Privacy Issues

Privacy concerns are at least as prevalent in other countries as they are in the U.S. For many years credit grantors and credit reporting agencies in the United Kingdom have used the electoral roll to verify the addresses of credit applicants. Now, the Data Protection Registrar (DPR) has proposed to allow voters to opt out of having their addresses made available to the consumer credit industry. Local authorities would maintain full and “cleansed” rolls, with the latter not being available to the credit industry. The two major credit reporting firms (Equifax and Experian) in the U.K. have pointed out that the restriction would increase bad debts and fraud. Further, it would adversely affect economically disadvantaged consumers who do not have driving licenses or passports and, therefore, no alternative source to verify their addresses. The DPR has responded to these concerns by offering to send a notice to consumers that opting out of the file may reduce their ability to obtain credit.