ROCHESTER, N.Y. — The New York Attorney General announced a settlement with Equifax over inaccuracies in credit scores for New Yorkers. This issue affected about 77,000 residents due to a coding mistake, according to Equifax.

Equifax corrected the error within weeks and notified lenders, who then provided remediation to consumers. Equifax also covered the costs of this remediation.

This isn’t the first time a credit bureau has been accused of providing incorrect information. Recently, the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB) sued Experian for not properly investigating consumer disputes. The CFPB claims Experian accepted information from reporting businesses even when it was clearly unreliable.

In 2023, Experian settled a class-action lawsuit for $22.5 million for similar issues. This highlights the importance of checking your credit report quarterly and disputing any errors.

For a free weekly credit report, click here.

Consumer Reports expert Lisa Gill advises, “The first thing you need to do is write out your dispute, provide the information, print it all out, put it in an envelope, get to the U.S. Postal Service and get that letter certified and get it sent.”

It’s crucial to notify all three credit bureaus — Equifax, Experian, and TransUnion — and avoid using their online forms, which may oversimplify your case and potentially waive your right to sue.

The National Consumer Law Center states that 13% of people have mistakes on their credit reports, with 5% serious enough to cause credit denial or increased interest rates. This affects about 10 million people.

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