did have any accounts with?
If you answered “yes” to any of these questions, you may have a mixed credit report.
Another indicator of whether you have a mixed credit report is the inability to obtain your credit report online. This often occurs because the security questions asked are for information that actually belongs to another individual. For instance, a question asking “What is your monthly car payment?” could never be answered if the payment information in the possession of the credit reporting agencies is that of another individual.
What is a Mixed Credit Report?
As you might have guessed from the above questions, a mixed credit report is a credit report that includes information of two or more people within a single credit report. When this occurs, you can see any number of pieces of information on your credit report that do not belong to you, including personal identifying information, various financial accounts and credit inquiries relating to companies you have never done come into contact with or requested financing from.
How Does a Mixed Credit Report Happen?
Credit reporting agencies receive millions of different pieces of data a month. Credit reporting agencies will then use automated systems to match data to consumer credit files. The matching of the data will still occur even though the information for the consumer provided to the credit reporting agency does not align with the consumer with whom it is matched. This mismatching of data can happen in numerous ways but oftentimes occurs in situations where consumers have similar personal identifying information.
For example, Bank of America may report data for a credit card to Trans Union, Experian and Equifax. That data has to do with a credit card account for Sarah Jones who lives in Florida. There is another individual named Stephanie Jones, who also lives in Florida. Because of the similarity in names, and the fact that both Sarah and Stephanie live in Florida, a credit reporting agency may inaccurately associate the Bank of America credit card account with Stephanie Jones instead of Sarah Jones. Thus, the Bank of America credit card account will be reported incorrectly on Stephanie Jones credit reports.
What Situations Do Mixed Credit Reports Happen?
Even the smallest commonality in personal identifying information can lead to a mixed credit report. Common situations where mixed credit reports occur are when:
- Individuals that have the same or similar name – For example, John Smith, Sr. and John Smith, Jr. or Jeremy Smith and Joseph Smith.
- Similar social security numbers – For example, all numbers in a social security number being the same except for a few different digits. This can often happen in the situations with Twins. Parents will apply for social security numbers for their children at the same time if they are twins. In that circumstance, because of the timing of the applications, the social security numbers issued for the twins will be very similar and could be only a digit off.
- Location
Long-Standing Problem of Mixed Credit Reports within the Credit Reporting Industry
Mixed credit reports are not a new phenomenon. They have existed within the credit reporting industry for decades without resolution. Despite both State and Federal governments taking action against credit reporting agencies to change their ways, credit reporting inaccuracies such as mixed credit reports continue to exist.
For instance, in 2015, the Attorney Generals of several states announced a settlement with the three national credit reporting agencies – Trans Union, Experian and Equifax. The settlement involved, among other things, the institution of several policies and procedures to reduce the continued inaccurate credit reporting by Trans Union, Experian and Equifax that were harming consumers. Some of the changes made by the credit reporting agencies included the following:
- Escalated handling of complaints from consumers involving mixed files, fraud, and identity theft. Escalated handling means that the dispute is supposed to be assigned to a representative from a specialized group within the credit reporting agencies with substantial experience processing disputes involving mixed files, fraud and identity theft.
- Automated processes within the credit reporting agencies to share relevant information about consumers who dispute information that is mixed with another consumer.
- Developing guidelines and procedures for communicating with consumers about mixed files; and
- Creating educational content about mixed files generally.
What Should I do If My Credit Report Includes Information for One or More People other than Myself?
First, obtain current copies of all your credit reports. That includes with Trans Union, Experian and Equifax. Although you may have a mixed credit report with one credit reporting agency, that does not necessarily mean that the same issue exists with all credit reporting agencies.
After obtaining current copies of your credit report, identify each piece of information that is not accurate, this should include any personal identifying information, accounts and any credit inquiries.
Contact any creditors listed on your credit reports and ask for documentation of the supposed account and notify the creditor that the account does not belong to you but someone else.
Throughout this process, it is key to keep clear notes on all communications, including dates and substance of any conversation, and to retain all records of documents.
Then, letters should be drafted explaining why the information does not belong to you. The letter should attach all documents that you have gathered while researching the issue. For instance, if a mortgage is listed on your credit reports that does not belong to you, a document reflecting your home address and mortgage company that you had during the time of the inaccurately reported mortgage. Once the letter is drafted, and documents attached, they should then be sent to the credit reporting agencies that are reporting the false information. These disputes should be sent by certified mail.
The address for each of the national credit reporting agencies are:
Trans Union
TransUnion Consumer Solutions
P.O. Box 2000
Chester, PA 19016-2000
Experian
P.O. Box 4500
Allen, TX 75013
Experian
P.O. Box 740256
Atlanta, GA 30374-0256
It is also advisable that you contact a consumer law attorney with a focus on the Fair Credit Reporting Act to guide you through the situation.
Lawsuits that have resulted from Mixed Credit Reporting
As you may have imagined, numerous lawsuits have occurred because of credit reporting agencies repeated mixing of consumer reports over the years. These are two examples:
- Miller v. Equifax: Julie Miller’s Equifax credit reports included false personal identifying information (such as social security number and birthday) and derogatory and false collection accounts on her credit reports. Ms. Miller spent two years, trying to have her Equifax credit report corrected, but Equifax always failed to do so. Ms. Miller sued Equifax and the jury awarded her approximately $18.6 million.
- Larios v. Specialized Loan Servicing, LLC: Sergio Larios had a bankruptcy reported on his credit reports by Specialized Loan Servicing, LLC (“SLS”). SLS reported the bankruptcy because it confused an ambulance company that had filed for bankruptcy with Mr. Larios. The ambulance company, which did file for bankruptcy, had a Tax ID with the same numerical sequence as the social security number of Mr. Larios. Because of the inaccurate bankruptcy being mixed into the credit reports of Mr. Larios, he was unable to obtain to refinance his mortgage which was coming due. SLS claimed that its actions were justified and after a 9 day trial, a verdict was returned in favor of Mr. Larios for $2.9 million.
Get Help Removing Somone Else’s Information if it is Appearing on Your Credit Report
If another person’s accounts are appearing on your credit reports, you are likely to have a mixed credit report. If you do, you can contact The Kim Law Firm, LLC. You can contact us by submitting your details of your situation online or by telephone at 855-996-6342.
About Richard Kim
Rich is a lifelong resident of the Philadelphia area and a 2001 graduate of Bucknell University. After receiving a degree in Finance from Bucknell, he graduated from Rutgers School of Law and Business in 2005 – receiving both a Juris Doctor and Master’s in Business Administration. Thereafter, he served as a Judicial Law Clerk to The Honorable Robert J. Mellon of the Bucks County Court of Common Pleas.
Since that time – as a member of some of the region’s largest law firms – Rich has litigated actions in both state and federal courts throughout the country, including: California, Nevada, Wyoming, New York, New Jersey and Pennsylvania. His practice endeavors include, but are not limited to, litigating: business disputes, employment cases, class actions, personal injury matters and fiduciary duty issues.
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Having worked with Rich for many years, he is a thoughtful, intelligent and aggressive advocate. His business and litigation backgrounds provide him with a unique and powerful skill set, and I would recommend him to any potential client
Whip smart and personable. Richard is attentive to client's needs and aggressive on their behalf. He tirelessly represents people and wins. I trust him with all of my clients.
Rich is a true professional. Experienced, personable and takes a genuine personal interest in his clients' legal matters
Rich is an extremely bright and talented litigator. The breadth of his litigation experience makes him well prepared to handle complex and high stakes litigation. He's compasionate with clients, yet fights very aggressively on their behalf. I would recommend Rich in a heartbeat.
I endorse Richard. Highly respected in the legal community with a strong reputation for client advocacy and dedication.
I have had the pleasure of working with Rich Kim over the years. He works hard to get the best results for his clients. He really cares about them and looks out for their interest. I would recommend him to anyone.
