Stay informed about your rights under the Fair Credit Reporting Act

As a consumer, you need to know your rights under the fair credit reporting act. The FCRA (Fair Credit Reporting Act) was passed in order to provide protection to the customers against any unfair practices or inaccurate information that can be placed in their credit files. This act also states the action that needs to be taken to protect the privacy of the information on your credit report file. Stated below are some of your rights under the Fair Credit Reporting Act:

• You have the right to be told if some information in your file has been used against you.
• You have every right to know what is in your credit report file.
• This act gives you the right to ask for your credit score.
• You have the right of disputing any incomplete or inaccurate information.
• You can ask the reporting agencies to delete or correct un-verifiable, inaccurate or incorrect information on your credit report.
• Reporting agencies cannot report any outdated or negative information.
• Access to any customer’s file must be in a limit.
• You may limit the “pre screened” offers of insurance or credit you get based on your credit report.
• You also have the right to seek damages from violators.

As a consumer, under this act you can receive a free credit report in case of a denial of your credit application, insurance or employment from a company. Correcting of incorrect information has been made mandatory by the FCRA for the consumer reporting agencies. All you need to do is contact the reporting company in writing and let them know about the error. It has also become mandatory for the consumer reporting agencies to investigate every item that has been disputed by a consumer under the Fair Credit Reporting Act. Once the investigation is over, it becomes the duty of the reporting agency to provide the consumer with the results in writing along with a free copy of the report in case the investigation resulted in a change in your credit report information. It is essential for you to know your rights under the Fair Credit Reporting Act so that the agencies do not mislead you.