Experian Weirdness

[newstart2020]

Hello all!

Filed 4/2020, discharged 8/2020. Transunion and EQ both show proper public record BK 7. Experian shows no BK7. All accounts report closed but late tanking EXP scores 520. TU and EQ scores almost 700 and report properly..

Where should I go with this? Dispute that bk is not there or dispute the wrong info on the accounts? Any help / advise is welcomed. Trying to rebuild everything.

Thanks

[newstart2020]

Hello all!

Filed 4/2020, discharged 8/2020. Transunion and EQ both show proper public record BK 7. Experian shows no BK7. ALl accounts report closed but late tanking EXP scores 520. TU and EQ scores almost 700 and report properly..

Where should I go with this? Dispute that bk is not there or dispute the wrong info on the accounts? Any help / advise is welcomed.

Thanks

[shipo]

There really isn't anything to dispute, it will show up on Experian sooner or later. As for your score, pretty typical, I'm 607 Experian and 720(ish) TU and Equifax.

[justbroke]

I combined these duplicate threads. Please try to post a question only to one topic area. Otherwise it dilutes the responses and you may not receive as many replies.

As for Experian, their scores seem to never match the (true) FICO 8 score on the other two bureaus. There is definitely something different about Experian. Also, as shipo mentioned, you'll have to wait and see whether Experian eventually shows the public record (BK7). There's no way anyone can tell you whether that reporting will help or hurt! With FICO you never know. Even an "old" collection account can help someone's score given certain factors.

[newstart2020]

justbroke, wouldn't one see it as odd that 7 months have gone by and the public record is not there? TU and EQ updated the filed and the discharged. To me it sounds like something is wrong.. I do not mind waiting and am not applying for anything really right now so that is not a concern, what is a concern is the reporting on ex.

[justbroke]

Not necessarily. I can say, at least from me personally, that I only WISHED my BK no longer reported. But, alas, I have 7 more months to go!

Just know that Experian seems to be the harshest on any negative reporting. I've never had my Experian score in the 800s, but the others I have. I just don't get Experian (formerly TRW).

[newstart2020]

I guess just wait and see then... Not much else I can do. I really do not want to ruffle any feathers.

[shipo]

Hey newstart2020, this thread of yours pretty much sums up the experience of most folks here. Today I got another alert from Experian which pretty much illustrates the "weirdness" you referenced in the title of this thread; consider the following:

• 22-Apr-2020 -- Score: 623 -- My first check of Experian after my Chapter 13 Discharge
• 09-Jul-2020 -- Score: 613 -- Your FICO® Score has decreased by 10 points.
• 07-Sep-2020 -- Score: 625 -- Your FICO^® Score has increased 12 points!
• 12-Sep-2020 -- Score: 607 -- Your FICO® Score has decreased by 18 points.
• 10-Oct-2020 -- Score: 611 -- Your FICO^® Score has increased 4 points!
• 24-Oct-2020 -- Score: 623 -- Your FICO^® Score has increased 12 points!

Long story short, six months and two days after doing my first FICO check on Experian, I am right back where I started at 623. Keep in mind, since my first score decrease on 09-Jul until now, nothing has changed; no new credit cards, no new debt, and the one credit card I do have has been paid in full each month.

As a check point, my TransUnion and Equifax scores haven't varied more than five points either way since 22-April; it's just Experian acting like a fly on a string.

[justbroke]

Welcome to the oddities of FICO scoring models! You probably had a see-saw due to the various status changes in the accounts as the discharge was processed through the creditors. These minor status changes can be subtle but can also cause score changes. For example, if the creditor updated the account, but modified the date of last delinquency at the same time (to the current date), that could wreak havoc on your score. Been there, done that.

Additionally, paying a card in full each month can be detrimental as well. For FICO, you technically need "something" reporting and the consensus is that it should be less than 9%. A friend paid off a $15K card and their score dropped 40 points because they no longer had any balances (revolving history). It's strange that the model actually wants you to use credit, but it makes sense!

And, just to make the punch line, Experian is the absolute worse when it comes to scoring. FICO 08 (FICO 09) and Experian seem to never match what's on TransUnion and Equifax even if they have the same exact accounts and reported history. No one has ever been able to explain why Experian is a very fickle credit bureau. If the wind blows, your Experian score is likely to change! (I can't say whether that's true or not because no one knows the formula.)

[newstart2020]

So I just remembered I posted this years ago but wanted to share an update for everyone. As of today, Experian has still not shown any BK since 2020. At this point I am going to assume they never will. Experian does show some accounts as IIB though, which completly confuses creditors and there is no public record stating the fact.

Side note, Equifax dropped the BK recently for no apparent reason. Shows no Public Records and only a handful of IIB accounts. TU shows everything as it is supposed to from day 1.

Should there be anything I should be doing with EQ and EX? Scores are all in the 690-720 range, or just let it ride.

Thanks

[justbroke]

See my thread on how the "early exclusion" works for the bureaus.