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TheFair Credit Billing Act is a United States federal law that is an amendment tothe Truth in Lending Act. It's purposeis to protect consumers from unfair billing practices and to provide amechanism for addressing billing errors in ?open end? credit accounts, such ascredit card or charge card accounts. Ifyou have ever received a credit card statement that had an error, for instancea wrong amount charged or you never received something you were billed for, youcan fight the charge. The Fair CreditBilling Act gives you that right to fight rather than pay. Just remember, to be protected under thislaw, you must dispute any errors you find in your credit bill as soon aspossible in writing. Usually thedeadline for notifying your credit card company of a billing error is 60 daysafter the date the bill was mailed to you.
Thereare also several other acts that you as a consumer should know about. They outline your inalienable rights aboutcredit reporting and debt collection. Itis your responsibility to know your rights and make sure they are not beinginfringed upon.
TheFair Credit Reporting Act is a federal law that promotes the accuracy, fairnessand privacy of information in the files of consumer reporting agencies. There are many types of consumer reportingagencies, including credit bureaus and specialty agencies. The act grants you several rights that youshould be aware of. First off, you mustbe told if information in your file has been used against you. You have the right to know what is in yourfile. You also have the right to ask fora credit score. Additionally, you havethe right to dispute incomplete or inaccurate information. Consumer reporting agencies must correct ordelete inaccurate, incomplete or unverifiable information. Consumer reporting agencies may not reportoutdated negative information. Access toyour file is limited. You must give yourconsent for reports to be provided to employers. You may limit ?prescreened?offers of credit and insurance you get based on information in your creditreport. You may seek damages fromviolators. Also, identify theft victimsand active duty military personnel have additional rights. Remember that states may enforce the FCRA,and many states have their own consumer reporting laws. In some cases, you may have more rightsunder state law.
TheFair Debt Collection Practices Act is a federal law enacted to protect againstabusive collection of consumer debts. Itis designed to that consumers are granted an avenue for disputing and obtainingvalidation of debt information in order to ensure it's accuracy. The Act spells out specific guidelines of howdebt collectors can conduct business, defines the rights of involved consumers,and also defines penalties for violations of the Act.
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