FCRA Attorneys

Safeguarding Your Rights Under the Fair Credit Reporting Act (FCRA)

Did a creditor report a debt on your credit report that was discharged through bankruptcy? This could be considered a violation of the Fair Credit Reporting Act (FCRA), which was created to protect consumers from credit-related issues that include unauthorized disclosure of credit history and erroneous credit reporting. Not surprisingly, these willful violations could potentially harm a consumer, as they could be turned down for a credit card, loan, job, or apartment as a result.

If you believe that your consumer rights were violated under the FCRA, Atlas Law Center may be able to help you. We are passionate about protecting our clients’ rights, which is why we created the Protect the Discharge program. Regardless of your specific legal needs, our Chicago credit lawyers will file a lawsuit on your behalf to make sure justice is served and at-fault creditors are held accountable for their unlawful actions. Call our law firm today to learn more about what our lawyers can do for you.

What Is the FCRA?

The Fair Credit Reporting Act (FCRA) is a legal act meant to protect consumers from a range of credit-related issues, such as credit reporting errors, privacy violations, and failure to follow the dispute process. Essentially, this act restricts who has access to your credit information and how that information can be used, among other things.

This act was created in 1970, substantially amended in 2003, and is still used today to protect the privacy of consumers. It also protects the integrity and accuracy of your personal information and provides remedies if a credit reporting agency (such as Experian, TransUnion, or Equifax) or other furnisher of credit information violates your rights.

The Fair Credit Reporting Act (FCRA) is enforced by the Federal Trade Commission and the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau, which can fine credit reporting agencies for violations of this act. If you have further questions about what the Fair Credit Reporting Act is and how it protects consumers like you, contact our Illinois law office to get answers from a trusted FCRA attorney.

What Are Your Rights Under the FCRA?

It’s essential to know the specific rights the Fair Credit Reporting Act affords you, as this information can help you determine if any credit reporting agencies you’ve dealt with have violated the terms of this act. At that point, you can speak with a knowledgeable credit report lawyer about your legal options.

Here is a brief list of your rights as a consumer under the FCRA:

You must be told if information in your file has been used against you. If you apply for a loan or line of credit and your application is denied or rejected based on information obtained by running your credit report, the party who denied you mustinform you of what they found in your report and used against you. They must also give you the information for the consumer reporting agency that reported this issue, and give you the contact details so you can resolve the problem.
You have the right to keep access to your credit report limited. Credit reporting agencies are required to keep your information guarded and may only grant access to those who have a valid need, such as creditors who are considering an application, insurers, employers, landlords, or other businesses.
You have the right to dispute inaccurate information. If you find information in your file that is false, inaccurate, or incomplete, you have the right to report the information to the credit reporting agency, and the agency mustinvestigate the issue unless they deem your complaint to be frivolous.
You have the right to know what’s in your credit report. A consumer reporting agency may not deny you the ability to see the information they have on you in full. You will need to properly identify yourself (which means you may need to give your social security number to ensure you receive the right report). However, if you request your report from an agency, they must give it to you in full.
You may be entitled to a free credit report from a credit reporting agency.Sometimes credit reporting agencies require a small fee to obtain your credit report. If so, you may be entitled to have that fee waived if you meet one of these special circumstances: someone has taken adverse action against you because of your credit report, you’re the victim of identity theft, you are on public assistance, your file contains inaccurate information, or you are unemployed but expect to apply for employment within 60 days.
You have the right to know your credit score. Credit scores are numbers used to assign a value to your credit history and worthiness based on the information in your file. You may request your credit score from these consumer reporting agencies, but you may have to pay a fee in order to obtain it.
You may seek damages from violators. If you’ve been wrongfully impacted by an error in your credit report or your rights have been willfully disregarded, you may be able to hold the violator in question responsible and sue them for damages.

If you believe one or more consumer reporting agencies have violated at least one of these rights given to you by the Fair Credit Reporting Act, it’s time to contact a skilled lawyer. The right legal professional for your case can identify the issue, whether it’s an error on your credit report or an agency’s refusal to provide you with a free credit report or other information you’re entitled to as a consumer. They can then determine what legal action to take to resolve the issue. Contact our Chicago law office today to learn more.

What Are Some Common Mistakes on Credit Reports?

Credit report errors can have a significant impact on your life, as they can cause you to miss out on the chance to get a loan, credit card, low interest rates, employment, housing, and other essential opportunities. This is why you should find and dispute errors on your credit report. The following are some of the most common credit reporting errors that affect consumers:

Incorrect credit card balances
On-time payments mistakenly reported as late
Current accounts listed as in collections or charged off
Paid off or discharged liens, loans, or credit cards reported as outstanding debts
Vehicle repossession or bankruptcy that did not occur
Reporting the same account multiple times
Reporting someone else’s debts on your credit report
Incorrectly listing you as deceased
Including an account you had reported for identity theft

If you notice these or other errors on your credit report, you have the right to notify the credit bureaus so they can investigate the issue and make the necessary corrections. If they fail to take action, you can reach out to a skilled credit report attorney for legal guidance on this matter. Call our law office to discuss your options with caring attorneys.

How Can You Dispute Credit Report Errors?

If you’ve suffered damages from an erroneous or inaccurate credit report, the first thing you should do is file a complaint with the reporting agency itself. When you take this step, be sure to clearly highlight the inaccurate information and explain why it’s wrong. If you have supporting documents to back up your dispute letter, you should include them in your credit dispute package.

The company is required to investigate your claim after receiving your dispute letter. Once they review the disputed information on your credit report, they will respond to your claim and report their decision back to you. The Fair Credit Reporting Act requires credit bureaus to correct the inaccurate information in a timely manner, typically within about a month. If they cannot do so, they must respond to you explaining why.

If the responsible party refuses to correct the error or fails to respond to your dispute letter, you may file a complaint against them with the appropriate regulator. An experienced FCRA attorney can assist you with this part of the credit dispute process and decide if bringing a lawsuit against them would be appropriate. If you have questions about how to dispute errors or want to know what kinds of outcomes credit reporting cases often have, contact us today for legal assistance.

What Damages Can You Seek in Your Case?

Inaccurate information on credit reports can be devastating for consumers, especially those who are trying to buy a house, get approved for a personal loan, or get a job at a company that checks credit reports. If you missed out on an important opportunity because one or more credit bureaus reported inaccurate credit information about you, it’s time to consider seeking damages.

With our help, you may obtain compensation for the following:

Actual damages sufficient to pay for your losses
Statutory damages ranging from $100 to $1,000
Punitive damages (if you were harmed as a result of the violation)
Attorney’s fees and court costs

When you seek our firm’s assistance with your FCRA case, you can feel peace of mind in knowing that not only will you be compensated for your losses, but also the attorney’s fees will be paid by the at-fault creditor. This is to ensure that wronged debtors can seek legal representation without having to worry about the financial implications of going to court over credit report errors.

In addition to financial compensation, credit reporting lawyers with years of education and experience in the field can help you fix your credit score. This is important if you want to become eligible for a car loan, home loan, lower interest rates, highly desirable rewards cards, and other options that are only available to consumers with good credit scores.

When you initiate a credit dispute, you’ll find there may be steps to take, inside information, or other factors that require education which you may not have time to work through on your own. This is why working with a credit reporting lawyer from our firm is recommended if you want much-needed relief and professional help repairing your credit score. Call our law firm today to learn more about how we assist clients with consumer disputes and can help repair credit scores.

Are You Ready to Call Our Illinois FCRA Attorneys?

As your source for all things consumer law, we are confident in our abilities to effectively represent you when you notice FCRA violations that affect your life. We’ve helped countless clients seek justice from credit reporting agencies liable for a variety of errors on credit reports, so we’re confident we can assist you. Whether you want to dispute credit errors with the major credit bureaus, report privacy violations, or get help obtaining your free credit report, we have the solutions you need.

After years of serving clients throughout Chicago, Illinois, our credit lawyers have a proven track record of success and the seasoned litigation skills required to tackle credit reporting cases. In fact, our firm’s principal attorney has a 10.0 Superb Avvo Rating! Our knowledge regarding past FCRA cases can be advantageous to your situation, with the following being just a few of those notorious cases:

Dixon-Rollins v. Experian Information Solutions, U.S. District Court, Eastern District
Rice v. Montgomery Ward & Co., Inc.
Bils v. Nixon, Hargrave, Devans & Doyle

When you approach our team with your concerns regarding credit reporting agencies, you’ll have our personal attention during every meeting, as we take FCRA violations within the credit reporting industry quite seriously. After carefully reviewing all the details of your situation and confirming that your case is valid, we will initiate legal proceedings against the credit bureaus or other parties that violated your rights. You can count on us to work relentlessly toward obtaining a favorable outcome on your behalf, so call us today at 331-321-4748 for help with your credit reporting case.