The FCRA, The FACTA and You!

There are several ways that your credit rating can be adversely affected.

Many times the items being reported to your credit bureau may be inaccurate. To help consumers protect their credit bureau reports, there are federal laws that can help in disputing negative items and restoring a consumer’s good name. Two of these laws are The FCRA and FACTA.

The FCRA is short for the Fair Credit Reporting Act. The FCRA protects you as a consumer in the event erroneous information is placed on your report by holding the credit agencies responsible for reporting accurate information. The FCRA, passed in 1970, provides consumers with certain protections which include the ability to request a copy of your credit report, dispute negative items on your report, and notification if a removed item has been re-entered into a consumers report. The list I have provided is a few of many rights that a consumer has under The Fair Credit Reporting Act.  To take advantage the Fair Credit Reporting Act it is important to stay on top or your credit rating by monitoring your credit on a consistent basis.

FACTA also known as Fair and Accurate Credit Transaction Act holds credit organization responsible for the way a consumer’s information is handled. This law was put in place to curve the rise of identity theft. The guidelines set by FACTA ensure that certain documents such as personal information are shredded by any organization that handles sensitive personal information.  FACTA also allows consumers the right to receive at least one free credit report per year.  In some states like Georgia the limit is 2 free reports per year.

These two important acts were put in place to give consumers a course of action to take in the event their credit information is ever compromised.  Surprisingly many people are not aware of these laws place in the books to protect them. Taking advantage of FCRA and FACTA is as simple as getting a free copy of your credit report.  If you have been a victim of Identity fraud and or you are having trouble disputing items on your credit report, you may want to review these acts to understand your rights.  Another option is to hire a reputable credit attorney to work in your favor to take advantage of your rights under the guidelines of these laws.

Ignorance of the law is not an excuse, especially when the law was put in place to aid and assist you.  To minimize your risk and maximize your safety, you should educate yourself on the benefits of the FCRA and FACTA.  It is also a wise decision to keep some form of identity protection and credit monitoring service.

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