Fair Credit Reporting Act creates new duties for employers

Article Abstract:

The Fair Credit Reporting Act (FCRA) of 1997 mandates new obligations for creditors and other employers that use consumer reports for employment purposes. FCRA expanded the definition of a consumer report to include not only credit bureau reports but also reports that are obtained for employment applications or used in evaluating an employee's promotion, reassignment or retention. The nature and content of consumer reports must be disclosed by users prior to obtaining the report, after obtaining the report and after adverse action is initiated based on information covered in the report. Employers are also required to give employees an adverse action notice that includes pertinent information such as the name, address and telephone number of the agency that prepared the report and the toll-free number of the same agency.

author: Fortney, Anne P., Duncan, Mallory B.
Employers

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Creditors shouldn't be averse to helping consumers

Article Abstract:

The Fair Credit Reporting Act needs to be amended because the credit reporting industry has been transformed dramatically since the legislation's enactment in 1971. In today's environment, almost every adult has a credit report and this report is sought by an increasing number of users, including creditors, banks, landlords, employers and merchants. An unwelcome development is the growing number of credit bureau complaints. A 1993 survey revealed that one in five complaints received by the FTC was against a credit bureau. The law must be strengthened to ensure credit report accuracy and minimize credit bureau complaints. To improve accuracy, the law should be changed by imposing more stringent reinvestigation requirements and allowing consumers to exercise their right to a free report annually upon request.

author: Mierzwinski, Edmund
Consumer Protection Laws, Consumer protection, Commercial credit

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Dual status treatment of purchase money security interests: a new dance to an old song

Article Abstract:

The Uniform Commercial Code (UCC) favors the dual status treatment of purchase money security interests. The original drafts of the code favored the abandonment of transformation rule and replaced it with the more flexible dual status rule, although the current UCC version still uses the transformation rule. States are not required to comply with the code and are merely encouraged to do so, and are therefore free to adopt the dual status rule. This rule is expected to enable retailers to recoup money borrowed by defaulting and bankrupt consumers, which could lead to lower consumer interest rates. The rule can also be beneficial to consumers because creditors may be more willing to refinance consumer debts on better monthly payment terms.

author: Kitchens, Wayne, Shurn, Steven D.
Commercial Banks, Mortgage and Nonmortgage Loan Brokers, Consumer Loans, Personal loans

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subjects list: Laws, regulations and rules, Commercial law, Consumer credit
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