Federal Laws Creditors Don’t Want You Too Know

1. FAIR CREDIT REPORTING ACT (FCRA)

Here is a summary of your major rights under the Fair Credit Reporting Act (FCRA). For more information, including information about additional rights, to www.ftc.gov/credit.

You must be told if information on your file has been used against you.
Anyone who uses a credit report or another type of consumer report to deny your application for credit, insurance or employment or to take another adverse action against you must tell you and must give you the name, address and phone number of the agency that provided the information.

Your have the right to know what is in your file.

You may request and obtain all the information about you in the files of a credit bureau (Equifax, TransUnion and Experian). You will be required to provide proper identification, which may include your Social Security number. In many cases, the disclosure will be free.

You are entitled to a free file disclosure if:

1. a person has taken adverse action against you because of information in your credit report.
2. you are the victim of identity theft and placed a fraud alert in your file;
3. your file contains inaccurate information as a result of fraud;
4. you are on public assistance; and
5. you are unemployed but expect to apply for employment within 60 days.

You have the right to ask for a credit score.

Credit scores are numerical summaries of your credit-worthiness based on information from credit bureaus. You may request a credit score from the credit bureau that creates scores or distributes scores used in residential real property loans, but you will have to pay for it. In some mortgage transactions, you will receive credit score information for free from the lender.

You have the right to dispute incomplete or inaccurate information.

If you identify information in your file that is incomplete or inaccurate, and report it to the credit bureau, the agency must investigate unless your dispute is frivolous.

Credit Bureau must correct or delete inaccurate, incomplete or unverifiable information.

Inaccurate, incomplete or unverifiable information must be removed or corrected, usually within 30 days. However, a credit bureau may continue to report information it has verified as accurate. Credit Bureaus may not report outdated negative information.

In most cases, a credit bureau agency may not report negative information that is more than seven years old, or bankruptcies that are more than 10 years old. But the fact that they can report on a bankruptcy for a maximum 10 years does not mean your credit score can’t be excellent.

Access to your file is limited.

Credit Bureaus may provide information about you only to people with a valid need usually to consider an application with a creditor, insured, employer, landlord, or other business.

You must give your consent for reports to be provided to employers.

A credit bureau may not give out information about you to your employer, or potential employer, without your written consent given to the employer.

You may limit “pre-screened” offers or credit and insurance you get based on information in your credit report.

Unsolicited “prescreened” offers for credit and insurance must include a toll-free phone number you can call if you choose to remove your name and address from the lists these offers are based on. You may opt-out with the nationwide credit bureaus at 1-888-5OPTOUT (1-888-567-8688).

You make seek damages from violators.

Credit Bureaus, or in come cases, a user of consumer reports or a furnisher of information to a consumer reporting agent violates the FCRA, you may be able to sue in state or federal court.

Identity theft victims and active duty military personnel have additional rights.

2. The Fair Debt Collections Practices Act (FDCPA) requires debt collectors to:

Identify themselves and notify the consumer that the communication is from a debt collector and that any information obtained will be used to effect collection of the debt.

Give the name and address of the original creditor upon the consumer’s written request made within 30 days of receipt of the notice.

Notify consumer of their right to dispute the debt. The 30-day notice is required to be sent by debt collectors within five days of the initial communication with the consumer. The consumer’s receipt of this notice starts the clock running on the 30-day right to demand verification (validation) of the debt from the debt collector.

Provide verification (validation) of the debt. If a consumer sends a written dispute or request for verification within 30 days, then the debt collector must either mail the consumer the requested verification information or cease collection efforts altogether. Such asserted disputes must also be reported by the creditor to any credit bureau that reports the debt.

File a lawsuit only in a place where the consumer lives or signed the contract.

The following conduct is prohibited under FDCPA:

• Hours of phone contact: outside the hours of 8:00 a.m. to 9:00 p.m. local time.
• Failure to cease communication upon request: communicating with the consumers in any way (other than litigation) after receiving written notice that the consumer wishes no further communication or refuses to pay the alleged debt.
• Causing a telephone to ring or engaging any person in telephone conversation repeatedly or continuously out with intent to annoy, abuse, or harass.
• Communicating with consumers at their place of employment after having been advised that this is unacceptable or prohibited by the employer.
• Contacting a consumer known to be represented by an attorney.
• Communication with a consumer after a request for debt validation has been made: communicating with the consumer or pursuing collection efforts by the debt collector after receipt of a consumer’s written request for verification of a debt made within the 30 day validation period and before the debt collector mails the consumer the requested verification or original creditor’s name and address.
• Misrepresentation or deceit: misrepresenting the debt or using deception to collect the debt, including a debt collector who misrepresents that he/she is a lawyer or police officer.
• Publishing the consumer’s name or address on a “bad debt” list.
• Seeking unjustified amounts, which would include demanding any amounts not permitted under an applicable contract or as provided under applicable law.
• Threatening arrest or legal action that is either not permitted by law or contemplated.
• Abusive or profane language used in the course of communication related to the debt.
• Communication with third parties: revealing or discussing the nature of debts with third parties (other than the consumer’s spouse or attorney).
• Contact by embarrassing media, such as communicating with a consumer regarding a debt by post card, or using language or symbol, other than the debt collector’s address, on any envelope when communicating with a consumer by use of the mails or by telegram, except that a debt collector may use his business name if such name does not indicate that he is in the debt collection business.
• Reporting false information on a consumer’s credit report or threatening to do so in the process of collection.

3. Telephone Consumer Protection Act (TCPA) Violations

The Telephone Consumer Protection Act of 1991 (TCPA) became federal law in 1991. The TCPA governs the conduct of telemarketers and debt collectors.

The TCPA restricts the use of automatic dialing systems (also known as auto dialers or predictive dialer), as well as artificial or prerecorded voice message. SMS test messages received by cell phone, and the use of fax machines to send unsolicited advertisements.

A consumer is unlikely to know if a call to his or her cell phone was initiated by using an auto dialer – they will sound like any other phone call. A call imitated using an auto dialer may have a live person on the other end. However, in order for a debt collector or telemarketer to maintain a volume operation, they must make thousands of phone calls each day – so, if you are getting calls from a debt collector or telemarketer on your cell phone, there is a good chance they are violating the TCPA.

Examples of Common TCPA Violations

Unless a consumer has previously given express consent, it is generally a violation of the TCPA for a business to engage in any of the following conduct:

Calls made to your cell phone, which were initiated by the use of an auto dialer.

Calls made to residences, which were initiated by an artificial voice or prerecorded message.

Call made to your cell phone, which were initiated by an artificial voice or prerecorded message.

If you feel your rights have been violated by unscrupulous collection agents or anyone else, then it may be to your benefit to consult with an attorney right away. We offer a FREE consultation that will determine if your rights under any of these acts have been ignored, and we can help you take steps to protect yourself and your family.