Address Mistakenly Reported as Non-Residential of “High Risk”

When you apply for credit, potential creditors may contact Experian to obtain your credit report. In addition to a standard credit report, potential creditors may also ask Experian to provide information about addresses associated with you, including whether Experian's internal records classify addresses associated with you as non-residential, as being associated with a business, or as being associated with a high risk of fraud. Potential creditors can use this information to assist them in preventing fraud and identity theft.

With respect to addresses, specifically, when you apply for credit, a potential creditor may request that Experian check the address you provided in your application, along with current and prior addresses in your Experian credit file, against address information that it obtains from other sources. This information tells Experian whether an address has been used for a business and whether the business is of a type that Experian believes may be associated with fraud. If an address has been associated with that type of business, Experian will report it as non-residential, and will report what type of business it appears to be. If Experian's records indicate that the address is a certain type of high-risk, business address (for example, a prison), Experian will also flag the address as potentially associated with fraud and advise the potential creditor to contact you directly to obtain more information.

Experian prohibits potential creditors from basing credit decisions on information about addresses that it provided to the potential creditor without first contacting you to obtain more information.

If you believe Experian has incorrectly classified your address as a non-residential business address, you can contact Experian via mail, phone, or online and ask Experian to correct its records.