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Question from BentrabbitNov-3
Greetings,

I have a Credit Card that was charged off back in 2005. After the chargeoff, I made arrangements to pay off the balance owed in monthly installments of $150, and all was satisfied.

I recently pulled a copy of my credit report and saw that the credit card company is reporting a balance still owing on the account of a little over $141.

I disputed the listing on my credit report, but all 3 bureaus replied that the debt was verified.

I then sent a certified letter to the credit card company asking for an investigation and for them to send the results of their investigation to me per Article 623 of the Fair Credit Reporting Act.

The replied that they finished their investigation, the debt is owed and that if I wanted copies of any documents, I would have to pay $2.00 each and to specifically list which documents (from their pre printed list) I wished to obtain.

Per the FCRA, aren't I entitled to the results of their investigation without having to pay for the 'evidence'?
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GuessAgain Nov-4 89220.2

The FCRA doesn't apply to the original creditor.  It only applies to collection agencies. Your rights are governed by the laws of your state and the terms of your contract with the credit card company.

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Bentrabbit Nov-4 89220.3
I think you have the Fair Credit Reporting Act (FCRA) confused with the Fair Debt Collection Practices Act (FDCPA).

The FDCPA applies to only Collection Agencies whereas the FCRA applies to anyone providing information on your credit report.

Article 623 of the FCRA gives consumers the legal right to petition the Information Furnisher for a reinvestigation of any tradeline they place on your credit report  (§ 623 (a)(8) ABILITY OF CONSUMER TO DISPUTE INFORMATION DIRECTLY WITH FURNISHER)

Congress included this in order to allow consumers to expedite the process of ensuring accurate reporting, and courts have upheld that the information furnishers must follow the guidelines set forth for Credit Reporting Agencies (i.e. reasonable investigation of disputes, timelines for conducting investigations) had the consumer opted to dispute with the Agency rather that the Creditor.

Since the FCRA has provisions for the Credit Reporting Agencies to provide consumers their  methods of verification of disputed tradelines, if requested, shouldn't that same stipulation apply to the Information Furnishers?

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pg1067 Nov-4 89220.4

"The FCRA doesn't apply to the original creditor.  It only applies to collection agencies."

That's incorrect, and I'm guessing you're confusing the FCRA with the Fair Debt Collection Practices Act.  As is relevant here, the FCRA is generally applicable to both original creditors and to "debt collectors" to the extent they are "furnishers of information" to one or more of the credit reporting agencies.  Section 623(b) of the FCRA imposes certain requirements on a "furnisher of information" upon receipt of a notice of dispute pursuant to Section 611(a)(2).

However, for the original poster, nowhere in Section 623 is there a requirement that a "furnisher of information" provide the results of its investigation to the consumer.  Accordingly, there's no prohibition on the "furnisher of information" charging for copies of documents.

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