What is an adverse action under ECOA?

Asked by: Myrtie Schultz  |  Last update: July 29, 2025
Score: 4.5/5 (60 votes)

Adverse action notices under the ECOA and Regulation B are designed to help consumers and businesses by providing transparency to the credit underwriting process and protecting against potential credit discrimination by requiring creditors to explain the reasons adverse action was taken.

What is an example of an adverse action?

The following are examples of adverse actions employers might take: discharging the worker; demoting the worker; reprimanding the worker; committing harassment; creating a hostile work environment; laying the worker off; failing to hire or promote a worker; blacklisting the worker; transferring the worker to another ...

Which of the following must be included in an ECOA adverse action?

Notifications of adverse action are required to be in writing and must include the following contents: Statement of action taken. Name and address of the creditor. Statement of the provisions of section 701(a) of ECOA.

What is adverse action in fair lending?

Adverse action is defined in the Equal Credit Opportunity Act and the FCRA to include: a denial or revocation of credit. a refusal to grant credit in the amount or terms requested. a negative change in account terms in connection with an unfavorable review of a consumer's account 5 U.S.C.

What is an adverse action notice under the Fair Credit Reporting Act?

FCRA requires notice to any consumer against whom adverse action is taken based on information in their consumer report. This means that if information in the co-applicant's consumer report contributes to the decision to deny the request, then the co-applicant should also receive a notice of adverse action.

ECOA Adverse Action Reasons

19 related questions found

Which of the following is considered an adverse action?

An adverse action is a formal administrative action taken to correct an employee's on-the-job behavior or performance. It imposes one or more penalties: official reprimand, salary reduction, suspension without pay, demotion or dismissal.

How long must an adverse action notice be retained under ECOA?

A bank must preserve any written or recorded information concerning adverse action on an existing account as well as any written statement submitted by the applicant alleging a violation of the ECOA or Regulation B. This evidence must be kept for twenty-five months (twelve months for business credit).

What is adverse action in lending?

An adverse action notice is a document sent to a loan applicant stating a bank or credit union's rationale for denying a loan. It may also contain a counteroffer, such as a lesser amount or a request for an approved co-borrower. The notice usually includes: Adverse action taken. Original amount requested.

What is prohibited under ECOA?

This Act (Title VII of the Consumer Credit Protection Act) prohibits discrimination on the basis of race, color, religion, national origin, sex, marital status, age, receipt of public assistance, or good faith exercise of any rights under the Consumer Credit Protection Act.

What are 2 examples of fair lending violations?

For example, if a lender refuses to make a mortgage loan because of your race or ethnicity, or if a lender charges excessive fees to refinance your current mortgage loan based on your race or ethnicity, the lender is in violation of the federal Fair Housing Act.

What is required for a statement of reasons for adverse action under ECOA?

Consumer adverse action requires: 1) a statement of the action taken in writing, 2) the name and address of the creditor in writing, 3) the ECOA notice (which includes a statement of the provisions of section 701(a) of the Act and the name and address of the institutions Federal regulator) in writing, and 4) either: a ...

Which is not an adverse action?

However, a longer furlough, removal due to a reduction in force (RIF), or demotion due to a RIF is not an “adverse action” and is conducted under the rules set forth in 5 C.F.R. part 351.

What are violations of ECOA?

Signs You Have Been Discriminated Against

You hear the lender make negative comments about race, religion, sex, national origin, the disabled or other protected groups. You are treated differently when you go the office than you were on the phone.

What is required to be in an adverse action?

The regulation requires the statement to be specific and indicate the principal reason(s) for taking adverse action. Creditors should disclose up to four principal reasons; disclosure of more than four reasons is unlikely to be helpful to the applicant.

What is considered an adverse?

If you want to describe a negative reaction to something (such as a harmful side effect from medication) or dangerous meteorological conditions (such as a snowstorm), adverse is the correct choice; you would not say that you had an averse reaction to medication or that there was averse weather.

Can you sue for adverse action?

These protected activities include filing or participtaing in the filing of a complaint of discrimination or harassment, or opposing discriminatory practices. If an employer takes an adverse action against you because of these activities, you may be able to sue.

What is the ECOA rule?

The ECOA and Regulation B allow creditors to establish special-purpose credit programs for applicants who meet certain eligibility requirements. Generally, these programs target an economically disadvantaged class of individuals and are authorized by federal or state law.

What questions should you avoid on the ECOA?

Any questions about your race, ethnicity and gender cannot be used as a reason to approve or deny your credit application. Creditors have to provide equal information to all borrowers throughout the entire transaction.

What can lenders not do according to ECOA?

prohibits creditors from discriminating against credit applicants on the basis of race, color, religion, national origin, sex, marital status, age, because an applicant receives income from a public assistance program, or because an applicant has in good faith exercised any right under the Consumer Credit Protection ...

What are examples of an adverse action?

For example, banks and lenders must provide individuals with an adverse action notice when their credit score is used as the basis for turning down an application for a loan or credit card, or charging more than the best-available interest rate.In relation to background checks, adverse action is part of adjudication, a ...

What is adverse action as defined by FCRA?

Multiple circumstances serve to answer the question, “What is an example of adverse action?” under the FCRA. Generally, an adverse action is a negative employment action taken against you by an employer or potential employer based on information in your credit report.

What is the 30 day ECOA rule?

Approvals & the 30-Day ECOA Rule

A lot of people don't realize it, but Regulation B §1002.9(a)(1) says that once we have enough information to approve a loan, we are required to notify the applicant of that fact within 30 days.

What is the retention period for adverse action?

If within that time period the applicant requests in writing the reasons for adverse action or that records be retained, the creditor shall retain records for 12 months.

What is the statute of limitations for ECOA?

Ordinarily, a civil action for compensatory damages under ECOA must be filed no later than two years from the date of occurrence of the violation.

Does adverse action apply to deposit accounts?

The FCRA therefore applies to adverse action decisions related to credit, but also decisions regarding, for example, a deposit account, insurance product, or employment.