Who is affected by the credit reporting provisions of the Privacy Act?

The people most affected are consumers like you, credit providers and credit reporting agencies. Credit providers are businesses which provide loans of one form or another. A business is providing a loan if it lets you have goods or services and permits you to defer payment of such goods or services for seven days or more. Banks, credit unions, building societies, finance companies and retailers which issue credit cards are the major credit providers in Australia. Other types of businesses that could be a credit provider include businesses involved in hire purchase or hire arrangements such as car or equipment rental and video hire.

When you apply for credit, the credit provider is able to obtain information from a credit reporting agency about your credit worthiness including whether you have had any problems making repayments to other credit providers. This information assists the credit provider in assessing your application for credit.

The credit reporting provisions require that credit reporting agencies only hold on your file permitted information which is up to date, complete, accurate and not misleading. Certain information is expressly not permitted to be included on your file, such as your political beliefs, criminal record, medical history and so on. The law also requires that credit providers and credit reporting agencies take reasonable steps to protect your personal information against unauthorised use or disclosure.

Back to Top

How do I access my credit information?

The law guarantees that you are generally able to have access to your own file kept by a credit reporting agency or to a credit report kept by a credit provider. Under the law, a credit provider must notify you if it has refused to grant you credit on the basis of a credit report obtained from a credit reporting agency.

If you wish to obtain a copy of your credit information file, you should write to the relevant credit reporting agency requesting a copy. Give your full name and current residential address, and any other permitted information which the agency requests for the purposes of identifying you; for example, your previous residential address if you have moved in the past three years, date of birth and drivers licence number. The credit reporting agency must provide a copy of your file within 10 working days of having received your written request.

The two main credit reporting agencies in Australia are Veda Advantage and Dun & Bradstreet:

Contact details for Veda Advantage are:

• Veda Advantage PO Box 964 North Sydney NSW 2059
• Phone:1300 762 207
• Fax: (02) 9951 7880
• URL: http://www.mycreditfile.com.au
• Email:assist.au@vedaadvantage.com

Contact details for Dun & Bradstreet are:

• Mail: Public Access Centre Dun & Bradstreet (Australia) P/L PO Box 7405 St Kilda Road VIC 3004
• Phone: 1300 734 806
• Fax: 03 9828 3118
• Website: https://www.checkyourcredit.com.au/
• Email:PACAustral@dnb.com.au

Credit reports are generally required to be given free of charge.

People living in Tasmania can also contact the Tasmanian Collection Service:

GPO Box 814H Hobart TAS 7001 Phone: 03 6213 5555 Fax: 03 6234 2988 URL: http://www.tascol.com.au/reports.htm Email: enquiries@tascol.com.au

The agency may provide your credit information to a person who has been authorised, in writing, by you to act on your behalf.

You can also write to a credit provider for a copy of the specific credit report that the credit provider used in the assessment of your application for credit. If the credit provider no longer has the report, it will advise you to contact the credit reporting agency that issued the credit report.

Back to Top

Do I have to pay for access to my information?

There is no fee associated with access to a credit report held by a credit provider. Also, you will generally not be charged a fee for access to your file held by a credit reporting agency if access relates to a refusal for credit or is related to the management of your credit arrangements. If a fee has been requested and you have been denied access because you refuse to pay the fee, you may refer the matter to the Privacy Commissioner.

Back to Top

What happens if the information on my file is inaccurate?

The law requires credit reporting agencies and credit providers to make appropriate amendments to ensure that your information is accurate, up to date, complete and not misleading. This requirement has applied from 24 September 1991.

If you believe the information on your file held by a credit reporting agency is inaccurate you can request that it be altered. If the credit reporting agency establishes that an amendment is necessary, it must make the amendment to your file promptly. If the agency does not make the requested changes, you have a right to include a statement, provided by you, on your file. Once the amendment is made, or a statement is added, to your file, the agency will send you a copy of your amended credit information file and advise you that you have the right to nominate other persons who you would like to be informed of the change where those persons had access to your file in the previous three months.

If you request an amendment to a credit report about you held by a credit provider, the credit provider should refer your request to the appropriate credit reporting agency and inform you in writing about this. This is to ensure that if any changes to the report are needed, such changes will be made to the source file from which the credit reports are issued.

Back to Top

What can I do if I think a credit reporting agency has not dealt with my access or amendment request properly?

You are entitled to have your problem handled under the dispute settling procedures set out in the Credit Reporting Code of Conduct issued by the Privacy Commissioner. Under these procedures, the credit reporting agency or credit provider should be the first point of contact for lodging disputes.

If the credit reporting agency or credit provider is unable to resolve the matter, or if you are not satisfied with the action taken, you are able to complain to the Privacy Commissioner who has the power to investigate the matter, and if necessary, to order credit providers or credit reporting agencies to change their procedures, amend information or compensate you financially for loss or damage resulting from a credit reporting infringement.

Please contact us for more information.

Back to Top