The Fair Credit Reporting Act (FCRA) provides for actual damages, statutory damages for willful or intentional conduct that violates the FCRA, and punitive damages for malicious conduct harming a consumer’s credit or reputation for credit worthiness. Furthermore, the FCRA provides for the recovery of attorneys fees and costs to the prevailing consumer (paid for by the creditor or bureau) provided that either actual damage is proven or the creditor or credit reporting agency has acted willfully in violation of the Fair Credit Reporting Act.

If LeavenLaw is unsuccessful in representing you in your Fair Credit Reporting Act case, you will owe LeavenLaw nothing for its efforts. In short, we prevail for you or we are not paid. Period. Below are the common scenarios that a consumer will encounter where attorneys’ fees and costs LeavenLaw will seek to recover from the creditor or credit reporting agency.

Late Payments Reported in Error

One of the most frequent credit reporting errors that a consumer will encounter are payments on trade lines or accounts that have been reported as late when in fact the payment was made on time. 30-60-90 days late. Late payments cam drastically hurt a consumers credit score. If you have reviewed your credit report and there are late payments being improperly reported, LeavenLaw and its attorneys can help you draft dispute letters that must be sent to the credit bureau(s) that are reporting the improper late payments and, either get it corrected or, if need be, file suit to protect your rights under the Fair Credit Reporting Act. LeavenLaw will get you results and make the creditor, debt collector and/or credit reporting agency pay its attorneys’ fees for successfully representing you.

Improper Balances Reported as Due

Perhaps the second most common credit reporting error a consumer will likely find on his or her credit report is a creditor or furnisher of information reporting to a credit bureau a balance due on an account that is incorrect. Whether the amount past due or the total amount of the debt allegedly due, either being reported incorrectly can affect a consumer’s credit score. If you find an improper balance being reported on your credit report, please contact LeavenLaw and its consumer attorneys to help you fix your credit report at no out of pocket cost to you. LeavenLaw and its attorneys will prevail be paid by the creditor or credit reporting agency or not at all. Call today!

Impermissible Access to Credit Report

For consumers have filed for bankruptcy and received a discharge of their debts, or who have settled debts with creditors or debt collectors, a credit relationship with such creditors and/or debt collectors has terminated. The debt has been resolved and as such there is no longer a debtor-creditor relationship. And with no relationship, there is no longer a permissible purpose for a consumer’s former creditors and debt collectors to access a consumer credit report. Still, they will pull your report. And when they do, this is a textbook invasion of your privacy. Check your credit report and the entities that access your report. If creditor or debt collectors are accessing your credit and you did not either apply for credit or have an existing debtor-creditor relationship with them, you are entitled to damages.....and LeavenLaw will get its fees and costs paid by the offending creditor. If we don’t, you owe us nothing. Call today to protect your good credit and your privacy!

Identity Theft

In the modern day, it is becoming more frequent that bad people will get access to your credit file and may try to take out new credit in your name. As such, it is critical that you frequently check your credit report to make sure that the accounts being reported under your name are actually yours. If you detect any credit cards or other accounts coming up on your credit report that are not yours, you may be the victim of identity theft. In such case, please contact the Fair Credit Reporting attorneys at LeavenLaw immediately. LeavenLaw and its attorneys will help you fill out and ID theft affidavit and work with local law enforcement to make sure the crime has been documents. LeavenLaw will then help you begin the process of cleaning up your credit, one false credit line at a time. In certain circumstances, LeavenLaw can also help you "freeze" your credit to make sure the theft does not continue. Call LeavenLaw and its lawyers today for the identify theft help that you need.

Mixed File

Common names. Fathers and sons. Similar spellings of otherwise distinct names. There can be many reasons why one person’s credit files is "mixed up" with another person’s credit file. Why and how it happened is important. But what is critically important to the consumer is getting the file corrected so another persons credit is not improperly associated with yours. Invariably, when credit files are mixed, applying for and getting new credit will be virtually impossible. So if you have been turned down for credit and find out that another person’s credit is being reported as yours, call the Fair Credit Reporting attorneys at LeavenLaw to start the process of unwinding the improper mixing of your credit file. And when LeavevnLaw is done helping you, they will get their attorneys’ fees paid for by the credit bureau. Call today!