[sillysaurus2]

But when those reports are fraudulent, as here, the consumer can also dispute the report, and the consumer should be able to come out with a clean credit record in the end.

This isn't what happened. See here: http://m.kutv.com/article?id=106632

Specifically: Jen and her husband also disputed the ding with the credit bureaus but because Kleargear.com says the charge is valid the the ding remains.

I've personally experienced what it's like when credit bureaus decide to mistreat you, so I believe this. She likely has no recourse to dispute it short of hiring a lawyer, which is effectively impossible if she happens to be living paycheck-to-paycheck. (It's hard to grok the mental burden placed on you merely to survive, let alone repel an assault from a big, faceless company unless you've been in a situation like "I have to choose between buying groceries or paying for my dying cat's medical treatment," for example.)

If the reported version of events are true, then what this company did to her is reprehensible and should be punished. Otherwise it will set a dire precedent for other companies to try this in the future.

[aagha]

If only there was a way to "punish" such companies.

[greenlander]

I have successfully removed bogus credit dings from my report. You have to follow a lot of steps and document everything well. If the creditor or agency doesn't respond correctly, you can sue them in small claims court for violations of the Fair Credit Reporting Act. The lawsuit always gets their attention!

I followed instructions from this site: http://whychat.5u.com/

No lawyer is needed if you just follow the right procedure and are ready to go to small claims court.