FCBA Guarantees

• The FCBA was passed in 1974 as an addition to the federal Truth in Lending Act. Before these laws, consumers could easily be taken advantage of by creditors who were unscrupulous, defensive or simply sloppy about correcting mistakes. Now you are guaranteed the right to challenge any billing error, and to withhold payment for any defective product or service that costs more than $50 and was sold within 100 miles of your home. Additionally, creditors are prohibited from putting you into collection or threatening your credit rating during a dispute.
  
  

Required Procedures

• To ensure that you are fully protected under the law, it is critical to follow FTC procedures. First, you are required to notify the creditor in writing of exactly what you are challenging and why you believe it is an error. This notification, including your name, address, account number and the amount of the alleged mistake, must be sent to the creditor's address for billing inquiries no later than 60 days after the bill was mailed to you. You should receive an acknowledgement within 30 days.
  
  

Penalties

• The FTC enforces certain timetables and investigation rules. After receiving your complaint, the creditor has two billing cycles, or a maximum of 90 days, to conduct an investigation and resolve the dispute. If an error is found, he must credit your account and delete all related charges and fees. If the bill is correct, he must give you a written explanation. The penalty for a creditor who violates these rules is that he is banned from collecting the disputed amount and up to $50 of related charges. If you sue under the FCBA, you may win damages plus double the amount of any finance charges between $100 and $1,000.
  
  

FTC Actions

• As with all the consumer protection laws it enforces, the FTC may act on complaints it receives in different ways. In its administrative role, the agency can begin proceedings to track and oversee the resolution of a particular matter. It also has the power to initiate a lawsuit in federal court. When FTC officials enter a complaint into their proprietary database, the Consumer Sentinel Network, the information is shared with hundreds of investigators in the U.S. and abroad.