Month: March 2013

Your credit report is an extremely personal piece of information that explains your credit history in detail in a world where we rely heavily on credit to survive. The good news is, not anyone can review this document, unless you give them permission.  As a consumer, you can review your own credit report at any […]

Pursuant to the Fair Credit Reporting Act (“FCRA”) upon receiving notice of a dispute from a consumer regarding inaccurate information on a credit report, the credit reporting agency (“CRA”) and furnisher of the account have a duty to conduct a reasonable investigation into the dispute within 30 days and report back to the consumer with […]

Pursuant to the Fair Debt Collection Practices Act (“FDCPA”), as a general rule, debt collectors are prohibited from communicating with third parties regarding your debt. There are however a few exceptions to this rule, but still require the collector to honor the debtor’s privacy. For the most part, collectors cannot contact your friends, neighbors, employers, […]

If you have old debt, it is important to know that a debt collectormay not file a lawsuit against you or report a debt on your credit report.  This is because the law limits the number of years a collector may sue you to collect a delinquent debt. The time period to file suit is […]

The Fair Credit Reporting Act (“FCRA”) requires employers to adhere to the adverse action procedures when notifying applicants that they have been denied employment when using background checks to make hiring decisions.  In simple language, what this means, is that if you apply for a job and are not hired based on information obtained in […]

Spring and summer are just around the corner.  As the snow and cold is ushered away, it is replaced by warm sunny days and the ability to spend time outdoors.  For the automobile industry, warm weather translates into more traffic and sales.  In mid July, car dealers put the last year’s automobile on sale as […]

Identity theft comes in many forms and faces, and can hit anyone at any time.  Believe it or not small children can be victims of identity theft if they have a Social Security number.  It doesn’t matter what your social economic status is; if you have any credit, or any credit card, a sophisticated identity […]

When you hear the term credit reporting agency, you typically think of the big 3 reporting agencies that report your payment history and balances; Trans Union, Equifax and Experian.  The Fair Credit Reporting Act (FCRA) provides consumers with a number of rights when it comes to dealing with a credit reporting agency including a free […]

The Equal Credit Opportunity Act (“ECOA”) 15 U.S.C. § 1691 et seq. is a United States law enacted in 1974, that makes it illegal for a creditor to discriminate against a credit applicant on the basis of race, color, religion, national origin, sex, marital status, age or because you receive public assistance.  The ECOA applies […]