(Office of the Attorney General) – Carson City – Nevada Attorney General Adam Paul Laxalt joined 30 other attorneys general in announcing a major settlement with the three national credit reporting agencies: Equifax Information Services LLC, Experian Information Solutions Inc., and TransUnion LLC.
Under the agreement, the credit reporting agencies will pay the participating states $6 million, and agree to make changes to the way information is added, reviewed and removed from consumers’ credit reports. If any of the settlement terms are violated, the participating states can enforce the violations according to state and federal law.
“The other attorneys general and I have obtained this relief to protect consumers nationwide by ensuring that they will have greater control over their financial lives,” said Laxalt. “This is a comprehensive settlement that has taken participating states years to negotiate. I empathize with those Nevadans who have long struggled with these issues, and am actively working to achieve changes and positive results.”
The investigation focused on consumer disputes about credit report errors, accuracy in consumer credit reports, the marketing of credit monitoring products to consumers, and monitoring and disciplining data furnishers or providers of credit reporting information.
Generally, the settlement requires credit reporting agencies to hold data furnishers to higher standards, limit direct-to-consumer marketing, provide greater protections for consumers who dispute information on their credit reports, limit when and what information can be added to a credit report, and obligate additional consumer education. Additionally, the settlement necessitates that the credit reporting agencies agree to comply with state and federal laws, including the Fair Credit Reporting Act.
The settlement is the result of a multistate investigation initiated by Ohio Attorney General Mike DeWine in 2012. The investigation was directed by an executive committee of several states that included Chief Deputy Attorney General JoAnn Gibbs and Senior Deputy Attorney General Lucas Tucker of the Nevada Attorney General’s Bureau of Consumer Protection.
Nevada is joined by the following states in the filing of this settlement: Alabama, Alaska, Arizona, Arkansas, Florida, Georgia, Hawaii, Idaho, Illinois, Indiana, Iowa, Kansas, Louisiana, Maine, Maryland, Massachusetts, Michigan, Missouri, Nebraska, New Mexico, North Carolina, North Dakota, Ohio, Oregon, Pennsylvania, Rhode Island, Tennessee, Texas, Vermont and Wisconsin.
To view the key provisions of the settlement, click here.
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