EVER HEARD OF CHEX SYSTEMS? THEY KNOW YOU AND YOUR CHECKING ACCOUNT

Ever heard of Chex Systems?

They have heard of you – and your bank account!

We expect our bank to monitor our account, every deposit, withdrawal and transaction.  Are other companies tracking this information, too?  Sure – ever heard of Chex Systems?  Most consumers do not realize Chex Systems – a consumer reporting agency – is monitoring you bank activity.  Chex Systems has a massive database and collects banking information from financial institutions all over the country.  The information includes data from consumer’s checking and savings accounts.  Chex Systems shares the data with its members – financial institutions to evaluate the risk associated with opening a new account.

Banks like Chex Systems’s data because the information helps banks to identify risky customers, such as customers who may leave a bank with unpaid charges or outstanding balances.  Chex Systems also markets its data services to banks to prevent fraud and identity theft.

What do you need to know about Chex Systems?

1. Negative information in your Chex Systems’s file will remain on your consumer report for 5 years!

Negative information, such as bounced checks, non-sufficient fund fees and outstanding balances can keep you from getting a bank account.  Some banks may agree to allow you to open an account, but you may have to a premium.  For example, the bank may require you to make a minimum deposit and may not offer you over draft protection.

2. 80% of U.S. banks and credit unions subscribe to the Chex Systems database.

That’s right, at least 3 out of 4 banks in the US have access to Chex Systems’s powerful database.  For consumers, this means inaccurate information in Chex Systems’s database will more likely than not affect you, especially when you try to change bank accounts, or if you try to open a new bank account.

3. Chex Systems is required to comply with the Fair Credit Reporting Act.

Chex Systems is a consumer reporting agency. Reports prepared and sold by Chex Systems are consumer reports.  This is significant  because this means reports sold by Chex Systems are covered by the Fair Credit Reporting Act (FCRA).  The FCRA is federal consumer protection statute.

4.  Consumers have the right to request their free report from Chex Systems once every 12 months.

Consumers have the right to request their free credit report once a year from Chex Systems once every twelve months.  The Fair Credit Reporting Act was amended in 2003.  For the first time, under the Fair and Accurate Transactions Act (FACTA) consumer have the right to on free credit report in a 12 month time period from consumer reporting agencies.  This means you have the right to request your free credit report from Chex Systems every 12 months.  Click HERE to request your free credit report from Chex Systems.

5.  Consumers have the right to dispute credit report errors on their Chex Systems’s report. 

The FCRA gives consumers the right to dispute credit report errors to consumer reporting agencies.  This means the FCRA gives you the right to dispute errors in your Chex Systems report, and if Chex Systems fails to complete a reasonable investigation, you can sue the company in federal court under the Fair Credit Reporting Act.

Micah Adkins, a Fair Credit Reporting Act attorney, suggests consumers should request their free credit report from Chex Systems at least once a year.  “Generally, consumers do not discover errors in their credit reports until after being denied credit,” says attorney Adkins.  “Consumers should use the law to request their free credit reports and dispute credit report errors.”  If the credit reporting agency does not delete inaccurate information in your credit, then the consumer has a right to hire a FCRA lawyer and sue the credit reporting agency.

For more information about rights under the Fair Credit Reporting Act, call Micah Adkins 24/7 at 1-800-263-9091.