Can a credit reporting agency deny my application for credit?
The 1997 amendments to the FCRA allow a subsidiary of a bank holding company to share its customers’ credit reports and information from credit, employment, or insurance applications with other affiliates of that company. These amendments give you a right to opt-out of the sharing of affiliate information. Look for opt-out instructions in the fine print of annual privacy notices you receive from your bank or credit card company. You will be provided with an address to contact to alert financial services companies of your opt-out preferences. To learn more about financial privacy and your right to opt out, see www.privacyrights.org/fs/fs24-finpriv.htm. The FCRA amendments require that if an adverse action is taken based on affiliate-shared information, you are to be notified. The consumer organization U.S. PIRG (www.pirg.org) has warned that the sharing of customer information among affiliates in effect establishes subsidiaries that act like credit bureaus but are exempt from the act. A
