What are the laws governing credit bureaus?
Congress passed the Fair Credit Reporting Act (FCRA) in 1972 to curb the abuses of the credit reporting bureaus. The FCRA is the governing federal law on the issue of credit reporting. The Fair Credit Reporting Act helps consumers promote and use their right to make changes to credit reports. It is a requirement, under section 1681e, that: (b) Whenever a consumer reporting agency prepares a consumer report, it shall follow reasonable procedures to assure maximum possible accuracy of the information concerning the individual about whom the report relates. Further, the FCRA provides a procedure in case of disputed accuracy, under section 1681 i whereby a consumer can demand that an investigation be made into the completeness or accuracy of any information in a credit report. If the status of the information cannot be determined, the data must be removed or corrected. The FCRA states: (a) If the completeness or accuracy of any item of information contained in his file is disputed by a con
