Common Names & Credit Reports

Posted on | May 18, 2010 | No Comments

by Mary Ann Miller, President/CEO of the Tempe Chamber of Commerce

I’ve had it with credit reporting agencies.

When your name is Mary Miller (Ann is my middle name), you get used to regularly checking your credit report for errors – some of which defy logic.

I remember the first time I found an error.  I was 20 years old and wondering why I was denied a credit card.  Turns out there was an item on my report indicating I had defaulted on a home loan – four years earlier.  Even in the rush to loan of the last few years, no one would approve a mortgage to someone under the age of 16.

So I got my Equifax report last week only to discover they changed my first name!  Suddenly, all my accounts are attributed to Marilyn Miller, and the only way to fix it is to send them all sorts of documents proving my first name is Mary.  Of course, they didn’t need to notify me of the change to begin with, and they didn’t need to justify the change after a 30-year credit history under the name Mary.

Now I know that in the great scheme of things this is a minor irritation, but I’m tired of an industry that’s allowed to assume you’re guilty until you prove your innocence.  More and more, everything from insurance rates to employment is based on your credit report.  Reporting agencies need to develop higher standards.

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