The federal Fair Credit Reporting Act (FCRA) sets the foundation for your privacy rights. It provides specific protections against erroneous information and limits access to your personal financial information to those with a permissible purpose such as creditors, landlords, insurers, or employers. In addition, the FCRA establishes running reporting periods that determine how long certain items remain on your credit report.
Generally, negative information such as late payments on your trade line accounts may stay on your credit report for no more than seven years. Bankruptcies remain on your report for up to ten years. The FCRA also requires consumer reporting agencies to provide you with a free copy of your credit report upon request. You have the right to dispute inaccurate information on your credit file with both the credit reporting agency and the company that furnished the incorrect information (known as an “information furnisher”). The credit reporting agencies must investigate your dispute with the furnisher and correct any erroneous information within 30 days of receiving your written dispute.
In some cases, credit reporting agencies or their information furnishers violate the FCRA and fail to honor the rights afforded you under the law. Typically, the FCRA and state laws allow you to sue in small claims court for damages.
FCRA violations occur when information is reported that is incomplete, obsolete or unverifiable; when an error is made in calculating your credit score; when a report contains more than one dispute; or when a report is not updated after the completion of an investigation, such as a bankruptcy. Incorrectly reporting a person’s name, address, or Social Security number is another common violation of the FCRA.
It is important to have an experienced consumer lawyer review your credit reports regularly and dispute errors promptly. Your rights depend on it.
LeavenLaw’s credit reporting attorneys have helped many clients with their credit problems including negotiating debt settlements, helping them obtain new credit cards and loans, and fighting unfair or deceptive practices by credit card companies, banks, mortgage brokers, and other financial institutions. We also assist consumers in filing lawsuits against consumer reporting agencies and their information suppliers for violations of the Fair Credit Reporting Act.
Our firm represents individual consumers against companies that are allegedly violating the FCRA and state laws, including credit bureaus, lenders, landlords, insurance companies, and employers. We represent clients in state and federal courts throughout the country.
Alexander B. Trueblood is a Los Angeles credit reporting attorney who specializes in representing ordinary people who have been injured by alleged violations of the FCRA and California fair credit reporting act attorneys by a wide range of companies, including the three major credit bureaus and their information suppliers.
Contact the firm for a consultation to discuss your case. There is no cost to consult with an attorney. The firm’s fees are only charged when it recovers money for you. In some cases, the attorney may agree to work on a contingency fee basis.