The FTC approved "largely technical changes" to five rules under the Fair Credit Reporting Act ("FCRA"). The amendments clarify that the FCRA rules, as enforced by the FTC, apply only to motor vehicle dealers, since Dodd-Frank transferred authority for the regulation of other types of entities to the CFPB.

As previously covered, the changes affect:

  • Part 641 ("Duties of Users of Consumer Reports Regarding Address Discrepancies"), which outlines requirements for users of consumer reports upon receipt of a notice of address discrepancy from a consumer reporting agency ("CRA");
  • Part 680 ("Affiliate Marketing"), which allows a consumer to prohibit the use of certain information obtained from affiliates in order to make solicitations to the consumer;
  • Part 660 ("Duties of Furnishers of Information to Consumer Reporting Agencies"), which outlines requirements regarding the accuracy and integrity of information submitted to CRAs;
  • Parts 642 ("Prescreen Opt-Out Notice") and 698 ("Model Forms and Disclosures"), which enumerate requirements for those using information from customer reports for unsolicited credit or insurance advertising, as amended to add a web address for consumer opt-out requests; and
  • Part 640 ("Duties of Creditors Regarding Risk-Based Pricing"), which requires entities that use consumer report information to offer less advantageous terms to consumers to notify them about the use of their information, as amended to include examples reflecting the narrowed scope to just motor vehicle dealers.

The adopted rule changes go into effect 30 days after their publication in the Federal Register.

Primary Sources

  1. FTC Press Release: FTC Approves Changes to Five FCRA Rules
  2. FTC Final Rule: Duties of Users of Consumer Reports Regarding Address Discrepancies
  3. FTC Final Rule: Affiliate Marketing Rule
  4. FTC Final Rule: Duties of Furnishers of Information to Consumer Reporting Agencies Rule
  5. FTC Final Rule: Prescreen Opt-Out Notice Rule
  6. FTC Final Rule: Duties of Creditors Regarding Risk-Based Pricing Rule

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