The Federal Trade Commission announced in the Federal Register last week that the ceiling on allowable charges for credit reports under the Fair Credit Reporting Act will increase from $9.00 to $9.50 on Jan. 1.
Under 1996 amendments to the FCRA, the FTC is required to increase the amount on Jan. 1 of each year, based proportionally on changes in the Consumer Price Index, with fractional changes rounded to the nearest 50 cents.
The charge applies:
· When a consumer orders a credit report directly from one of the three nationwide consumer reporting agencies and is not eligible to receive a free annual disclosure
· When a consumer has already received a free annual disclosure and does not otherwise qualify for an additional free disclosure.
In December 2003, President Bush signed the Fair and Accurate Credit Transactions Act, which amended the Fair Credit Reporting Act. The new rules entitle consumers to a copy of their credit reports from each national credit bureau — Equifax, Experian and TransUnion — once each year. Rollout of the rule began Dec. 1 and the transition will be complete by Sept. 1, 2005.
Melissa Campanelli covers CRM and database marketing for DM News.com. To keep up with the latest news subscribe to our free e-mail newsletter DM News Daily by visiting www.dmnews.com/newsletters
