FCRA
The Fair Credit Reporting Act, 15 U.S.C. §1681 — federal law governing how credit reporting works.
The Fair Credit Reporting Act (FCRA), codified at 15 U.S.C. §1681 et seq., is the federal law that governs how credit-reporting agencies collect, distribute, and correct consumer credit information. Originally enacted in 1970, the FCRA gives every U.S. consumer the right to dispute inaccurate items on their credit report at no charge.
Key consumer rights: free annual credit reports (§612, expanded to weekly under FACTA), the 30-day reinvestigation deadline (§611(a)(1)), the right to know how a verification was performed (§611(a)(7)), and identity-theft fraud blocks (§605B). The FCRA is enforced by the FTC, CFPB, and state attorneys general.
Most consumer credit-repair work happens under FCRA disputes. Each negative tradeline can be challenged on multiple grounds — wrong balance, wrong status, re-aging, identity theft, missing documentation — depending on the specifics of the item.
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Related terms
FCRA §611(a)(1) requires bureaus to investigate disputed items within 30 days. The bedrock dispute provision.
FCRA §611(a)(7) requires bureaus to disclose how they verified a disputed item within 15 days of consumer request.
FCRA §605(a) limits how long negative items can stay on a credit report — 7 years from date of first delinquency.
FCRA §605B requires bureaus to block fraudulent identity-theft accounts within 4 business days of receiving the consumer's affidavit.
FCRA §623 sets the duties of furnishers (creditors) to report accurate information and respond to consumer disputes.
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