Equifax $2.2 Million Duplicate Collection Account Settlement: Claims Closed, Hearing October 6, 2026

The case is Bradberry v. Equifax Information Services LLC, Case No. 1:22-cv-04754-MLB, before Judge Michael L. Brown in the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of Georgia. Plaintiff Charmayne Bradberry alleged that Equifax reported the same collection account more than once on her Equifax credit report, and that this happened to other consumers too.

The legal claim is under the Fair Credit Reporting Act, section 1681e(b), which requires credit bureaus to follow reasonable procedures to assure maximum possible accuracy. For willful FCRA violations, the statute allows statutory damages of not less than $100 and not more than $1,000 per consumer, plus punitive damages and attorneys' fees. A duplicate collection can make a debt look twice as large and drag down a score, which is why the error matters. Our FCRA explainer covers these rights in more detail.

Equifax denies the allegations, denies that it violated the FCRA, and the court has not decided who is right. The parties settled to avoid the expense of further litigation.

Besides money, Equifax agreed to keep its fixes in place for six months so the same collection account is not reported twice on one report, and to make sure the duplicate accounts tied to the 2022 letter are removed from class members' files.

The class is small and defined by Equifax's own mailing list: all U.S. consumers Equifax identified as having been mailed a Duplicate Reporting Letter. That letter told people they may have had a duplicate collection account on their Equifax file at the same time there was an inquiry on the file. According to Equifax's records, it sent the letter to 37,651 individuals in August and September 2022.

If you received a postcard or email notice about this settlement with a Notice ID starting with "EQB," you are in the class. If you did not, you are very likely not in it, even if you have found errors on your Equifax report. Excluded are Equifax and its affiliates, officers, and directors, the judges on the case and their families and staff, and anyone who opted out on time.

If you spot duplicate or wrong accounts on your report today, you do not need a settlement to fix it. Our guide on how to dispute a credit report error walks through it, and the credit report errors lawsuit page explains when an unfixed error can support your own claim.

The notice says cash payments depend on how many valid claims are received and are expected to be up to $600 per claimant. The money comes from the $2.2 million fund after administration costs, requested attorneys' fees of $733,333.33 (one-third of the fund), and litigation costs of up to $75,000. Separately, Equifax agreed to pay class counsel another $425,000 for the practice changes, which does not reduce the fund. The court decides the final fee award.

A rough check: after the requested fees and costs, about $1.39 million would remain before administration costs. With a class of about 37,651 and typically low claim rates, a payment near the $600 figure is plausible, but it is an estimate, not a promise. The credit monitoring includes alerts and up to $500,000 in coverage for certain identity theft expenses.

To get cash, class members had to log in at DuplicateAccountFCRASettlement.com with their Notice ID and PIN, or mail a claim form, by September 1, 2026. The form required checking at least one box, under penalty of perjury:

• Equifax sent a credit report to a third party showing a duplicate collection account, or
• You were denied credit and one reason was the duplicate collection account on your Equifax report.

No documents were required, but the sworn statement was. Claimants picked PayPal, Venmo, Zelle, a virtual prepaid card, or a paper check. If you filed by September 1, 2026, you do not need to do anything else except keep your contact and payment details current with the administrator.

The settlement administrator is Angeion Group, at Bradberry v. Equifax, c/o Settlement Administrator, 1650 Arch Street, Suite 2210, Philadelphia, PA 19103, or info@DuplicateAccountFCRASettlement.com. For what to expect while you wait, see how to check a settlement's status.

As of September 2026, the claim period is closed and no payments have been sent. The hearing is set for Courtroom 1906 of the U.S. Courthouse at 75 Ted Turner Drive S.W., Atlanta. If the judge grants final approval and nobody appeals, payments and monitoring codes would likely follow within a few months, realistically late 2026 or early 2027.

The September 1, 2026 deadline has passed for claims, exclusions, and objections. If you are a class member and did not opt out by September 1, 2026, you still receive the six months of Equifax Complete, but you have released your FCRA accuracy claims about the 2022 duplicate reporting. Late cash claims are accepted only if the administrator or court allows it, so contact Angeion right away if you have a good reason you missed it.

The release is limited to the 2022 duplicate collection issue. New or different errors on your Equifax, Experian, or TransUnion reports are not covered. If a bureau refuses to fix an error after you dispute it and you were denied credit or charged more because of it, independent attorneys who handle FCRA cases often take them on contingency, and a free case review can tell you whether you may qualify.

Other credit reporting cases include the TransUnion inaccurate report settlement and the Wells Fargo bankruptcy reporting settlement. You can also browse all open settlements. Class members should watch the official settlement website linked above for payment updates after the October 6, 2026 hearing.