The Fair and Accurate Credit Transactions Act (FACTA) was introduced in 2003 as an amendment to the Fair Credit Reporting Act. The FACTA allows for consumers to obtain a free credit federal report once every year from one of three credit federal report agencies. These agencies are Equifax, Experian, and TransUnion.

A credit report is basically a history of credit transactions that a person has made throughout his or her lifetime. It is also commonly referred to as a credit score. Credit federal reports will include any delinquent behavior on the part of the consumer. This will include failure to pay creditors, late payments, and bankruptcy.

In addition to guaranteeing an annual free credit report, the FACTA also includes several rules and regulations that will protect consumers against identity theft. Identity theft occurs when a person will steal information from the wronged party and basically assume the identity of this person in order to make purchases or withdraw money.

The FACTA attempts to guard against this by allowing consumers who believe they may be the victim of identity theft to place their credit federal history under review. The consumer can alert the credit agency that he or she believes there has been an act of fraud committed and the agency will place a hold on the account. The FACTA will also ensure that credit agencies are disbursing of credit information in a secure manner.

The FACTA has several main areas of importance. The Identity Theft Prevention and Credit History Restoration section will protect certain areas of a person’s credit history to avoid identity theft. For example, it may restrict certain businesses from printing a person’s credit card number on his or her receipt to avoid theft. It also monitors the situations in which a person can place their credit history on alert for suspected fraud.

The Protection and Restoration of Identity Theft Victim Credit History section will include provisions that summarize the rights of those individuals who have fallen victim to identity theft. Credit report agencies are required to block or dispose of any information that is considered to be part of the result of the identity theft. However, if the suspected identity theft was actually in error, then the agency is not required to block any of this information and may re-release it.

There are several free credit federal reporting agencies that will offer a person’s credit score and credit history. However, the FACTA only monitors the three free credit report agencies listed above. Other credit agencies will generally offer only an initial free credit report. After this, consumers will normally be charged on a monthly basis to continue accessing their credit report.

A free credit report can be obtained under the FACTA guidelines by making a request through mail, phone call, or by accessing the website. There are a variety of free credit report websites that can be accessed by doing an Internet search.

The term garnishment basically means that when an amount of money is owed by a person, such as a defendant in a lawsuit, the courts will allow a third party to pay off the defendant’s debt directly to the plaintiff. Wage garnishment is possibly the most common type of garnishment. This is when a certain amount of money is withdrawn from a person’s wages in order to pay the debt. 

Wage garnishment may be due to the directions of a court order. Basically, a certain amount of money will be deducted from a person’s salary in order to pay off some kind of debt. Types of debt that must be paid off are commonly: child support, student loans, taxes, or attorneys/court fees.

There are Federal rules and regulations that will monitor the practices of wage garnishment. For example, there is a limit to the amount of money that can be withdrawn. Federal law normally mandates that no more than 25% of a person’s income may be deducted.

There are also certain states whose legislature does not allow for garnishment of wages: North Carolina, Pennsylvania, South Carolina, and Texas. These states will allow deduction of wages for certain things, but will prohibit it for things such as credit card debt. Legislation regarding threshold percentages may also vary by State. Although 25% is the norm, some states mandate a lower percentage that is allowed to be deducted from wages. 

People cannot generally refuse wage garnishment, meaning that if this is mandated by the court, they must abide by it. If wages are deducted from an employer, this may also negatively affect the employees. This is because if there is not enough money in the employer’s salary, it will be deducted from the employees’ paychecks. 

When a person is in more than one type of debt, there is a descending order for the wage garnishment process. For example, if a person owes Federal taxes to the Government as well as credit card debt, the Federal taxes will be deducted from wages first. Wage garnishment will often add negative credit to a person’s credit report. 

Creditors will normally save wage garnishment until all other methods of collection have been unsuccessful. A debtor should try all other means of paying off creditor before being subjected to wage garnishment. This will negate a debtor’s ability to pay off other bills and may have very negative consequences. The best plan of action to avoid garnishment of wages is to devise a payment plan with credit card companies. This will allow the debtor to pay off the money at intervals without surrendering his or her paycheck. 

The Truth in Lending Act (TILA), enacted in 1968, is a Federal law of the United States that ensures consumers will be made aware of the terms when borrowing money and making purchases on credit. It requires all credit companies to be absolutely clear on credit terms so that the consumer will be fully aware of the conditions. 

The TILA restricts the practices of any institution or business that is offering credit to consumers at regular intervals. This generally excludes those who extend credit exclusively to businesses or commercial enterprises. This piece of legislation mandates that credit companies must express their terms and conditions in a written contract that is clear and concise in its terms.

Basically, the terms must be easily understandable by a consumer who has the same knowledge as a reasonable person. Also, the written terms must be made available to the consumer in a form of documentation that the consumer may keep.

A closed credit transaction includes arrangements between a creditor and consumer where there is a specific amount of money financed in advance by the creditor in which the consumer must eventually pay back. A common type of this loan is when a home-buyer or builder requests a mortgage on a house.

A mortgage is a loan that is secured by real property. The mortgage will be awarded in order to provide financing for an individual to purchase or build the home. The mortgage will usually be obtained from the bank. A mortgage will be paid by the recipient, usually monthly, at a specified interest rate. According to the Truth In Lending Act, there are several features of a mortgage loan that must be disclosed by the credit company:

The name of the credit institution or individual creditor

The amount of money that is being financed

Interest rate

Additional charges, such as finance charges

Payment schedule. A detailed schedule that includes exactly how much money will be be paid back, at what intervals, and the dates of due payment

Provisions that will specify what will happen in the event of a failure to pay, including late payment penalties

Any other information that may be necessary for the consumer to be aware of.

If any of these requirements are violated, the credit company will be liable for damages. However, if the creditor fixes the mistake within 60 days of the credit loan. If the error was completely unintentional and the result of a genuine mistake, then the creditor may receive some leniency from the court.

The Truth in Lending Act does not actually regulate prices to credit companies, meaning creditors are able to charge any amount they please for financing money to consumers. The main goal of TILA is to ensure that creditors are disclosing all the terms and conditions associated with the credit loan. This way, consumers are free to compare the fees of creditors and determine what is the best creditor with whom they should do business.

The Truth in Lending Act (TILA) protects consumer rights by ensuring that consumers are aware of the terms and conditions of creditors when borrowing money and making credit card purchases. TILA mandates that creditors are absolutely clear in their terms and make a copy of the pertinent information for the consumer to keep. Terms must be easily understood and accessible by the consumer.

TILA often applies to closed credit transactions, which means that a creditor will lend a specific amount of money to a consumer which he or she must then pay back. This is often seen in mortgage loans. There are certain areas of this type of loan which must be made absolutely clear to the consumer. The agreement must include the name of the institution, the amount being financed, the interest rate, payment schedule, and any other necessary provisions.

TILA provides for what type of action may be taken by a consumer provided that the creditor breaks any part of this agreement. If the creditor fixes the error within 60 days, then the agency may not be liable for damages. 

The Fair Credit Reporting Act (FCRA) protects consumer rights regarding the collection and distribution of private consumer information. The FCRA establishes a set of rules and responsibilities under which a credit reporting agency must act. A credit reporting agency is a business that will compile and store consumer credit reports.

The FCRA mandates that these agencies must take precaution against incorrect information and take the appropriate steps when a consumer disputes a specific piece of information. These agencies must provide consumers with all information that is pertinent to their credit report. Consumers are allowed one free credit report annually that can be requested via telephone, mail, or electronically. If a piece of credit information is incorrect, it must be removed promptly by the agency. The FCRA restricts certain practices of consumer reporting agencies to ensure that they are treating consumers fairly and properly.

The Fair and Accurate Credit Transactions Act (FACTA) allows for consumers to receive one free credit report annually from one of three credit reporting agencies: Equifax, Experian, and TransUnion. A credit report basically refers to a history of transactions throughout a consumer’s life. It may also be called credit score. This includes information that may negatively affect a credit report, such as late payments, failure to pay, and bankruptcy.

The FACTA also has several regulations that will ensure consumer protection against identity theft. For example, businesses are restricted from printing a person’s credit card number on a receipt after a purchase is made. It will also outline the rights of a victim of identity theft, as well as provide a course of action that should be taken. 

Credit report agencies are restricted in certain practices under FACTA. This includes that rule that they are required to dispose promptly of any information that is obtained in error. This Act provides for free credit reports from the above-named agencies, but there are also many other businesses that will offer this. After a free initial viewing, the consumer will generally be charged monthly for use.

The Fair Debt Collection Practices Act (FDCPA) was passed in 1978 and is designed to promote fair debt collection practices. This Act will provide rules and regulations for debt collection agencies and ensure that consumers are able to receive necessary information about their debt records. The FDCPA applies to all agencies that collect debt that is owed to a third party.

The provisions of this Act prevent certain practices by debt collectors, such as: harassing phone calls, the use of profanity, unnecessary threats, using untrue information against the consumer, exposing the consumer’s name and address as a person of bad credit, and continuing to contact the consumer after a cease of communication has been requested in writing.

There are also several practices that are required: a collector must clearly identify himself or herself and the purpose for calling, provide the consumer with the name and address of the company to which the debt was originally owed, and ceasing contact after it has been requested. A debt collection agency is also required to inform consumers that they have the right to dispute a claim.

Garnishment refers to the ability of a third party to directly pay off the debt of another person. This sometimes happens in lawsuits where a court order allows a third party to pay the debt of a defendant directly to the plaintiff. It is also commonly seen in wage garnishment. This is when a portion of a person’s wages is deducted in order to pay off a debt. This may happen is order to pay child support, Federal orSstate taxes, student loans, or a credit card company.

There is State legislation that will mandate exactly how much is allowed to be deducted, and there are states that only allow wage garnishment for certain purposes. A person cannot refuse wage garnishment, and if an employer is not able to set aside enough money, it could possibly be taken out of employees’ paychecks. This can be very detrimental to the consumer.

This is why it is always beneficial to pay off credit card debt. Most times, a person will be able to pay off the money at intervals by setting up a payment schedule. Wage garnishment is usually a last effort by a creditor to collect debts.