Cursory Investigations And Misleading Reporting Leads To Partial Summary Judgment Win For Consumer
A recent federal court decision granting summary judgment to a plaintiff on a claim that a lender violated the Fair Credit Reporting Act (the "FCRA"), 15 U.S.C. § 1681 et seq., by failing to conduct a "reasonable" investigation of a credit reporting dispute - an issue normally reserved for a jury - illustrates the difficulty creditors have in managing the legal risks in furnishing information to consumer reporting agencies. It also illustrates the particularly high risks creditors face in handling claims of identity theft, and the risks they run when they fail to take advantage of multiple disputes to address a problem.
On September 21, 2017, the District Court for the Eastern District of Virginia resolved cross-motions for summary judgment in favor of Plaintiff David W. Wood ("Wood" or "Plaintiff") in a case against Defendant Credit One Bank ("Credit One" or "Defendant") for violations of the FCRA. See Wood v. Credit One Bank, No. 3:15-cv-594 (E.D. Va. Sept. 21, 2017). Wood alleges that he was the victim of identity theft after a Credit One credit card account was opened in his name, and that Credit One failed to investigate and remedy inaccurate credit reporting after he submitted multiple disputes with consumer reporting agencies ("CRAs"). The Court agreed, holding that Credit One had failed to conduct a reasonable investigation into Wood's disputes, failed to accurately report the results of its investigations, and inaccurately reported that Wood opened and was responsible for the account in question.
Here are the facts. On June 11, 2013, Credit One received a credit application and opened a credit card account (the "Account") in Wood's name. The application included identifying information for Wood, but a primary e-mail address belonging to another individual. The Account was activated three days later. On the same day, a request to add an authorized user to the account was submitted, but the request was denied because the voice "was not recognized to be one that would match the Account details." Testimony by Credit One's representative suggests that the request was denied because the gender of the caller did not match that of the account holder. The credit limit was exceeded shortly after the Account was opened, no payments were ever made, and Credit One eventually sold the account.
Wood became aware of the Account five weeks after it was activated when he received a bill in the mail. He testified that he immediately reported it to...
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