• Home
  • Bankruptcy in Brief
  • ABC’s of Bankruptcy
  • Considering Bankruptcy
  • True Stories
  • Chapter 13
  • Blog
  • About
  • TOC

Northern California Bankruptcy Lawyer

On The Bankruptcy Soapbox

The Soap Box
  • How bankruptcy works
  • Mortgage Matters
  • Consumer Rights
  • You & Your Lawyer
  • Small Business
  • Family Law

Credit Reporting Agency Is All Wrong About Bankruptcy

By Cathy Moran

credit report mistake

Found a mistake in your credit report after bankruptcy?

Happens all too frequently.

But a major credit reporting agency is flat wrong on its advice on how to debts discharged in bankruptcy reported properly.

The cynical side of me is not surprised.

They get so little else right, why do I expect them to write truthfully about bankruptcy and credit reporting?

Credit report after bankruptcy

The “Experian Team”  answered a question from a reader asking how to get a bankruptcy discharge shown in a credit report.

The “team”  correctly said that a credit report should show that a debt was discharged in bankruptcy.  They were correct to say the consumer needed to challenge the incomplete information and provide the correct information.

But, their solution to a credit reporting problem was laughably off base.

Here’s what they said about getting a credit report to show that debts are discharged:

Your bankruptcy records should include a schedule “A” that lists all of the debts included in the bankruptcy filing. Simply send to the address on your report a copy of the schedule “A” and a copy of documentation that the bankruptcy has been discharged, along with a statement explaining that the bankruptcy information should be updated. If necessary, the court also will be contacted and asked to verify the information in your dispute.

Two things are glaringly wrong with this advice.

One, Schedule A is not a list of all the debts included in the bankruptcy.  It’s a schedule of real property assets, not liabilities.

Second, not every debt listed in the bankruptcy case is discharged.

We can pretend that Experian is really going to attempt to verify the challenged information.  (Studies say they don’t).

But a bankruptcy court is highly unlikely to verify the disputed information.  The bankruptcy documents are found online on PACER. No court clerk is going to tell a CRA what debts were discharged.

So, let’s hope the Experian Team gets some higher round draft picks next time around.  These team members are woefully inadequate.

Where to find discharge information

The answer about debts “included in bankruptcy” is found in two places in the bankruptcy schedules.  One place is schedules D, E, and F , which list secured debts, priority debts, and general unsecured debts like credit cards.

The second source of creditors affected by the bankruptcy is the mailing matrix or master address list.  It’s online on the court’s electronic docket as well.

The tricky thing about all of this is that not all debts listed in the bankruptcy case are necessarily discharged.

Some debts, like child support, recent taxes, and student loans, simply aren’t dischargeable.

But for most folks, trying to get their credit report to be accurate, it’s the general unsecured debts that are reported by the CRA, and often reported incorrectly.

So, don’t send schedule A with your credit report dispute.  Send schedules D, E, and F along with a copy of your discharge.

Stay on top of it until the credit report is right.

More about credit reports

What was discharged in my case

Does bankruptcy fatally damage my credit?

Life after bankruptcy

More from the Soapbox

  • Bankruptcy Busts Taxes If The Timing Is RightBankruptcy Busts Taxes If The Timing Is Right
  • Your Right To Credit Reporting After BankruptcyYour Right To Credit Reporting After Bankruptcy
  • Does THIS Violate My Bankruptcy Discharge?Does THIS Violate My Bankruptcy Discharge?
  • 5 Essential Tips To Understand Your Mortgage Loan5 Essential Tips To Understand Your Mortgage Loan
  • Can A Trust Protect You In Bankruptcy?Can A Trust Protect You In Bankruptcy?

Filed Under: Consumer Rights, Life after bankruptcy Tagged With: 2017

About Cathy Moran

I'm a veteran bankruptcy lawyer and consumer advocate in California's Silicon Valley. I write, teach, and speak in the hopes of expanding understanding of how bankruptcy can make life better in a family's future.

Bankruptcy Basics

About The Soapbox

You’ve arrived at the Bankruptcy Soapbox, a resource of bankruptcy information and consumer law.

Soapbox is a companion site to Bankruptcy in Brief, where I try to be largely explanatory and even handed (Note I said “try”).

Here, I allow myself to tell stories and express strong opinions. We dig deeper into how to consider bankruptcy and navigate a bankruptcy case.

Moran Law Group
Bankruptcy specialists for individuals and small businesses in the San Francisco Bay Area

How Bankruptcy Works

How To Pay For Bankruptcy When You’re Flat Broke

One of the cosmic ironies of our legal system is that it costs money to file bankruptcy. Bankruptcy gets you out of debt only if you have the money to file. The costs of bankruptcy include the filing fee collected by the court; the required credit counseling; and, if you're smart, an experienced lawyer to make sure … Read more

More Posts from this Category

643 Bair Island Road
Suite 403
Redwood City, CA 94063
Phone: (650) 694-4700
Phone: (650) 368-4700

Categories

All content copyright © Moran Law Group. All rights reserved.