Escaping Battered Credit: A Proposal for Repairing Credit Reports Damaged by Domestic Violence

59 Pages Posted: 1 Apr 2012 Last revised: 2 Jun 2012

Date Written: March 30, 2012

Abstract

Debt and domestic violence are connected in ways not previously imagined. A new type of debt – which I have labeled “coerced debt” – is emerging from abusive relationships. Coerced debt occurs when the abuser in a violent relationship obtains credit in the victim’s name via fraud or coercion. It ranges from secretly taking out credit cards in victims’ names to coercing victims into signing loan documents to tricking victims into relinquishing their rights to the family home. As wide-ranging as these tactics can be, one consequence consistently emerges: ruined credit ratings.

Coerced debt wreaks havoc on credit scores, which is particularly problematic because the use of credit reports is no longer confined to traditional lenders. Employers, landlords, and utility companies all make extensive use of credit scores in screening. Thus, a credit score that has been damaged by coerced debt can make it prohibitively difficult for victims to obtain employment, housing, or basic utilities, all of which are requirements for establishing an independent household.

In this Article, I propose amending the Fair Credit Reporting Act to enable victims of coerced debt to repair their credit reports. My proposal would enable family courts to rule on whether alleged coerced debt is, in fact, coerced. The victim could then submit the court’s certification to the credit reporting agencies, which would block the coerced debt from her credit report to the extent that the block did not unduly harm her creditors. My proposal would build a bridge between the decision-makers already making determinations about issues related to coerced debt and the credit reports victims need reformed in order to move beyond the abuse.

Keywords: credit reporting, domestic violence, consumer credit

Suggested Citation

Littwin, Angela K., Escaping Battered Credit: A Proposal for Repairing Credit Reports Damaged by Domestic Violence (March 30, 2012). University of Pennsylvania Law Review, Forthcoming, Available at SSRN: https://ssrn.com/abstract=2031743

Angela K. Littwin (Contact Author)

University of Texas School of Law ( email )

727 East Dean Keeton Street
Austin, TX 78705
United States

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