Tell Congress: Pass the Comprehensive CREDIT Act

Find an error in your credit files? Most people who reach out to credit bureaus to address an error have a less than 2% chance of getting it fixed.

The credit bureaus that collect, store and share our data should be accountable to us, not the companies that use them to access our credit information.

We need legislation that puts consumers back in control of their credit.

There are three major credit bureaus: Equifax, Experian and TransUnion. These three bureaus are responsible for collecting our credit data and sharing it whenever we need our credit checked.

Our credit depends on these bureaus’ having and reporting the most accurate information possible about our credit history. But when they get that info wrong, we’re the ones who pay for it — and there’s very little we can do about it.

According to a report from the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB), these bureaus provided relief in less than 2% of consumer complaints — which means, even when you do nothing wrong, you will most likely have no way to fix your credit score.

This doesn’t make sense, and it needs to change. That’s where the Comprehensive CREDIT Act comes in.

If passed, this legislation would make it easier for consumers to detect — and correct — mistakes on their credit reports. It would also help restore credit scores that were unfairly damaged by these mistakes.

This could have a real impact. It would shorten the time that negative information appears on credit reports, limit the reporting of medical debt, and lend a hand to student borrowers as they struggle to repair their credit.

Finally, it would have the CFPB regulate credit scoring models for accuracy and give consumers free credit scores along with their free annual credit reports.

This legislation would play an important role in protecting consumers’ credit from unfair credit reporting practices.