Fair Credit Reporting Act

[bronxbombers]

I need some advice.  I recently sent a goodwill letter to a utility company that I had a deliquency on and just got the letter back.  I stated on the goodwill letter that it is not against any law that all accounts be reported but it is law that they be reported accurately.  They just sent me a letter back saying that I was right about that but "it is a violation of federal law in the Fair Credit Reporting Act to retract accurate information that has already been reported."  I never heard that it was against any law to take information off.  Could someone elaborate or show me where I could find more information on this please.

[Anonymous]

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@bronxbombers wrote:
I need some advice.  I recently sent a goodwill letter to a utility company that I had a deliquency on and just got the letter back.  I stated on the goodwill letter that it is not against any law that all accounts be reported but it is law that they be reported accurately.  They just sent me a letter back saying that I was right about that but "it is a violation of federal law in the Fair Credit Reporting Act to retract accurate information that has already been reported."  I never heard that it was against any law to take information off.  Could someone elaborate or show me where I could find more information on this please.

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You can download a pdf version of the FCRA from the FTC's website.  There is no law that says they must report.  The only requirement is that if they choose to report, what they report must be accurate. 

[Anonymous]

All law is interpretive.  Different companies, creditors, lenders, etc. have different interpretations and thus policies.  Some believe that to retract accurate information due to "GW" is in fact an "omission intent to deceive" meaning to make your credit history appear better than it actually is.

Technically speaking, it is in the interest of all lenders to NOT retract or GW, because it confounds the purpose of reporting, scoring and risk analysis.  Therefore other companies may decline GW as a matter of internal policy, not due to law.

There is not law, as O6 posted, that prohibits this.  There is no law requiring any company to report or continue to report.  And any two parties may make a superceding agreement which effectively does retract the old agreement.

As a matter of policy, most CRA's discourage their subscribers from retracting accurate information.

Message Edited by txjohn on 01-15-2010 07:42 AM