US consumer protection wiki extract

A summary of some but not all relevant consumer protection acts in the US (directly from wikipedia) :

• “The Home Mortgage Disclosure Act (HMDA) of 1975, implemented by Regulation C, requires financial institutions to maintain and annually disclose data about home purchases, home purchase pre-approvals, home improvement, and refinance applications involving one- to four-unit and multifamily dwellings. It also requires branches and loan centers to display a HMDA poster.
• The Equal Credit Opportunity Act (ECOA) of 1974, implemented by Regulation B, requires creditors which regularly extend credit to customers, which includes banks, retailers, finance companies, and bankcard companies, to evaluate candidates on creditworthiness alone, rather than other factors such as race, color, religion, national origin, or sex. Discrimination on marital status, welfare recipience, and age is generally prohibited, with exceptions, as is discrimination based on a consumer’s good faith exercise of their credit protection rights.
• The Truth in Lending Act (TILA) of 1968, implemented by Regulation Z, promotes the informed use of consumer credit, by standardizing the disclosure of interest rates and other costs associated with borrowing. TILA also gives consumers the right to cancel certain credit transactions that involve a lien on the consumer’s principal dwelling, regulates certain credit card practices, and provides a means for resolution of credit billing disputes.
• The Fair Credit Reporting Act (FCRA) of 1970 regulates the collection, sharing, and use of customer credit information. The act allows consumers to obtain a copy of their credit report records from credit bureaus that hold information on them, provides for consumers to dispute negative information held, and sets time limits after which negative information is suppressed. It requires that consumers be informed when negative information is added to their credit records, and when adverse action is taken based on a credit report.”

… Regulation Z is getting more air time recently following the financial crisis, with lenders seeking data to help evaluate a customers ability to borrow.

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