A credit report isn’t the only file on your personal habits. You actually have dozens of specialty consumer reports floating out there. In some cases, those specialty reports can prevent you gaining access to the services you need, or they might help you land a new account and get a home. The information contained in specialty consumer reports may even call into question privacy concerns. Some of the more important specialty reports include:
ChexSystems
Banks report to the major credit reporting bureaus, such as Experian and Equifax, but the banks also have their own reporting system called ChexSystems. In general, ChexSystems only reports negative information, and about 80 percent of people in the ChexSystem database have a good history, according to CNN Money. Some common negative events reported by ChexSystems include: overdrawn accounts, bounced checks and the history of extremely risky loans, such as a payday or consumer finance loan.
Rental History
Some landlords report rental histories to tenant screening companies, especially because most landlords cannot report to the major credit reporting companies – Equifax, Experian and TransUnion. However, rental histories are becoming more common on credit histories than in years past. For instance, as of 2012, Experian incorporates rental histories from RentBureau, which has data on over three million accounts, into consumer credit histories.
Medical History
If you apply for any health or disability insurance as an individual, the Medical Information Bureau (yes, it has the scary initials MIB), collects application forms from insurance companies. The MIB only reports information from the past seven years and only reports any major medical conditions you note on a health insurance application, such as depression and asthma.
Until 2007, IntelliScript and MedPoint were secret companies that compiled prescription drug histories on consumers. Like the MIB, IntelliScript and MedPoint reports generally only apply to individual consumers purchasing a private health insurance plan so the insurance can properly assess risk, according to the Privacy Rights Clearinghouse.
LexisNexis Accurint Person Report
Perhaps the most disturbing consumer report is the LexisNexis Accurint Person Report, which compiles general information about you from public and non-public sources. For instance, an Accurint report may contain known aliases, previous addresses, but also highly sensitive stuff, such as people with which you associate.
Getting Free Copies of Consumer Reports
In general, almost all consumer reporting agencies fall under the Fair Credit Reporting Act, which requires that reporting agencies give you a free copy of your history. You can get your ChexSystems report from ConsumerDebit.com or by calling 1-800-428-9623 and your MIB report from MIB.com or by calling 1-866-692-6901. Rental Histories can prove trickier to get than most other consumer reports because there is very few nationwide rental history reporting companies. A good place to start hunting down your rental history is at ChoiceTrust.com. You can only receive a copy of your LexisNexis report by sending in proof of your identity to LexisNexis Risk Solutions FL Inc. Accurint Consumer Inquiry Department, P.O. Box 105610, Atlanta, GA 30348-5610
Sources:
http://money.cnn.com/2012/08/16/pf/bank-account-history/index.html
http://www.lexisnexis.com/privacy/for-consumers/request-personal-information.aspx
https://www.privacyrights.org/fs/fs6b-SpecReports.htm#7
http://press.experian.com/united-states/Press-Release/experian-acquires-rentbureau-multifamily-division.aspx
