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Below are excerpts of information contained in the
form that must be provided to applicants on whose background the employer
is checking. The full form is available from all credit and background
checking agencies.
The federal Fair Credit Reporting Act (FCRA) is designed
to promote accuracy, fairness, and privacy of information in the files
of every "consumer reporting agency" (CRA). Most CRAs are credit
bureaus that gather and sell information about you — such as if you pay
your bills on time or have filed bankruptcy — to creditors, employers,
landlords, and other businesses. You can find the complete text of the
FCRA, 15 U.S.C. 1681-1681u, at the Federal Trade Commission’s Web site,
www.ftc.gov. The FCRA gives you
specific rights as outlined below. You may have additional rights under
state law. You may contact a state or local consumer protection agency
or a state attorney general to learn those rights.
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You must be told if information in your file has
been used against you. Anyone who uses information from a CRA
to take action against you, such as denying credit, insurance or employment,
must tell you and give you the name, address, and phone number of
the CRA that provided the report.
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You can find out what is in your file. At your request,
a CRA must give you the information in your file, and a list of everyone
who has requested it recently.
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You can dispute inaccurate information with the CRA.
If you tell a CRA that your file contains inaccurate information,
the CRA must investigate the items (usually within thirty days). If
the CRA’s investigation does not resolve the dispute, you may add
a brief statement to your file.
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Inaccurate information must be corrected or deleted.
A CRA must remove or correct inaccurate or unverified information
from its files, usually within thirty days . . .
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You can dispute inaccurate items with the source
of the information . . .
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Outdated information may not be reported. In most
cases, a CRA may not report negative information that is more than
seven years old; ten years for bankruptcies.
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Access to Your File is Limited. A CRA may provide
information about you only to people with a need recognized by the
FCRA . . .
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Your consent is required for reports that are provided
to employers . . .
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You may choose to exclude your name from CRA lists
for unsolicited credit and insurance offers. Creditors and insurers
may use file information as the basis for sending you unsolicited
offers of credit or insurance. Such offers must include a toll-free
number for you to have your name and address removed from future lists
. .
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You may seek damages from violators. If a CRA, a
user or (in some cases) a provider of CRA data, violates the FCRA,
you may sue them in state or federal court.
Originally published in the 1999 Fall issue
of The CampLine.
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