Your Rights Under the Fair Credit Reporting Act (FCRA)
The Fair Credit Reporting Act (FCRA) is a federal law that protects the fairness, accuracy and privacy of information kept by consumer reporting agencies like credit bureaus or special reporting agencies.
The FCRA includes multiple distinct rights that protects consumers, increases transparency and ensures there are processes in place to maintain accuracy. These rights fall into four main categories:
- Rights to access your credit information
- Rights to control who sees your credit information
- Rights to how your information is used
- Rights to accuracy of information
- The FCRA gives you protections like the rights to access your information, control who accesses your information and dispute inaccurate reports.
- It’s important to monitor your credit report through the three major bureaus, so watch for incomplete or inaccurate data.
- Some people, like military members or victims of identity theft, may have additional protections.
1. Rights to access your information
You have the right to access your credit information. This includes the right to access your credit file, access your credit score and know if information in your file has been used against you. If a company pulled your credit report and denied your loan application because of something they found, for example, you have the right to know.
Specific rights include:
- Each of the three major credit bureaus must provide you with a free copy of your credit report once every 12 months, upon request.
- You’re also entitled to additional free reports in certain situations, such as after being denied credit, employment or insurance based on information in your report.
- You can receive these credit reports in large print, audio formats or braille for accessibility purposes.
You can exercise your right to access your credit information in the following ways:
- Request free weekly credit reports from each of the three credit bureaus through AnnualCreditReport.com.
- Take advantage of free credit monitoring solutions like LendingTree Spring to review your credit on an ongoing basis.
Remember: If you’re denied credit or you face adverse action, the company must tell you which credit bureau provided the report and give you information on how to get a free copy.
2. Rights to control who sees your credit information
The FCRA limits access to your personal credit information. Companies are required to get your permission for hard credit checks. They also must get permission to review your credit under most circumstances when it could impact your finances, employment or ability to rent a home.
For employment purposes, employers must get your written permission before checking your credit, and they must follow specific procedures if they decide not to hire you based on your credit information.
You also have the right to know who has accessed your credit report in the past year — two years for employment-related inquiries.
When applying for jobs, you can choose whether to give consent for credit checks, though refusing may affect your candidacy. A company can decide not to offer you a job as a result of your refusal.
When applying for credit or loans, you can also choose to forgo applications if you don’t want a lender to review your credit.
If your credit is checked without permission, you can file a complaint with the credit bureaus. You can also file a complaint with the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB) or other relevant government organizations and potentially sue for damages.
Always review the “inquiries” section of your credit report to monitor who has accessed your information. If you see unauthorized inquiries, contact the credit bureau immediately to dispute them and consider placing a fraud alert on your accounts.
3. Rights to how your information is used
The FCRA gives you the right to control how your credit information is used.
This means you can put a security freeze on your credit report. This prohibits reporting agencies from releasing information in your report without your express authorization. It can help prevent credit or loans being approved in your name without your consent, though it can also make it more difficult to get approved for loans you do want. This is one of the most effective ways to prevent identity theft and unauthorized account openings.
As an alternative to a freeze, you can place initial or extended fraud alerts on your credit file to monitor for potential identity theft concerns.
You can also opt out of prescreened credit and insurance offers that companies send based on your credit information, like the preapproval offers you may get in the mail.
To freeze your credit, follow the specific instructions through each credit bureau:
Credit freezes are free and can be lifted temporarily when you need to apply for credit. You’ll receive a PIN or password to manage your freeze. Remember to freeze your reports with all three bureaus if needed, as creditors may check different ones.
To opt out of prescreened offers, you can visit OptOutPrescreen.com or call 1-888-5-OPT-OUT. You can choose to opt out for five years or permanently.
4. Rights to accuracy of information
You have the right to have accurate information in your credit file.
This means you can dispute incorrect information in your credit report. Credit reporting agencies must investigate and correct or delete inaccurate, incomplete or unverifiable information, usually within 30 days of receiving your dispute.
You also have the right to add a statement to your credit file explaining your side of any disputed information that remains.
To dispute credit report errors, take these steps:
- Contact the credit bureau in writing online, by mail or by phone.
- Provide documentation supporting your claim, including copies of supporting documents (not the originals).
- The credit bureaus will notify you of the results.
- Contact the creditor who provided the incorrect information, as they’re also required to investigate and correct errors.
- If the disputed claim is found to be valid, you can request to add a statement to your credit file explaining the situation.
Utilizing the FCRA as a victim of identity fraud
If you’re a victim of identity theft, the FCRA provides special protections beyond standard dispute rights. These include:
- Giving you the option to place an extended fraud alert on your credit reports that lasts seven years, making it harder for identity thieves to open accounts in your name.
- Entitling you to additional free credit reports to monitor for fraudulent activity.
- Requiring credit reporting agencies to block fraudulent information from appearing on your report when you provide an identity theft report from law enforcement.
You can also request that inquiries resulting from identity theft be removed from your credit file. These protections help you clean up your credit more quickly and prevent further damage while you recover from identity theft.
Other rights under the FCRA
Beyond the main categories, the FCRA includes several additional consumer protections. These include the following:
- Giving you the right to sue companies that willfully violate the FCRA for actual damages plus attorney fees — and potentially punitive damages up to $1,000 per violation.
- Requiring that negative information be removed from your credit report after seven years (or 10 years for bankruptcies).
- Giving Military members special rights, including free credit monitoring while deployed and the ability to place active duty alerts that require creditors to verify identity before opening accounts.
How to submit a violation of the FCRA
You can submit a complaint about a violation of the FCRA with the CFPB for financial products and services, including (but not limited to):
- Bank accounts
- Credit cards
- Credit reports
- Payday loans
- Student loans
- Mortgages
Fill out the complaint form here by following these steps:
- Create an account by sharing information like your name and email address.
- Choose a product or service category the complaint is about, like “debt collection” or “student loan.”
- Choose the type of problem you’re having, like “card opened without consent” or “sent card you never applied for.”
- Share if you’ve already tried to fix the problem with the company, and what information the company provided.
- Provide a detailed explanation of what happened, including attaching supporting evidence.
If you need to file a complaint about a non-financial company, you can do so here.
Frequently asked questions
The Dodd-Frank Act is technically a separate law from the FCRA.
However, it granted rule-making authority under the FCRA to the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB) with two Section exceptions. It also amended two provisions of the FCRA to require the disclosure of a credit score and related data when a credit score was used in risk-based pricing or other adverse actions.
An FCRA violation occurs when an organization or bureau doesn’t comply with the FCRA requirements. This may happen if the organization withholds notices, requests a credit report for an impermissible purpose or violates privacy requirements.
Contact both the credit bureau and the creditor who provided the incorrect information. File disputes in writing with supporting documentation. The credit bureau has 30 days to investigate and must notify you of the results.
If the error is corrected, request updated copies of your report from all three bureaus to ensure consistency.
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