A Basic Guide to Your Rights Under the Fair Credit Reporting Act (FCRA)

The Fair Credit Reporting Act (FCRA) was “designed to promote accuracy, fairness, and privacy of information in the files of every consumer reporting agency”. So what does that mean to you? Well every credit reporting agency gathers and sells files of information about you and if that information is incorrect it can hurt your personal finances. The information that is gathered tells creditors and others how you pay your bills, whether or not you have been sued, filed for bankruptcy, declared any deferments, and the like. Under the FCRA you have specific rights about what can and cannot be reported. Here is a brief guide to your rights under the FCRA, 15 U.S.C. 1681 et. seq. as released by the Federal Trade Commission.

You can find out what’s in your file.

If a credit reporting agency has information on you, they must release it to you. All of the information in your file, as well as a list of everyone that’s requested your information is legally available to you at will under the FCRA. You are also entitled to one free credit report every 12 months, and upon denial of credit. Simply request a copy within 60 days of denial and there is no charge. Additional credit reports can be “purchased” for $8.95 from many different reputable offices and online services. An accredited credit reporting bureau can also charge you for additional reports, usually at the same price.

Access to credit files is limited.

Under the FCRA, a credit reporting agency can provide some information about you only to persons or companies to whom you are applying for credit, or rental and job applications. Random people or companies are no longer allowed to surf credit reports for worthy applicants. Remember the credit card offers that you used to get bombarded with in the mail? Well, you should be seeing a lot less of them now. Unsolicited credit offers using personal credit information are now considered for the most part illegal under the FCRA.

You must be told if negative information in your file has been used against you.

If you have been recently denied an application for credit because of something in your file you must be notified. There is no charge for the report if you have been denied. Under the FCRA, if you have been denied for insurance, credit, housing, or employment the lender must inform you of the name of the credit reporting agency that reported the negative information. Once you have this information you can dispute any incorrect or misleading claims.

You can dispute inaccurate information in your credit file.

If you notify the credit reporting agency of discrepancies within 30 days of being denied, they must investigate your claim. The must either verify or remove the negative information, as well as send you a written result and copy of your credit report if it has changed. As soon as you dispute the claim it must be removed from your credit report until a decision has been made. The credit reporting agency should also provide you with the name, address, and phone number of the source of the negative information.

Inaccurate information must be removed from your credit file.

If your item is found to be incorrect the credit reporting agency must remove it from your credit report within 30 days. Under the FCRA, the larger bureaus must share information with the smaller agencies in order to keep everyone up to date. When items are deleted or altered all agencies and persons involved will be notified. Information can only be removed if it is found to be wrong, outdated, or cannot be verified.

Outdated information can be deleted from your file.

Under the FCRA, all credit reporting agencies must remove negative information after seven years. Information that is older than 7 years is considered outdated and can be removed at any time. Only if you filed for bankruptcy will it be impending for at least 10 years, after which it can be removed.

Reference:

• The Federal Trade Comission www.ftc.gov Read the entire FCRA, 15 U.S.C. 1681 et. seq.