Consumer lawsuits filed under the federal Fair Credit Reporting Act (FCRA) increased by nearly 60 percent in September 2017 over the previous month, an increase that “keeps it in line with the aggressive growth in recent years,” according to litigation statistics reported by WebRecon LLC.

WebRecon reports that FCRA filings increased 58.4 percent from 351 in August 2017 to 556 in September 2017. The 3,328 year-to-date filings under the FCRA from January 2017 to September 2017 are a 13.5 percent increase from the 2,932 FCRA filings from January 2016 to September 2016.

The 556 FCRA filings for the most recent month from September 1, 2017, to September 30, 2017 were 95.1 percent higher – nearly double the amount – from the 285 FCRA filings from September 1, 2016, to September 30, 2016. WebRecon reports the following month-by-month FCRA litigation filings so far in 2017:

• January 2017 – 418 filings
• February 2017 – 256 filings
• March 2017 – 406 filings
• April 2017 – 266 filings
• May 2017 – 378 filings
• June 2017 – 386 filings
• July 2017 – 302 filings
• August 2017 – 351 filings
• September 2017 – 556 filings

Enacted in 1970, the FCRA is federal legislation that promotes the accuracy, fairness, and privacy of consumer information in the files of consumer reporting agencies (CRAs) and protects consumers from the willful and/or negligent inclusion of inaccurate information in their background check reports.

SafestHires has reported on FCRA lawsuits, including this article called Beware of Background Check Bandits.