CONSUMER CREDIT REPORT

A consumer credit report is the organized presentation of information about an individual's credit record that a credit-reporting agency communicates to those requesting information about the credit history of an individual. It includes information on an individual's experiences with credit, leases, non-credit-related bills, collection agency actions, monetary-related public records, and inquiries about the individual's credit history. Credit reports, along with credit history scores derived from the records of credit-reporting agencies, have long been considered one of the primary factors in credit evaluations and loan pricing decisions. They are also widely used to select individuals to contact for prescreened credit solicitations. More recently, credit reports and credit history scores have often been used in identifying potential customers for property and casualty insurance and in underwriting and pricing such insurance.

Despite the great benefits of the current system, however, some analysts have raised concerns about the accuracy, completeness, timeliness, and consistency of consumer credit records and about the effects of data limitations on the availability and cost of credit because such records have predictive values .Moreover, decision makers in areas unrelated to consumer credit, including employment screening and underwriting of property and casualty insurance, increasingly depend on credit records.