The Fair Credit Reporting Act (FCRA) sets the guidelines that credit bureaus and reporting agencies must follow when they gather and report on your credit history. When they fail to follow those guidelines, your credit reports may contain inaccurate information that can impact your life negatively. A reputable FCRA law firm helps you file disputes to contest inaccurate information on your credit reports. They also help you recover damages if you suffer harm due to those mistakes.
In some cases, the harm caused by a credit reporting error is so severe that it warrants filing a lawsuit against the company responsible. A skilled FCRA attorney can help you prove your case and recover actual damages, statutory damages, or punitive damages. An experienced attorney can take care of all aspects of your lawsuit, including the legal filings, communication, requests, document collection, and more.
Many consumers are unaware that they can hire an attorney to fight for their rights against credit bureaus and other consumer reporting companies. A reputable lawyer will review your credit reports and dispute letters at no cost to you, and they can guide you through the complex process of disputing inaccuracies on your credit report. If they don’t resolve your issues after several attempts, an FCRA attorney can file a lawsuit on your behalf against the offending credit bureau or furnisher of information.
The laws surrounding the use of credit reports and background checks touch virtually every industry, making it likely that an employer, lender, debt collector, or other party in your life may have used your information incorrectly. These errors can have serious consequences for your life, including job rejection, denied loan applications, or even eviction from a rental property.
If you find an error on your credit report, you have 30 days to submit a dispute to the credit bureau that is reporting the inaccuracy. The credit bureau must then perform a reasonable investigation of the disputed information and send a revised copy of your report to you. In addition to monetary damages, an FCRA lawsuit may lead to the credit bureau or furnisher paying your attorney fees and costs.
The FCRA provides that you are entitled to non-economic damages in certain situations, and an experienced attorney can help you recover those as well. Non-economic damages are compensation for the distress, anxiety, or inconvenience you’ve suffered due to a reporting inaccuracy. An example would be if you were denied a loan or mortgage because of an inaccuracy on your credit report that resulted in a higher interest rate than you otherwise could have received.
If you have a reputable FCRA attorney by your side, it can make all the difference. Your attorney can help you win compensation for any economic or non-economic damage you’ve suffered due to a reporting error, such as being turned down for a job or having your credit limit lowered by a lender. Having an FCRA attorney can also be helpful in claiming non-economic damages for emotional distress, which is often a significant part of your overall loss as a result of a reporting error.