THE RIGHT TO FINANCIAL PRIVACY ACT

Question 1

Which of the following do not fall under the requirements of the Right to Financial Privacy Act?
A. Suspicious Activity Reports
B.Subpoenas
C. NCUA or state regulator examination requests
D.IRS information reporting
E. Filing liens in connection with a loan

Answer 1

Not affected by the Right to Financial Privacy Act requirements are: A. Suspicious Activity Reports, C. NCUA or state regulator examination requests, D.
IRS information reporting, and E. Filing liens in connection with a loan.

Question 2

After a government agency has presented your credit union with one of the valid forms to request member information and has followed all the Right to Financial Privacy Act requirements for that particular request, what final piece of information must the credit union receive before releasing the requested information?

Answer 2

Certificate of Compliance.

Question 3

If there are any doubts about releasing member information to federal agents, what is the credit union’s best course of action?

Answer 3

If there are any doubts about turning over member information, a credit union should check with legal counsel.

Question 4

List the information that must be included in a member’s written authorization before a credit union can safely turn over information to federal authorities based on that authorization.

Answer 4

This authorization must be in the form of a signed statement which: 1) authorizes the credit union to disclose the information for a period which
does not exceed three months; 2) states that the member may revoke the authorization at any time prior to the credit union’s disclosure of the information; 3) identifies the records authorized to be disclosed; 4) specifies the purpose for
which the records may be disclosed along with the agency to which they may be disclosed; 4) states the member’s rights under the RTFPA.

Question 5

What records are credit unions required to turn over when presented with a validly executed search warrant?

Answer 5

Only the information described in the search warrant

Question 6

Can a credit union charge a requesting federal agency a fee for preparing and releasing information requested?

Answer 6

Yes, the Act allows credit unions to recover what it calls “reasonable costs” for expenses incurred in preparing the records through Regulation S. These costs can include: 1) costs for searching for the information; 2) copying records; 3) personnel time spent searching for the information; and 4) mailing costs.

Question 7

What is the statute of limitations on a consumer’s right to bring a suit against a credit union for violation of the consumer’s rights under the RTFPA and how does this affect the record retention requirements?

Answer 7

A credit union member who believes his rights were violated under the RTFPA has three years to bring a lawsuit to enforce those rights. According to the
statute, that three year period begins either from the date on which the violation occurs or the date the member discovers the violation, whichever is later.
Because of this, it is recommended that credit unions retain records of requests for information forever.