The Work Number Report Errors

If a loan, apartment, or job slipped away because a verification of your employment or income was wrong, The Work Number may be the reason. It is one of the largest employment- and income-data services in the country, and because it is a consumer reporting agency under the federal Fair Credit Reporting Act (FCRA), you have the right to see what it reports about you and to force it to fix mistakes. You can learn more on our Employment Background Checks page.

What is The Work Number?

The Work Number is an automated employment- and income-verification database operated by Equifax Workforce Solutions. Your employer uploads your payroll data to it, and lenders, landlords, prospective employers, and government agencies pull that data to confirm where you work and what you earn. You are usually not told when someone pulls your Employment Data Report, which is exactly why errors in it can hurt you without warning.

How to contact The Work Number

You can request your own Employment Data Report and file disputes directly:

• Company: Equifax Workforce Solutions / The Work Number, Atlanta, GA
• Consumer support: 1-866-604-6570
• Website: theworknumber.com (request your free annual Employment Data Report)

Confirm the current dispute mailing address printed on your Employment Data Report before sending anything, and keep a copy of everything you send.

Common The Work Number errors we see

• A wrong employer, job title, or employment dates
• Income that is overstated or understated compared with your actual pay
• Being shown as still employed when you have left a job — or terminated when you have not
• Duplicate employment records that make one job look like several
• Stale payroll data that was never updated after a raise or job change
• Your records mixed with another person's because of a wrong Social Security number

How a The Work Number error hurts you

Mortgage lenders, auto lenders, landlords, and benefit agencies increasingly rely on instant income and employment verification. A single wrong number — an income figure that is too low, or a job shown as ended — can mean a denied loan, a lost apartment, worse terms, or interrupted benefits. Because the report runs in the background, many people never learn that The Work Number caused the problem.

The Work Number's track record with regulators

Equifax, which operates The Work Number, has drawn significant regulatory attention over how it handles consumer data and disputes.

In 2017 the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau ordered Equifax to pay penalties for failing to properly investigate consumer disputes, and the CFPB has since moved to scrutinize employment-data brokers like The Work Number over accuracy, access, and consumers' ability to correct their records. Source: Consumer Financial Protection Bureau. If your Employment Data Report is inaccurate, that history is one more reason to demand a correction rather than accept the record.

Your rights under the Fair Credit Reporting Act

The Work Number must follow the FCRA. It must use reasonable procedures to assure maximum possible accuracy (§1681e(b)); it must reinvestigate information you dispute (§1681i); it may only release your data to those with a permissible purpose (§1681b); and you are entitled to a free annual disclosure of your file (§1681j).

How to dispute a The Work Number report

1. Get your Employment Data Report at theworknumber.com or by calling 1-866-604-6570.
2. Identify every wrong employer, income figure, date, or status.
3. Gather proof — recent pay stubs, W-2s, an offer or termination letter.
4. Dispute in writing to Equifax Workforce Solutions, enclosing copies (never originals) and keeping a dated copy for yourself.
5. If it is not corrected, or the error already cost you a loan, apartment, or job, talk to an FCRA attorney.

This information is general and is not legal advice for your specific situation.

Did an inaccurate The Work Number report cost you a loan or job?

Employment and income data are consumer reports under the FCRA, and The Work Number has to follow strict accuracy rules. When a report is wrong and it costs you something real, you may be entitled to money damages — and our review is free.

How The Kim Law Firm helps

We are consumer-protection lawyers who handle FCRA cases nationwide. We help people whose Employment Data Report is inaccurate — wrong income, wrong employer, wrong status, or data that is not theirs. We do not help people trying to hide accurate employment or income history. If your report is wrong, we can pursue the correction and any damages, and you do not pay unless we win.

Admitted in Pennsylvania and New Jersey; available to appear pro hac vice in other federal courts.

A different company verifying your income or employment? We also handle Truework verification errors, Experian Verify income verification errors, and EmpInfo employment verification errors — and you can start with our overview of the major background check companies.

Frequently asked questions

How do I dispute a The Work Number report?

Request your Employment Data Report, identify the errors, and dispute them in writing to Equifax Workforce Solutions with supporting documents. If it is not fixed, an FCRA attorney can help.

The Work Number shows the wrong income — can that violate the FCRA?

Yes. Reporting inaccurate income when the FCRA requires maximum possible accuracy can be a violation, especially if it caused a denial.

Can I sue The Work Number for a verification error?

Potentially. If The Work Number reported inaccurate data or failed to fix it after a proper dispute and you were harmed, you may have an FCRA claim.

What if the error cost me a mortgage or apartment?

That is exactly the kind of concrete harm the FCRA is meant to address. Keep the denial notice and contact us.

Is the case review really free?

Yes. There is no charge, and no cost unless we win.

Where we practice, and what to do if you are somewhere else

The Kim Law Firm is licensed in Pennsylvania and New Jersey, and that is where we handle matters directly.

The Fair Credit Reporting Act is a federal statute. It applies the same way in every state, it is enforced in federal court, and the deadlines and remedies do not change when you cross a state line. So the answer to "does this apply to me in Ohio" is yes — but the answer to "can you represent me in Ohio" depends on the case and on where it would be filed.

If you are outside Pennsylvania and New Jersey, contact us anyway. Some matters can be handled from here. Some are better sent to a consumer lawyer admitted where you are, and we will tell you that plainly rather than let a deadline run while you wait. Either way you will get an answer, and the review costs nothing.

The one thing that does not wait is the clock. A claim under the Act generally must be brought within two years of the date you discover the violation, and in no event more than five years after the violation occurred. Finding out late does not extend the outside limit.