When a credit report contains information that is in error, incomplete, or outdated, it can have serious and detrimental effects on your ability to achieve loans, credit cards, and insurance. We are all entitled by law to be able to view, and keep track of our credit report, and to formally request that any potentially inaccurate information be removed. If a creditor refuses to remove inaccurate information from your credit report when the necessary proof is provided, you may able to begin a lawsuit for credit enforcement claims in Miami to recover compensation for any losses that you may have incurred.
Fair Credit Reporting Act (FCRA)
The Fair Credit Reporting Act is United States federal legislation promoting accuracy, impartial bias, and privacy for any personal or financial data used by a consumer reporting agency. These agencies include credit bureaus and financial institutions including those that profit by selling information about rental histories. The rights that are afforded to individuals under the stipulations of the FCRA include:
- Notification if any information included in your file has been used to your detriment
- Access to any information in your personal file
- Knowledge of your credit score
- The ability to pursue dispute of any information you find inaccurate
- Removal of any information that has been verified as inaccurate within 30 days from the finalization of the dispute
- The ability to limit access to your personal credit report
- Necessitation of mandatory consent for report providings to employers
- The ability to seek damages against violators of the FCRA
There are three main credit reporting agencies (CRA) that are responsible for keeping track of every consumer credit rating in the United States, TransUnion, Equifax, and Experian. When the agencies make mistakes, and it happens far more often than it should, it can cause detrimental issues for consumers. The FCRA offers consumers both protection, and legal recourse against credit reporting agencies, banks, and lenders who report inaccurate information, fail to fix credit report errors or use a credit report without proper permission. Additional FCRA violations include:
- Failure to report discharged debts in the case of a bankruptcy
- Report of information exceeding 7 years
- Reporting old debts as new
- Reporting debts that have previously been settled
- Applying late fees to debts that have been previously paid on time
- Supplying credit information in spite of a reported identity theft
- Mixing credit information between different parties
- Failing to correct any information in a debtor’s file that is inaccurate
It is a prudent idea to regularly review your credit report in order to check for inaccuracies and other issues that may exist. If a creditor refuses to remove inaccurate information from your credit report, you may be able to engage in a credit enforcement claims lawsuit in order to recover compensation for your suffering.
Disputing a Credit Report Error
Contained within the regulations of the FCRA, both credit reporting agencies and any entity reporting information to these agencies are required by law to correct any inaccurate or incomplete information contained in your report. If you look at your report and believe that it contains any errors, you are able to dispute any of the incorrect information.
Every year you are able to receive a copy of your credit report at no cost to you. You are additionally permitted to request a copy of the report if a company has taken adverse actions against you.
Letter of Dispute
When you find incorrect information contained in your credit report, you must submit a letter of dispute with the credit reporting agency, and state in writing any information that you may believe is in error. It is important to maintain clarity and lucidity, clarifying each individual item disputed, why you are disputing the item, copies of documents to support your dispute, and a request to remove the information from the report.
Collection agencies are forced by law to investigate the dispute within 30 days unless it is considered frivolous. The information discovered in the investigation then must be forwarded to the reporting entity which in turn must investigate, review, and report all the results. If investigation resolves the dispute in your favor, all of the “big three” credit reporting agencies must be notified to update your report with the correct, accurate information. If the investigation results are not in your favor, you can ask for a statement of the dispute to then be included in your file. However, any disputed information cannot be returned to your file without a verification of the accuracy for the information provider.
The CRA must notify you of the results of the investigation, and additionally provide you with a copy of your credit report if any adaptations or changes were made. Upon your request, the CRA must then send notification of any corrections to anyone that has received a copy of your credit report in the past six months.
A Credit Reporting Claims Attorney in Miami
If you suspect that your creditor, a credit bureau, or information provider has violated your rights according to the FCRA, you may be able to file a credit reporting claims lawsuit in Miami in order to receive compensation for any incurred damages. To find out more information on credit reporting claims, and legal options and recourse you may have against false credit report information, please contact the Law Offices of Paul A. Humbert, P.L. to speak with one of our legal professionals. We have successfully achieved a positive outcome in numerous cases of this nature for our clients in the South Florida area.