Float Finance is a series of accessible articles, tools, and resources designed to empower early career employees and students to navigate their financial journey.
What are Banking History Reports
The process we discussed about opening a checking or savings account assumes that the person applying for the account is approved for the account.
However, not everyone is approved.
Some consumer reporting companies keep track of negative information relating to how consumers use their deposit accounts. Examples include ChexSystems and Early Warning. These companies prepare reports often referred to as banking history reports. Financial institutions may use these reports to determine if they will allow someone to open an account.
Banking history reports include information on:
Unpaid negative balances on accounts. This could have happened because of checks written for more money than was in the account (sometimes called writing bad checks or bouncing a check). It could also have happened if the account owner didn’t close the account after they stopped using it, and fees continue to be charged.
Suspected fraud related to accounts.
Certain accounts closed by a financial institutions, such as if the account owner mismanaged it.
You have the right to one free report from each nationwide consumer reporting company every 12 months. You can also request a free report if your application for an account is turned down because of information in one of these reports. If a financial institution based its decision not to open an account for you on information in a consumer report, they will tell you how to request a copy of the report they used.
You have the right to file a dispute to correct errors.
Unlike credit reports, Banking History Reports generally only contain negative information. If you have no negative information you may not have a report!
