Government will now oversee credit reporting

Consumers worried about how their credit rating might affect the costs they face for carrying credit card debt might soon be able to find a bit of relief.

The federal Consumer Financial Protection Bureau will begin overseeing the credit reporting industry on September 30, and therefore help to ensure that Americans only have accurate information listed on their profiles, according to a report from the agency. Credit reports are used to create consumers’ credit scores, which in turn are used to determine not only eligibility for loans, but also the terms of those agreements.

In all, there are about 400 companies nationwide that participate in some sort of credit scoring, but only about 30 of the “larger participants” will be regulated, the report said. Those 30 companies alone make up 94 percent of all receipts in the industry, and the three largest issue more than 3 billion credit reports annually for some 200 million Americans.

Erroneous markings on a credit report can lead to significant problems for borrowers and in some cases prompt them to seek out debt relief options.