An updated list of consumer reporting companies – including the three nationwide firms as well as “dozens”of specialty firms – has been published by the federal consumer financial protection agency, the agency said in a blog post Friday.
The Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB) said this list, which can be searched and filtered online and is also offered as a PDF document, is not exhaustive. It includes Equifax, TransUnion, and Experian – the three nationwide consumer reporting companies – as well as employment verification companies, tenant screening companies, companies that screen checking account activity and perform check verifications, personal property insurance screening companies, medical consumer reporting companies, low-income and subprime reporting companies, and others.
The CFPB said the 2021 list provides the latest company name and contact information of firms listed, and it sorts the companies by market area.
The bureau noted that all consumer reporting firms are required under the Fair Credit Reporting Act (FCRA) to provide consumers information on them when requested. Equifax, TransUnion, and Experian in particular are required to provide one free report every 12 months to a consumer if requested; due to the COVID-19 pandemic, consumers may request a free report weekly from each of these three firms through April 2021.
Additionally, a 2019 settlement with Equifax related to the firm’s massive 2017 data breach requires the company to provide consumers up to six free copies of their Equifax credit report during any twelve-month period through December 2026. The bureau said these free copies will be provided in addition to any free reports to which a consumer is entitled under federal law.
Blog post: Know your data: Our updated list of reporting companies