ChexSystems is a consumer credit agency, and as such, is very similar to Experian, TransUnion, and Equifax. All are regulated by federal law, and all must provide at least one free report a year to the consumer. However, there are several differences between ChexSystems and “the big three”.
Type of Reporting
The main credit agencies report on credit use, including:
- Credit card usage and debt
- Lines of credit (home equity, revolving lines, etc)
- Loans such as mortgages and car payments
ChexSystems focuses on banking habits, including:
- Checking accounts
- Savings accounts
- Overdraft usage
- Fee payments
- Check-writing
Tenor of Reporting
The main credit agencies report good and bad information, including:
- On time payments
- Late payments
- Missed payments
- Written off accounts
- Repayment of old debt
ChexSystems focuses negative information only, including:
- Failure to settle debts
- Unpaid overdraft balances and/or fees
- Non-cleared deposited checks
- Non-sufficient funds (NSF)
Time Period of Reporting
All kinds of credit agencies can continue reporting on consumers for up to 7 years. However, with the big three, you can often have information changed over time to reflect changes in your credit use, and improve your score based on paying off old debt, and showing patterns of responsible behavior.
With ChexSystems, no positive information is added and it is very hard to get negative information removed. Just one bad piece of data can cause you to be denied bank account access or have your check-writing privileges revoked.
In fact, even if you try to open a joint account with a relative or spouse, you could both be denied even if only one of you has a ChexSystems report. That negative information can be like a stone around your neck, dragging you down and hampering your progress towards financial stability for years.
What can You do to get Removed from ChexSystems?
Consumer Filing Services can help you solve your issues with ChexSystems by legally disputing incorrect or incomplete information. Hundreds of thousands of reports are made each day, and thousands of customers end up with erroneous data on ChexSystems. By disputing incorrect information in the database, you can often regain control of your banking privileges and restore check-writing privileges.
While disputing incorrect data on the big three is not too complex, fighting with ChexSystems can be exhausting, and if a single document is filed wrong, the process may have to be redone. CFS can work for you to ensure all of your paperwork is in order and that every avenue to clear your name is exhausted.
Consumer Filing Services is not owned, operated, or affiliated in any way with ChexSystems. Consumer Fiiling Assistance cannot remove, update, or verify a consumer’s file in the ChexSystems database, but can assist you in filing a dispute against the negative information that banks have reported to ChexSystems. ChexSystems is subject to the Fair Credit Reporting Act (FCRA), a federal law that governs the collection, circulation, and use of consumer information, and must provide you one free copy of your ChexSystems report each year upon request.