Earlier this year, Equifax sent lenders inaccurate credit scores for millions of would-be borrowers over a three-week period. Now, many who applied for home or other loans at the time are scrambling to determine whether the mistake affected them.
The information that credit-reporting firms such as Equifax add into consumers’ credit reports includes the types of financial accounts consumers have, the ones they open and close, their payment history and more. This information results in a credit score, one of the key factors lenders refer to when making decisions on loan applications.