Experian Rental Screening Solutions Report Errors
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- Experian Rental Screening Solutions Report Errors
Some landlords rely on Experian rental screening reports to determine a potential tenant’s reliability. Should they?
Experian makes mistakes. When there’s an error in an Experian rental screening report, the consequences can be devastating for the potential tenants. Find out how to prevent this. And if an error in your Experian RentBureau or rental screening report has already caused you to lose an opportunity, find out what to do about it.
For landlords and property managers who want more information about a potential tenant’s rental history, credit reporting giant Experian offers a series of renal screening reports. These include Experian RentBureau rental history report, Experian rental property tenant screening, and Experian rental property solutions. Their purpose is the same - to chronicle a person’s rental history into one report.
Like its credit reports, an Experian rental history report is susceptible to errors and inaccuracies. When errors, discrepancies, and inaccuracies appear on a potential tenant’s Experian rental screening report, the consequences can be life-altering as it likely means that the tenant will lose the property for which they are applying for tenancy.
Consumer protection attorneys like the attorneys at Consumer Attorneys know the world of credit reporting, tenant reporting, and background check reporting well. More importantly, we use this knowledge to fight for consumers who have been impacted by an error in an Experian rental history check. We think it’s important to supply consumers with an understanding of what is in these reports, how you can check them, and what you can do to fight back when rental screening solutions for Experian turn into problems for you, including how to file a lawsuit. Keep reading to learn all of this and more.
What Does an Experian Rental Screening Solutions Report Show?
An Experian rental screening solutions report provides a landlord or a property manager with a thorough history of a prospective tenant’s rental and credit history. Experian offers and sells its Experian rental history reports to assist landlords and property managers in making informed leasing decisions. Depending on the type of report the landlord pays for, the report can include the tenant’s credit score, their rental history, their criminal background, and an Experian rental credit score developed by its own Experian rental scoring system.
By compiling this information into one rental history report, Experian seeks to give landlords as complete a picture as possible of a tenant’s financial stability and future reliability. An Experian rental background check promises to give landlords an assessment of the risk posed by potential tenants to minimize future rental disputes and financial losses.
Potential tenants must give the landlord permission to conduct an Experian rental credit check. Potential tenants must fill out an Experian rental screening application. However, once the landlords submit the request, the potential tenant is at the mercy of Experian technology processing landlord information and accessing public records databases. These processes often prove inadequate and result in errors. When there’s an error on tenant screening reports, the tenant suffers.
Resident Score
Like a credit score, a resident score provides landlords and property managers with a number by which to gauge a potential tenant’s reliability. Because the rating for rental history on Experian comes from more rental data, the score is not always the same as the traditional credit score.
Credit Report
Rental screening solutions for Experian include a credit report. A credit report is a more complete portrait of a consumer’s financial history.
Eviction History
The rental bureau by Experian report will indicate whether a potential tenant has been evicted before.
Income Information
Experian will include income information, including income-to-debt ratio and income-to-rent ratio.
Experian Criminal Rental Screening
An Experian for rental screening report encompasses a thorough check of public records, identifying any past bankruptcies, legal judgments, or outstanding debts that might impact the tenant's ability to pay rent. Additionally, Experian seeks verification of the applicant's identity and checks against fraud databases to ensure the information provided is accurate and truthful.
Sex Offender Data
Experian rental screening solutions will search names in the National Sex Offender Registry.
Social Trace
In addition to Experian rental payment history, Experian will include a social trace or an SSN trace. A social trace provides information related to a particular Social Security number. This includes the year the SSN was issued, the state in which the SSN was issued, names and aliases associated with the SSN, and addresses associated with the SSN.
Other Criminal Records
Depending on the landlord’s request, an Experian rental payment history will search other criminal databases, from state and local databases to the Federal Bureau of Investigation criminal database. If a tenant has lived overseas, they may check criminal records from foreign countries.
Mistakes on My Experian Rental Screening
An Experian rental screening solutions report can be a valuable tool for landlords. But when there are mistakes in the report, it can be a nightmare for tenant applicants. When a report contains inaccuracies, inaccuracies that are no fault of the tenant, applicants can be denied housing. The inconvenience, reputational damage, loss of opportunity, and financial strain this causes can be significant.
How can inaccuracies appear on reports?
- Incomplete data. Experian relies on landlords and property managers - especially multi-family unit property managers - to submit their data. Sometimes landlords, past and present, will forget to send their rental payment data to Experian. This creates an inaccurate picture of your rental history. If you have been diligent in making payments, but your landlord neglects to send that information to Experian, it could show up as an error on your part. This will be a problem when you apply for a new apartment or house.
- Incomplete participation. Not all landlords and property managers do business with Experian. So, not all landlords and property managers submit their rental history information to Experian. As a result, lapses in rental history can easily occur.
- Errors in reporting. Like any report creator, Experian rental screening solutions are susceptible to errors. One spelling error or typo can lead to tenant misidentification, which can lead to you being confused with some other renter. Sometimes, errors in payment records can occur due to misplaced numbers or mere neglect or forgetfulness.
- Limited scope. Experian rental screening solutions reports focus on rental payment history. Sometimes, this will provide an inaccurate portrait of an applicant’s full financial responsibility and payment behaviors. While rental payments are important, they might just be one part of a tenant’s rental story. Landlords who only use Experian reports will overlook other circumstances.
- Speed. Experian receives rental data every 24 hours. That’s a lot of data all the time. Also, landlords expect a rental screening report to be done quickly. All the speed means that verifying and checking information - even seeing if the information makes sense - can be impossible. The need for speed can often compromise accuracy.
Can I Sue Experian if My Screening Report Contains Errors?
Yes, you can sue Experian. The Fair Credit Reporting Act (FCRA) provides rules and regulations for how credit, background, and rental history reporting companies must treat consumers. They also provide avenues by which consumers can dispute errors in their reports. If Experian does not adequately investigate, respond to, or correct the mistakes they have made or otherwise violates the FCRA or relevant privacy laws, or if the damage from the Experian rental screenings report error has already been done, you likely have grounds to sue.
An experienced Fair Credit Reporting Act lawyer like the ones at Consumer Attorneys can help you assess your case as soon as identify an error in the report. We can walk you through the best way to dispute the error as well as be ready to initiate legal action should it be necessary to do so.
Lawsuits Against Experian
We have experience bringing and ending lawsuits against Experian. The FCRA and the law anticipated the need for consumers to file lawsuits against large credit and background check reporting companies, so it provided a cause of action for us to do so. There are many challenges to bringing a lawsuit against a large company like Experian, but we can handle them. Compliance with the FCRA is not optional. The credit reporting industry is a powerful one, and consumers often need an advocate on their side to shepherd them through a lawsuit.
Benefits of Professional Legal Support with Experian Rental Screening
Your Experian rental screening report must be accurate. When it’s not - you deserve a prompt and adequate correction. This is the law.
Contact Consumer Attorneys at any point in your dispute with Experian. Their seasoned attorneys can do a case evaluation, guide you through the process, help gather necessary documentation, represent your interests, ensure that your rights under the FCRA are upheld, and, if necessary, develop a strategy for suing Experian to get you the compensation you deserve.
When it is time to sue, the lawyers at Consumer Attorneys identify the most suitable court in which to file the lawsuit, identify the necessary defendants, identify all the reasons Experian should compensate you, and file the lawsuit. Once we begin this process, we do not back down. We know how to engage in legal combat with a large company like Experian, and they know they can’t intimidate us like companies typically do with individual consumer plaintiffs.
How Much Does it Cost?
There are enough hurdles to fairness and justice. Costs should not be one of them. You pay nothing upfront. And you pay only if we recover money on your behalf. You pay us a portion of what we win at trial or what we settle for.
Ask for Our Help Now
Contact Consumer Attorneys if you have any questions about Experian rental screening (or any other rental screening company), if an employment screening company has failed to correct an error in a background report, or if you have been denied approval or lost an opportunity due to an error in a background check.
Contact us by:
- Emailing us at [email protected] to request a meeting with an attorney.
- Calling us at 1-877-615-1725.
We have helped thousands of people with errors in their rental screening reports, background checks, and credit reports. We know the law, and we know how to get the attention of background and rental screening companies. Sometimes, that requires a lawsuit. If that’s the case, we will represent you and support you until you get the compensation you deserve.
Frequently Asked Questions
Not all rental history appears on an Experian rental report. In order for information to appear on a credit report, landlords must submit their rental data to the three major credit bureaus. To check your rental history on your regular Experian credit report, request a copy of your report from annualcreditreport.com. Rental history is more likely to appear on an Experian RentBureau report or any other report from Experian’s suite of Rental Industry Solutions. To request those, visit Experian’s website and follow the prompts. The Fair Credit Reporting Act governs Experian rental screening solutions reports, so Experian must provide you with at least one free report per year. We recommend that consumers review these reports regularly to gauge their accuracy and identify any errors. When you find errors, contact Consumer Attorneys.
An Experian credit report will show rental payment history if landlords and property managers submit their data to Experian. Consumers are legally entitled to one free credit report every week. Request your report on Experian’s website or through AnnualCreditReport.com. Review the credit account section of your report for any rental accounts reported. Experian will usually report rental history and will provide details of your rental payment history, the rental agreement start date, missed payments, evictions, and other pertinent rental data. Remember, not all landlords report rental payments to credit reporting agencies, so your rental history may not appear on every report.
Rental history usually stays on your Experian rental report and credit report for up to seven years. This includes both the positive and the negative rental payment information. A positive rental history, like on-time rent payments, can be beneficial for your credit report, as it demonstrates financial responsibility to future landlords and creditors. However, negative rental payment information, such as missed or late payments, evictions, or other rental-related debts, will also stay on that report for seven years. This will potentially impact your ability to rent in the future and affect your overall creditworthiness. It’s important to review these reports for accuracy and dispute any errors.
Yes, consumers are entitled to a free credit report every week from Experian. Consumers can get one free report per year from Experian’s rental screening solutions services. Not only can consumers get their rental history from Experian, but we recommend that consumers request these reports and review them regularly to review them for accuracy. Experian collects data from landlords across the country every month, compiles the data, and produces reports. Mistakes often happen, and when they do, it is the renters who usually face the consequences.
Daniel Cohen is the Founder of Consumer Attorneys. Daniel manages the firm’s branding, marketing, client intake and business development efforts. Since 2017, he is a member of the National Association of Consumer Advocates and the National Consumer Law Center. Mr. Cohen is a nationally-recognized practitioner of consumer protection law. He has a we... Read more
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