A revised FCRA Summary of Rights must be used starting September 21, 2018. The key compliance impact for companies and other organizations that need to obtain a background check ̶ be it employee screening, tenant screening, franchisee screening, country club membership screening or other type of permissible business purpose background check ̶ is that a new FCRA Summary of Rights must now be provided.
This required change is due to the recent amendment to the FCRA (Fair Credit Reporting Act) by the Economic Growth, Regulatory Relief, and Consumer Protection Act (S. 2155). The main effect of the amendment is that whenever an FCRA Summary of Rights is required to be given to a consumer, this Summary of Consumer Rights must also include notice of the consumer’s right to obtain a “security freeze” on their credit report (which will prohibit a consumer reporting agency from releasing their credit file without the consumer’s expressed authorization). As an alternative to a security freeze, consumers have the right to place an initial or extended fraud alert on their credit file at no cost.
Just last week the CFPB (Consumer Financial Protection Bureau) finally got around to issuing an “Interim Final Rule” which provided a definitive format for revisions to the FCRA Summary of Rights. Since it is only an interim rule, it is possible that the CFPB could issue another revision at some time, although I believe that is unlikely to happen in the near future. You can find the updated “Summary of Your Rights Under the Fair Credit Reporting Act” at https://www.consumerfinance.gov/learnmore/.
Posted by: Rudy Troisi. President and CEO, Reliable Background Screening
Copyright © 2018, Reliable Background Screening, a Division of Marcett, Inc. All rights reserved.
