PCS Credit Bureau Reporting Accuracy 3 — Questions and Answers
Question 1: A consumer disputes a collection account claiming the debt belongs to someone with a similar name. The collector confirms it is indeed a different person's debt. What is the correct action?
- Suppress the dispute and continue collection
- Delete the tradeline from the consumer's credit report (Correct answer)
- Change the account status to 'disputed'
- Place the account in a 60-day hold
Correct answer: Delete the tradeline from the consumer's credit report
When a collector confirms the account is a case of mistaken identity, the tradeline must be deleted from the wrongly affected consumer's credit report.
Question 2: What is the maximum number of days after a consumer's direct dispute to a furnisher that the furnisher must complete its investigation?
- 15 days
- 30 days
- 45 days (Correct answer)
- 60 days
Correct answer: 45 days
Under FCRA Section 623(a)(8), furnishers must investigate and respond to direct consumer disputes within 45 days.
Question 3: Which of the following is NOT a permissible reason for a furnisher to decline investigating a direct dispute?
- The dispute is frivolous or irrelevant
- The consumer previously submitted an identical dispute
- The consumer owes a large balance on the account (Correct answer)
- The dispute lacks sufficient information to investigate
Correct answer: The consumer owes a large balance on the account
The size of the balance owed is irrelevant to whether a furnisher must investigate a dispute; only procedural grounds like frivolousness or prior identical disputes can excuse investigation.
Question 4: Under Metro 2 compliance, what does the Compliance Condition Code 'XB' signify on a tradeline?
- Account in bankruptcy
- Account information disputed by consumer via FCRA Section 609 (Correct answer)
- Account closed by consumer
- Account transferred to another lender
Correct answer: Account information disputed by consumer via FCRA Section 609
Compliance Condition Code XB indicates the consumer has disputed the account information directly with the furnisher under FCRA Section 609.
Question 5: A collection account first became delinquent on March 1, 2019. When must this account be removed from the consumer's credit report?
- March 1, 2024
- March 1, 2026 (Correct answer)
- March 1, 2027
- It depends on when the collector purchased the debt
Correct answer: March 1, 2026
Negative information may be reported for 7 years from the date of first delinquency, so an account delinquent March 1, 2019 must be removed by March 1, 2026.
Question 6: What must a debt collector include in a consumer's credit file entry when the consumer has asserted the debt is not theirs and the collector cannot verify ownership?
- A notation that the account is under investigation
- Deletion of the tradeline (Correct answer)
- A statement that the balance is zero
- A flag indicating the account is charged off
Correct answer: Deletion of the tradeline
If a collector cannot verify that a disputed debt belongs to the consumer, the FCRA requires deletion of the unverifiable tradeline rather than continued reporting.
Question 7: Which segment in Metro 2 format is used to report information about an associated consumer who is not the primary account holder?
- J1 segment – Associated Consumer (Correct answer)
- K1 segment – Original Creditor
- L1 segment – Purchased Portfolio
- K4 segment – Special Comment
Correct answer: J1 segment – Associated Consumer
The J1 segment in Metro 2 format carries information for an associated consumer, such as a co-borrower or authorized user on the account.
PCS Credit Bureau Reporting Accuracy 3
A consumer disputes a collection account claiming the debt belongs to someone with a similar name.
The collector confirms it is indeed a different person's debt.
What is the correct action?