CFPB Issues Revised Forms for FCRA Compliance by Jan 1, 2013

The Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB), the agency that has enforcement responsibility over the Fair Credit Report Act (FCRA), revised the forms that employers must use to comply with the FCRA effective January 1, 2013. There was only one problem with the forms the CFPB originally provided for use: they contained various typos and technical errors that the CFPB has now recognized and corrected.

The forms that were issued include:

• The Summary of Consumer Identity Theft Rights
• Summary of Your Rights Under the Fair Credit Reporting Act – employers are required to provide to applicants and employees with the FCRA disclosure and authorization form when the employe procures an investigative consumer report and with any pre-adverse action notice sent when an employer intends to rely in whole or in part on information contained in a background check report to make an employment decision
• Notice of Furnisher Responsibilities– background check providers must provide to certain furnishers of information
• Notice to Users of Consumer Reports: Obligations of Users Under the FCRA– which background check providers must give employes who procure background check reports.

The good news for those employers who have already transitioned to the forms that were published in December 2011, the CFPB says it will regard the use of the originally published model forms, typos and technical errors notwithstanding. For employers that have not yet started using the new FCRA forms, make sure you use the newly corrected one available.

Please contact our office for a copy of the new FCRA forms.