www.CUNA.org/newsnow (1/13/11) The Federal Reserve Board has unveiled an online consumer handbook to help borrowers better understand new notices they may receive from lenders when credit reports or credit scores affect a credit decision.
The new publication is called "
What You Need to Know: New Rules about Credit Decisions and Notices." It describes the types of notices a potential borrower might receive, as well as provides illustrations of what those notices might look like. It also gives advice on what a consumer should do upon receiving a notice and includes instructions on how to dispute credit report errors.
The notices described in the new handbook are required by new rules issued by the Fed and the Federal Trade Commission that took effect January 11th. They include:
- Credit Score Notice (states your credit score and how it compares to other consumers' scores),
- Risk-Based Pricing Notice (issued when a consumer's credit report or score affects the lender's decision on whether to lend money and the terms of credit offered),
- and Account Review Notice (provided when an APR, or Annual Percentage Rate, on an existing credit account is increased based on a review of the consumer's credit report).
