As twins grow up, one setback they may face is having their credit reports mixed up. Learn from an expert consumer protection exactly how this happens and what your twins can do about it to ensure their financial health!
“My credit report is mixed with my twin’s. What is happening?”
There are so many great things about being a twin. Unfortunately, credit reporting isn’t among them.
As the name suggests, a mixed credit report is one that mistakenly contains information belonging to another person. Mixed reporting errors negatively impact both twins’ credit profiles, credit scores, and even credit worthiness.
Are twins/multiples always at risk of mixed credit files?
Yes. In fact, throughout their lives, adult twins are always at increased risk to both lose money and miss out on credit opportunities through no fault of their own!
Indeed, all twins are constantly exposed to the pervasive issue of mixed credit files. And unfortunately, this causes inaccurate and harmful credit reporting.
How are credit reports made?
To comprehend how a mixed credit report happens, it helps to understand how credit reports are generated in the first place.
Consumer Reporting Agencies (CRAs)
The Fair Credit Reporting Act (FCRA) is a 50-year-old piece of legislation that regulates the conduct and actions taken by the consumer data industry. Under the FCRA, the credit bureaus are known as consumer reporting agencies (CRAs). Their business is to gather, review, and compile consumer information into credit reports.
Because of their multi-billion-dollar sizes, three nationwide CRAs – Experian, Equifax, and TransUnion – generate most of the credit profiles and reports that folks are familiar with.
Data Furnishers
The CRAs purchase their data from other companies that twins have a direct business relationship with such as credit card companies, mortgage providers, banks, and others. Because these companies sell data to the CRAs, they are known as “data furnishers.”
After receiving all the necessary financial and other personal information from data furnishers, CRAs then assemble the data in the form of credit reports.
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How do credit reports for twins become mixed or merged?
With billions of data points moving around the nation, most of the data handling process is done using computer algorithms. The CRAs and data furnishers use software platforms and coding all specially designed to seek, gather, assemble, review, and compile data about any individual twin to generate a credit report at the end.
For twins, the “mixed credit” risk factors include, one or more of the following:
- Identical birth dates
- Same last name
- Similar first names
- Similar initials
- Common prior addresses
- And most especially, close social security numbers (often only one digit apart)
As you can imagine, with such vast data streams flowing, there’s lots of room for reporting errors. Information belonging Twin A becomes inadvertently pulled into the credit report for Twin B, and vice-versa.
Another common occurrence is where all (or nearly all) data for both Twins A and B are pulled together into one “merged” report. Lots of permutations and combinations are possible, but the result is always the same – financial chaos.
What types of harm are caused by mixed credit for twins?
The primary harm that mixed credit causes is the denial of credit. Also, credit may still be granted but at increased interest rates due to lowered credit scores. Imagine missing out on that dream home or care, or paying more for a mortgage or car loan than planned or one can afford?
Sometimes a twin’s child may miss out on educational opportunities because parental loans are not available. Some employers require good credit, so missed job opportunities are also possible (which can obviously cause great harm). The potential of financial damage and lost credit are too numerous to list.
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Can twins have inaccurate mixed information separated?
Yes. The law protects the rights of twins and requires that all credit reports be maintained with “maximum possible accuracy.” The FCRA requires that CRAs and furnishers both investigate disputes and correct any errors. Working with a lawyer helps ensure success in getting mixed credit unmixed and correct.
How can a lawyer help twins with mixed credit reports?
A consumer protection or mixed credit report attorney will fight CRAs to fix mixed twin credit reports, obtain compensation for harm caused, and get twin lives back on track.
So if twins are wondering, “What should we do if our credit files are mixed,” the answer is – get an attorney with experience: (1) knowing the laws and the credit bureau dispute process; (2) providing legal advice and guidance; (3) filing lawsuits for twins, and (4) negotiating settlements of lawsuits.
The legal landscape surrounding the rights of twins, along with CRA obligations, is quite complex. Moreover, the process of disputing mixed data can be disheartening, exhausting, and stressful. The process is frequently marked by roadblocks, stalls, delays, ineffective investigations, and failures to correct some or all errors and inaccuracies.
A skilled and experienced lawyer can anticipate and navigate unscrupulous tactics with authority, efficiency, and speed. It is almost always the case that only a lawsuit can bring a proper resolution to mixed file situations. Finally, find a lawyer will take cases for twins on contingency. That way, from the first phone call or email until the end of the lawsuit, twins will never owe a single dollar out of pocket.
What’s the first step in fixing mixed credit for twins?
Detection!
Everyone, but most especially twins, need to give themselves a credit physical!!! Twins should pull their credit reports from www.annualcreditreport.com. Electronic versions can be pulled once every week. Early detection (just like in medicine) can ultimately lessen the financial harm done and get twins to credit recovery faster.
Not to sound too melodramatic, but it’s a little like cancer; if you don’t get tested (credit report), you’ll never know you have a disease (mixed credit) until after substantial harm (lost credit) has occurred.
It’s natural for twin genetics to be mixed. But it’s unnatural, and financially harmful, for their credit reports to be mixed! Please “#tagatwin” and make sure all your adult twin friends and family are aware of this pervasive problem.
Tod Lewis is a consumer protection “mixed file” attorney with a nationwide practice. His website is www.twinsmixedcredit.com and he can be reached at 512-739-0390, or tod@twinsmixedcredit.com.
