Is There Such a Thing as Legal Credit Repair?
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Is Credit Repair Legal? What Laws Support it?
Despite what some people believe about credit repair, consumers have the legal right to repair their credit. The FCRA (Fair Credit Reporting Act) allows and encourages you to question all information on your credit report; particularly items you think are inaccurate, misleading, or outdated.
Not only does the legal credit repair process work for errors but can also help remove "unverifiable" negative, yet accurate, information. Rest assured, this credit repair process is perfectly legal. To help you become familiar with the laws, we will briefly describe them - and you will see just how much protection is provided to you, the consumer.
Legal Credit Repair: Fair Credit Reporting Act
Not only does the legal credit repair process work for errors but can also help remove "unverifiable" negative, yet accurate, information.
The FCRA is also designed to promote fairness and privacy of information. Credit bureaus are not allowed to distribute credit information to anyone who does not have a legitimate purpose for viewing the information. Businesses that furnish information to the bureaus are also regulated by the FCRA and must follow legal procedures such as investigate disputes and ensure all information is complete, accurate, and current. To knowingly list anything that is false in any way is in violation of the FCRA. To continue listing information after it has been verified as inaccurate is also a violation.
Legal Credit Repair: Fair Debt Collection Practices Act
The FDCPA protects consumers from abusive or deceptive practices committed by collection companies. It sets the standard for what a collector may and may not do in their efforts to collect a debt.
Legal Credit Repair: Fair Credit Billing Act
The FCBA is an amendment to the Truth in Lending Act that requires creditors to promptly respond, in writing, to consumer billing complaints and investigate billing errors. Until the investigation is complete, creditors cannot do anything to adversely affect a consumer's credit standing.
Legal Credit Repair: Equal Credit Opportunity Act
The ECOA protects the consumer against discrimination based on race, color, religion, national origin, sex, marital status, age, etc. This act also states that creditors must provide reasons why an applicant was denied credit, and allows spouse account information to be identified separately.
Legal Credit Repair: Truth in Lending Act
The TILA governs all bank to consumer transactions to ensure a clear understanding of terms and conditions of a loan or other financial services.
The TILA protects the consumer by mandating all creditors to specify, in writing, terms of finance charges and credit transactions. The act allows for a three-day cancellation on certain credit transactions. The TILA governs all bank to consumer transactions to ensure a clear understanding of terms and conditions of a loan or other financial services.
Legal Credit Repair: Gramm-Leach-Bliley Act
The GLBA requires financial institutions to protect the privacy of consumer's personal financial information. Privacy policies must be distributed to the institution's customers at a minimum of once a year. The institution must also give the consumer notice and the opportunity to "opt out" if personal financial information is disclosed to a nonaffiliated third party, including unauthorized inquiries to your credit report data.
Legal Credit Repair: The Federal Trade Commission
You can go to the Federal Trade Commission's website FTC.GOV, and click on the consumer section for complete collection of these laws. Remember, these laws allow you to question and initiate a legal investigation of your credit information and repair it where necessary when information cannot be verified - even though they don't support you in providing false information or trying to cheat the system.
