Fair Credit Billing Act: How Protecs You | 2022 - YouTube

DISPUTING CREDIT CARD CHARGES There are few things more frustrating than

when incorrect payments or charges appear on your credit card statement.

Perhaps you’ve been charged multiple times for the same item,

charged for an item you never received or a payment has failed to be credited to your

account.

If you notice activity on your credit card that you have not approved or believe to be

false, you should know your rights and fight back to

correct these errors.

Under the FAIR CREDIT BILLING ACT (FCBA), there are dispute settlement procedures that

you can undertake.

These are applicable to any “open end” credit accounts, such as credit

cards, plus revolving charge accounts, like department store credit.

However, be aware that these procedures do not apply to installment

contracts such as loans or extensions of credit repaid on a fixed schedule.

APPLICABLE TYPES OF ERRORS The FCBA covers billing errors that may have

resulted from, or include, any of the following: ● unauthorized charges (Federal law limits

your responsibility for unauthorized charges to

$50) ● charges that list the wrong date or amount

● charges for goods and services you didn't accept or that weren't delivered as agreed

● mathematical errors ● failure to post payments and other credits,

like returns ● failure to send bills to your current

address (assuming the creditor has your change of

address, in writing, at least 20 days before the billing period ends)

● charges for which you ask for an explanation or written proof of purchase, along with a

claimed error or request for clarification INITIATING A DISPUTE

To ensure protection under the law of the FCBA, you must contact the creditor at the

address given for "billing inquiries" (this will most

likely be different from the address you usually send

your payments to).

Provide them with your name, address, account number, and a description

of the billing error.

Your letter must reach the creditor within 60 days of you having received the initial

bill that included the error.

It is strongly advised that you send any correspondence by certified mail so

that you have proof of receipt.

Include copies of any evidence that supports your claim (keeping

any original documents for yourself) and always keep a copy of your dispute letter.

The creditor must reply and acknowledge your claim within 30 days of receiving it, unless

the issue has been resolved by then.

The creditor has a maximum of 90 days or two billing cycles

after getting your letter in which they must resolve the dispute.

DURING THE INVESTIGATION While an investigation is in progress, you

may withhold payment on any disputed charges but

must continue to pay any part of the bill that is not in question.

A creditor cannot take legal action against you during the investigation period, nor can

they close or restrict your account.

They can, however, apply the disputed amount against your credit

limit.

They can also report that you are challenging your bill but they may not threaten your credit

rating, report you as delinquent, accelerate your debt or take any discriminatory action

against you, such as denying you credit because you

have disputed a bill using your rights under the

FCBA.

If the creditor admits that they have made an error, they must explain to you in writing

what corrections will be made to your account and

remove all finance charges, late fees, or other

charges related to the error.

Should the creditor insist that you still owe them a portion or all of the disputed

amount, they must explain to you in writing how much you

owe and why.

You can request copies of any relevant documents.

At this point, you can either decide to pay the requested amount, which may include finance

charges that have accumulated whilst in dispute and any minimum payments you may have

missed, or you can refuse to pay.

If you refuse, you must write to the creditor within 10 days,

indicating your refusal to pay.

The creditor may then begin collection procedures or report you to

a credit reporting company as delinquent.

They must inform the credit reporting company that

you don’t think you owe the money and must tell you who has access to the reports.

Any creditor who fails to follow the procedures set out in the FCBA, for example if they do

not respond or take action within the allotted

timeframes, will forfeit any disputed amount up to the

value of $50, even if the bill turns out to be correct.

This penalty also applies if a creditor threatens to report, or improperly reports

your failure to pay during the dispute period.

DISPUTING QUALITY OF GOODS AND SERVICES Disputes about the quality of goods and services

are not covered under the FCBA’s dispute procedure as they do not qualify as "billing

errors".

However, if you paid for faulty goods or services with a credit or charge card, you

can take the same legal actions against the card

issuer as you can take under state law against the seller.

In order to do so, you must have made the purchase (of more than $50) in your home state

or within 100 miles of your current billing address,

and make a ‘good faith effort’ to resolve the

dispute with the seller first.

The dollar and distance limitations don't apply if the seller also is the card issuer,

or if a special business relationship exists between the seller

and the card issuer.

ADDITIONAL RIGHTS AND INFORMATION In addition to following billing dispute procedures,

companies that offer “open end” credit must

give you a written notice when you open a new account and inform you of your right to

dispute billing errors.

They should also provide a statement for each billing period in which you owe (or

they owe you) more than one dollar, or on which you have been charged a finance charge.

Creditors are also required to send you your bill at least 21 days before your payment

is due for credit cards, and at least 14 days before

a minimum payment is due to avoid being late for open

end credit, even if no grace period exists.

All payments to your account must be credited on the date they're received, unless no extra

charges result from a failure to do so.

Creditors must set reasonable rules for making payments,

such as a reasonable deadline for a payment to be received and credited on the same day.

They must also promptly credit or refund overpayments and other amounts owed to your

account when you are owed more than one dollar.

If you prefer a refund, a creditor must send this within seven business days of receiving

your written request.

FURTHER ACTION

The FCBA is enforced by the Federal Trade Commission for most creditors but not banks.

If you believe a creditor has violated the FCBA,

you can register a complaint with the FTC.

You can also sue them in court and may be awarded damages plus twice the amount of any

finance charge (between $500 and $5000) if you win.

Higher amounts may be awarded if a pattern or practice of violations is determined.

The court also may order the creditor to pay your lawyer’s fees.

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