Responsibilities Of Consumer Credit Report Agencies
The consumer reporting agencies (CRAs) are institutions that are mandated to collect and distribute all information on consumers for credit report generation and other functions as for credit bureaus, employment.
Their main legal functions include the provision of accurate and verified information about the consumer as entered in their files or database. Any contested information must first be resolved before being posted. The consumer is entitled for one free credit report per year that can be requested from the agency through phone calls, mail or the authorized websites.
Another responsibility is to remove and never re-enter any fairly contested or disputed entry without notifying the consumer by writing within five days prior to re-inserting it. Sometimes the consumer might win a contest but later it is found to be holding due to errors, omissions or change of circumstances.
The agency should not hold any negative information longer than the prescribed period. In most credit reports the negative information includes late and defaulted payments, bankruptcy suits or declarations, tax liens or judgements made. The prescribed period for these is seven years from the time of entry, time of payments on tax liens with the exception of bankruptcies that takes ten years to clear you name.
The consumer reporting bureaus are also charge with the responsibility of ensuring total confidentiality of the consumer’s information; should never be divulges to anyone other than the consumer expect when summoned by the court. They should provide security from identity theft by identity thieves who would use it for various purposes.
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