Credit Report Error Attorney Serving New York and Nassau County

Filing a dispute with a credit bureau is supposed to work. The Fair Credit Reporting Act requires bureaus and creditors to investigate reported errors and correct inaccurate information within 30 days. When they do not — when the same error remains on your report after a documented dispute — that failure is not just frustrating. It is a federal law violation, and it gives you the right to sue. Aronow Law P.C. pursues FCRA claims for Nassau County and Long Island consumers whose disputes were ignored, dismissed, or handled improperly.

What the FCRA Requires — and What Happens When It Is Violated

The Fair Credit Reporting Act establishes specific obligations for credit bureaus and creditors that furnish information to them. When a consumer files a written dispute identifying an inaccuracy, the bureau must investigate the claim, contact the furnishing creditor, and correct or delete the disputed information if it cannot be verified — all within 30 days.

When a bureau completes a perfunctory investigation and reaffirms an error without genuine inquiry, or when a creditor continues to furnish inaccurate information it has already been notified about, both the bureau and the creditor may be liable under the FCRA. The consumer's remedy is not another dispute — it is a lawsuit in federal court seeking actual damages, statutory damages, and attorney fees paid by the defendant.

Common Credit Report Errors That Create FCRA Claims

Not every inaccuracy on a credit report rises to the level of a FCRA violation — but many do, particularly after a dispute has been filed and ignored. The most common actionable errors Aronow Law sees for Nassau County and Long Island consumers include:

• Accounts that do not belong to the consumer: Debt assigned to the wrong person due to a name similarity, address match, or data error — sometimes called a mixed file — can appear on a consumer's report with no connection to their actual credit history.
• Balances reported incorrectly: A creditor reporting a higher balance than what is actually owed, or continuing to report an account as active and delinquent after it has been paid or settled.
• Discharged bankruptcy debts still reported as due: After a Chapter 7 or Chapter 13 discharge, creditors are legally required to update their reporting to reflect the discharge. Accounts that continue to appear as active, delinquent, or owed after a bankruptcy discharge are among the most common post-bankruptcy FCRA violations.
• Fraudulent accounts from identity theft: Accounts opened by a third party using the consumer's personal information — appearing as legitimate debt on the credit report — that the consumer has never opened or authorized.
• Duplicate accounts: The same debt reported multiple times by different collection agencies, inflating the apparent level of delinquency on the report.
• Incorrect derogatory marks: Late payments, collections, or charge-offs reported for accounts that were current, or derogatory marks that remain on the report beyond the seven-year FCRA reporting limit.
  

The FCRA Dispute Process — and When It Fails

Sue a Debt Collector — Pursuing Damages for Illegal Collection Conduct

Consumers who have experienced FDCPA violations are not limited to filing regulatory complaints — they can file suit directly against the collector in federal court. Aronow Law pursues FDCPA claims on behalf of Nassau County and Long Island consumers, handling the litigation from initial filing through resolution. Because attorney fees are recoverable, clients who have valid claims can pursue them without bearing the cost of litigation out of pocket.

FCRA: Credit Report Errors — When Inaccurate Information Costs You More Than Convenience

The Fair Credit Reporting Act requires credit bureaus and creditors to investigate and correct inaccurate information after a consumer dispute. When they fail to do so — continuing to report an error that has been formally disputed — that failure is a FCRA violation. FCRA violations are actionable, and successful plaintiffs can recover actual damages, statutory damages, and attorney fees. A credit report error that costs you a loan, a job, or an apartment is not just frustrating — it is legally compensable.

Attorney Fee Recovery Under the FCRA

The FCRA's fee-shifting provision requires a defendant who loses a FCRA case to pay the plaintiff's attorney fees. This provision exists because Congress recognized that individual consumers with inaccurate credit reports often cannot afford the cost of federal litigation — and that the damages from any one error, while real, may not be large enough to fund a case on a traditional fee basis.

The practical consequence is that a Nassau County consumer with a valid FCRA claim can retain legal representation, pursue the case through federal court, and — if the case is successful — owe no attorney fees out of pocket. The bureau or creditor that failed to correct the error pays those fees as part of the judgment.

Aronow Law evaluates whether a valid FCRA claim exists at the initial consultation and explains the fee structure before representation begins.

FCRA Claims After Bankruptcy: A Specific and Common Violation

One of the most frequent FCRA violations Aronow Law sees involves accounts that were discharged in bankruptcy but continue to be reported as active delinquencies on the consumer's credit report. After a bankruptcy discharge, creditors are required by the FCRA to update their reporting to reflect the discharge status. Continuing to report a discharged debt as owed — after the consumer has disputed the entry and provided documentation of the discharge — is a clear FCRA violation with documented, measurable harm: the consumer cannot rebuild credit on the basis of a report that still shows the discharged account as active.

For clients who completed a bankruptcy through Aronow Law and are still seeing discharged accounts reported inaccurately, the FCRA claim can be pursued within the same firm relationship.

Frequently Asked Questions About FCRA and Credit Report Errors in New York

The Dispute Did Not Work. The Lawsuit Might. Let's Talk.

If you have disputed a credit report error and the bureau or creditor failed to correct it, you are past the dispute stage and into the litigation stage. Aronow Law pursues FCRA claims for Nassau County and Long Island consumers from the firm's Woodbury, NY office, in many cases at no out-of-pocket cost. The consultation is free and has no time limit.