Credit check issue

[Readyplayer1]

Hey guys, weirdly convoluted question but I’m in an interesting predicament in my application and was hoping someone could help. Sorry if this is long

I had a chat with a recruiter a while back and was asked if I had any collections accounts. I answered no to this question and to the best of my knowledge… I was being truthful. I’m under 21 and have never taken out or even checked my credit.

The recruiter said he’d send off my background check and I went home where I decided out of sheer curiosity to pull up my equifax report for the first time ever. To my horror there was a closed collections account totalling almost $3000 from before I was even 18.
I immediately disputed this with equifax that very day and got this email back a few weeks later on June 26th.


I checked my credit report on June 26th as soon as I got this email and to my relief it was completely deleted. An empty file like it should be. Except for the first inquiry ever. From the DND. Pulled on June 18. 8 days before equifax wiped the collection. The phone number attached goes to the voicemail of a major in Ontario so I know it’s CAF.

It’s been over a month since then and my background still isn’t back and I’m very worried. I should’ve called back my recruiter that day and fixed it but I hoped equifax would clear it up in time. But equifax moved slow and CAF moved fast. I see 4 possibilities.

1.) I get permanently declined for reliability status because what I told my recruiter doesn’t line up with the report and it seems dishonest

2.) they do me the favour of rerunning the report and see it’s clear now and my application continues

3.) they allow me to explain and show them the findings of Equifax’s investigation and they sign off on it and my application continues

4.) they force me to pay back a $3000 debt that’s not mine and is no longer on my report to continue with my application. Doable but far from ideal

Thoughts?

 

[brihard]

You need to contact whoever you’ve been dealing with at recruiting directly and update. Don’t wait for this to fix itself.

 

[Winds]

Just e-mail the recruiters and state what you wrote here. If the collection amount shows up on their credit check, they would also see that it happened before you turned 18 and thus not make sense. Offer to send your e-mail exchange with Equifax if needed.

It's not uncommon for people to have bad credit hits that they were unaware of, including late fees from library books that've gone to collections.

Also, relax. You're gonna be fine.

 

[sarahsmom]

4.) they force me to pay back a $3000 debt that’s not mine and is no longer on my report to continue with my application. Doable but far from ideal

Thoughts?

On what authority do you think the CAF can “force” you to repay this non-existent debt? Or any other debt for that matter? They area potential employer. They have no power over you.