CRBAfrica - Consumer Credit Program

Fair Credit Reporting - What Consumers Need to Know

Credit Reporting
Free credit reports
How to Dispute Errors
Identity theft
What to do if you are a victim of identity theft
Stay Involved

Your credit report and credit score can determine whether you qualify for insurance or loans, the price you pay for credit, and even your ability to get a job.

Consumers have new tools to fight identity theft and Credit Reporting errors under the CRBAfrica Consumer Credit Programme.

Free Credit Reports

Consumers can get a free copy of their credit report once every 12 months by contacting the CRBAfrica office in their country of residence.

Other Ways to Get a Free Report

You are also entitled to a free consumer report if:

• A person has taken an adverse action against you because of information in your credit report;

• You are the victim of identity theft and have placed a fraud alert on your file;

• You believe that your file contains inaccurate information as a result of fraud;

Your Right to Correct Inaccurate Information - Look out for Errors

When you get a copy of your report, review it carefully for errors.

According to a recent consumer credit study, one in four credit reports surveyed contained serious errors that could result in the denial of credit, employment, or insurance.

If you find inaccurate information, dispute it with both CRBAfrica and the person or company that provided the information to CRBAfrica.

How to Dispute Errors

Once you have notified CRBAfrica of any mistakes in your report, CRB-Africa will have 30 days to investigate the disputed items if you obtained a free annual copy of your report from CRBAfrica, but may extend this time period to 45 days if it later receives additional information from you that is relevant to the investigation.

CRBAfrica must remove any disputed information that is found to be inaccurate, incomplete, or unverified and provide you with an updated copy of your credit report.

At your request, CRBAfrica must notify any persons who recently have obtained your credit report that the information has been removed.

If you disagree with the results of CRBAfrica's investigation, you have the right to include a written statement of the dispute in your credit report.

In addition to these rights, you may also dispute the item directly with the person or entity that provided the information to CRBAfrica.

Identity Theft: The Long Road To Resolution

The problem of identity theft is growing exponentially worldwide.

Stealing a person's identity is easier now than at any time in the past, thanks to computers and public access to personal data.

Criminals know that businesses are reluctant to prosecute individual cases and often consider losses a "cost of doing business."

Existing laws consider the victim to be the business defrauded - not the person whose identity was stolen.

New laws recognizing the person whose identity was stolen as a victim are being written, however, the very nature of the crime makes the perpetrator difficult to identify and prosecute.

For these reasons, the victim of identity fraud must personally take steps to limit damage to their financial standing, credit history and peace of mind.

In the case of identity theft, the victim is not only victimised by the criminal, but is further victimised by lax legal protections, apathetic merchants, and uncooperative credit and banking institutions.

There is no short-cut to fixing problems caused by identity theft.

If You Discover You Are a Victim of Identity Theft

You can place a fraud alert in your file.

If you believe that you may be a victim of fraud, you can place fraud alerts on your credit files, which will require creditors to take additional steps to verify an applicant's identity before issuing credit in your name.

If you want to extend this alert beyond 90 days, you will have to file an identity theft report with local law enforcement authorities and provide any additional documentation CRBAfrica may reasonably require in order to verify the validity of the fraud.

You can get additional free copies of your credit report.

If you place an initial fraud alert on your report, you get a free copy of your report from CRBAfrica.

With an extended alert, you are entitled to two free reports over the course of the next twelve months.

You can block fraudulent information in your file.

If you are a victim of identity theft, you can block the reporting of any information in your report that is the result of identity theft.

To exercise this right, you will need to file an identity theft report and provide CRBAfrica with proof of your identity.

CRBAfrica may refuse or cancel your request for a block if you do not provide it with the necessary documentation or if you make any material misrepresentations of fact.

To set up fraud alerts and blocks, contact Customer Service at the CRBAfrica office in your country of residence.

Stay Involved

This Service is a step in the right direction, but more needs to be done to protect consumers from identity theft.

Contact the CRBAfrica office in your country of residence for more information.