 TITLE: Can Businesses Run My Credit Without My Permission? CONTENT: When Businesses Can Check Your Credit Without Permission\n--------------------------------------------------------\nThe Fair Credit Reporting Act (FCRA) is a federal law that governs what's allowed in your credit report and who can request a copy of your credit report. To get a copy of your credit report, a business needs to have a \"permissible purpose\" as defined by the FCRA.\nIf you apply for a loan, credit card or insurance, you may have to give the company permission to check your credit report as part of submitting the application. Some employers may also ask you for permission to check your credit as part of the interview process.\nThe FCRA gives some people and organizations the right to check your credit without your permission in certain circumstances:\n*   When responding to a court order or federal grand jury subpoena.\n*   To review an account you already opened with the business (although you may have given the business this permission when you first applied).\n*   If you applied for a license or other government benefit and there's a law that requires the organization to consider your financial responsibility or status.\n*   When an agency needs to use your credit report to determine or modify a child support award.\n*   When sending prescreened firm offers of credit for a new credit account or insurance policy.\nThe person or organization requesting your credit report has to tell the credit bureau what permissible purpose allows them to request your credit report. And they can only use your credit report for that purpose. END