Data Furnisher to Pay Over $82,000 to Settle FTC Charges of FCRA Violations

Written By ESR News Blog Editor Thomas Ahearn

The loan-servicing arm of a Texas-based auto dealer will pay $82,777 in civil penalties as part of a settlement to address Federal Trade Commission (FTC) charges that the company violated the federal Fair Credit Reporting Act (FCRA) Furnisher Rule by failing to have written policies and procedures regarding the accuracy and integrity of reported credit information and failed to properly investigate disputed consumer credit information, according to an FTC press release about the settlement.

The FTC complaint alleges that Tricolor Auto Group’s loan-servicing group, Tricolor Auto Acceptance, LLC (TAA), violated the Furnisher Rule implemented under the FCRA that requires companies that report information about consumers to Consumer Reporting Agencies (CRAs) to maintain policies and procedures designed to ensure that the information reported to CRAs is accurate and to allow consumers to dispute information they believe is inaccurate with companies furnishing the information.

The FTC complaint further alleges that TAA had no written policies or procedures addressing how to ensure the accuracy of information the company provided on thousands of consumers to one CRA and that TAA referred consumers disputing the accuracy of the information provided by TAA back to the CRA instead of conducting an investigation as required under the FCRA Furnisher Rule. As part of the settlement, TAA is barred from any further violations of the FCRA Furnisher Rule.

“An inaccurate credit report can have a huge impact on consumers’ ability to make purchases, be hired, and more. This case makes it clear that businesses must take the proper steps to make sure the information they provide to credit bureaus is accurate,” Jessica Rich, Director of the FTC’s Bureau of Consumer Protection, stated in the FTC press release available at https://www.ftc.gov/news-events/press-releases/2015/09/texas-auto-dealer-will-pay-more-82000-settle-ftc-charges-it.

Data Furnishers Must Comply with the FCRA

The ‘NOTICE TO FURNISHERS OF INFORMATION: OBLIGATIONS OF FURNISHERS UNDER THE FCRA’ outlines the responsibilities the federal Fair Credit Reporting Act (FCRA) imposes on all data furnishers who provide information to Consumer Reporting Agencies (CRAs). State law may impose additional requirements. This notice is on the Employment Screening Resources (ESR) website at https://www.esrcheck.com/file/CFPB_Obligations-of-Furnishers-Under-FCRA.pdf.

© 2015 Employment Screening Resources® (ESR) – Making copies or using of any part of the ESR News Blog or ESR website for any purpose other than your own personal use is prohibited unless written authorization is first obtained from ESR.