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#1986006 - 01/02/15 03:58 PM Reporting Credit on Joint Applicants
n2compliance Offline
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n2compliance
Joined: May 2011
Posts: 102
I recently had my car refinanced at a credit union. I had my son apply as a joint applicant so he can establish his credit. The credit union told me that they only report credit history on the first applicant, not the joint applicant. ARe they allowed to do that? Why would they not report it on both?

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General Discussion
#1986018 - 01/02/15 04:34 PM Re: Reporting Credit on Joint Applicants n2compliance
Rocky P Offline
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Joined: Jun 2003
Posts: 7,650
Florida
See the commentary to 1002.10. It appears that they can, but elected not to. Reporting is mandatory for spousal joint applicants.

Official Interpretations of this section.

Section 1002.10—Furnishing of Credit Information

1. Scope. The requirements of §1002.10 for designating and reporting credit information apply only to consumer credit transactions. Moreover, they apply only to creditors that opt to furnish credit information to credit bureaus or to other creditors; there is no requirement that a creditor furnish credit information on its accounts.

2. Reporting on all accounts. The requirements of §1002.10 apply only to accounts held or used by spouses. However, a creditor has the option to designate all joint accounts (or all accounts with an authorized user) to reflect the participation of both parties, whether or not the accounts are held by persons married to each other.

3. Designating accounts. In designating accounts and reporting credit information, a creditor need not distinguish between accounts on which the spouse is an authorized user and accounts on which the spouse is a contractually liable party.

4. File and index systems. The regulation does not require the creation or maintenance of separate files in the name of each participant on a joint or user account, or require any other particular system of recordkeeping or indexing. It requires only that a creditor be able to report information in the name of each spouse on accounts covered by §1002.10. Thus, if a creditor receives a credit inquiry about the wife, it should be able to locate her credit file without asking the husband's name.
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#1986020 - 01/02/15 04:38 PM Re: Reporting Credit on Joint Applicants n2compliance
John Burnett Offline
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John Burnett
Joined: Oct 2000
Posts: 40,086
Cape Cod
The Fair Credit Reporting Act doesn't mandate that the information reported to the credit reporting agency reflects the names of both obligors, and Regulation B only requires that both obligors' involvement be reported if they are spouses. Some states have requirements that credit be reported in both names; it's possible that your state doesn't.
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#1986032 - 01/02/15 04:58 PM Re: Reporting Credit on Joint Applicants n2compliance
n2compliance Offline
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n2compliance
Joined: May 2011
Posts: 102
Thank you

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#1986179 - 01/03/15 01:42 PM Re: Reporting Credit on Joint Applicants n2compliance
rlcarey Offline
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rlcarey
Joined: Jul 2001
Posts: 83,219
Galveston, TX
Also, how old is your son???
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#1986371 - 01/05/15 08:40 PM Re: Reporting Credit on Joint Applicants n2compliance
John Burnett Offline
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John Burnett
Joined: Oct 2000
Posts: 40,086
Cape Cod
^^^. Good question from Randy. If your son is a minor, it's likely that state law won't make his signature on the loan agreement legally binding on him, and the credit union would be making a mistake to provide credit history on him, whether it's good, bad or indifferent.
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John S. Burnett
BankersOnline.com
Fighting for Compliance since 1976
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