National Consumer Assistance Plan

The National Consumer Assistance Plan is a broad overhaul of the credit reporting system by the three major credit bureaus, Experian, Equifax and TransUnion. It is the result of a 2015 settlement between the companies and a group of state attorneys general. Under it, credit bureaus no longer accept records that lack either a birthdate or Social Security number, eliminating many public records previously included on credit reports. The reforms also erased medical debts, traffic tickets and fines not covered by a contract or agreement with the consumer; made dispute handling more responsive and required more information about debts in collection.