I sent the following letter to a former (I emphasize former, because it is very relevant to the question I have) who is continuing to report that I was late on a loan that I had with them. The loan was closed sometime in 1998, when I paid it off. After I sent this letter, they pulled my credit report. My understanding is that they had no permissible purpose for this. Does anyone have any ideas about this? I am thinking I might be able to use this as leverage to force them to delete the tradeline. What do you all think? Am I on the right track? Regards. To Whom It May Concern: In February 2003, I contacted you regarding the above referenced loan account that you had reported to the national credit reporting agencies as having been paid late. At that time, you indicated that you had no record of the account due to the passage of time, and you suggested that I contact the credit bureaus directly. I have done that and they have informed me that you have verified the account. This strikes me as curious, since you previously stated that you had no information about this matter. I am therefore writing to demand that you either provide proof that this account was paid late, or that you remove these notations from my credit bureau files. The Fair Credit Reporting Act, 15 USC § 1581, provides, in part, that providers of information have the responsibility to provide accurate information to credit reporting agencies For your convenience, I am enclosing a copy of a Federal Trade Commission pamphlet that explains your responsibilities with respect to this matter (â??Credit Reports: What Information Providers Need to Knowâ?). Although I assume you are fully aware of the requirements explained therein, I include the pamphlet to ensure that there are no misunderstandings with respect to my expectations or your obligations under the law. Although I believe that I have received the runaround with respect to this issue in the past, in this instance, I expect XXX Federal Credit Union to fully comply with the law. I can be reached at the address shown above, or at the numbers listed below. I look forward to your prompt response in this matter. Best regards,
Nope. Well, actually, I post to this board and another board. I got response from the other board, but none from this one yet. The consensus there is that there was no permissible purpose. That was kind of what I thought. Now I'm wondering whether they should be allowed to correct or if I should just sue over it.
If the account was closed, they did not have the right to view your credit report. In the jargon of the FCRA, they lacked a permissible purpose to review your file and it is one of the few violations that has an explicit penalty: $1000 + any damages incurred. From your description of the situation, I think you are in a good position to negotiate. REF: FCRA Section 604
They don't have much of a choice about the penalty, if your account was closed. Take a look at the letters in the database. If it happened to me, I would point out their error to them with the supporting parts of the FCRA and agree to settle for $1000 plus deletion of negative info. Otherwise, take them to small claims court.
Also verify that your state law does not provide a higher penalty than the federal law for abusing PP. California law allows for penalties of $5000 if a business illegally accesses your CR without PP and $2500 if an individual accesses your report without PP. KingsX
