TransUnion to Pay $15 Million Fine Over Renter Screening (1)

TransUnion will pay $15 million to settle US regulators’ allegations that the credit-reporting company violated the law by failing to ensure the accuracy of information included in its tenant background-screening reports.

TransUnion included “inaccurate and incomplete eviction records about consumers, hampering their ability to obtain housing,” the Federal Trade Commission and the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau claimed in federal court. The company allegedly included the information in consumers’ tenant screening reports, making it appear that a person’s eviction history was “more voluminous” than was actually the case, the agencies said.

Rohit Chopra, director of the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau

Photographer: Ting Shen/Bloomberg

“Consumers struggling to find housing shouldn’t be shut out ...