Consumer Law In the News

SC Senator Takes on ID Theft Legislation After Wife is Victimized

It’s too bad it takes a personal impact like Lisa Cleary’s to generate interest in revisiting ID theft laws. But then again, Lisa’s husband, Senator Ray Cleary, from Murrells Inlet, isn’t your ordinary theft-victim’s husband, and he wasn’t about to sit back and let the opportunity pass to prevent others from experiencing the excruciating losses - over $58,000 - his wife endured at the hands of an employee who allegedly used her boss’s identity to obtain credit and her checking account to pay for it.

As The Sun News article, found here, recounts:

In the meantime, she could be unable to get credit if she needs it. Cleary said her husband’s position as a shareholder in a bank makes that a small concern for her. But she worries how a similar situation would affect single mothers and young people who are just barely getting by.

And the credit agencies don’t make it easy to fix the problem once it is discovered, Cleary said. At first she was locked out of the agencies because her address had been changed and the one she was giving was no longer accepted by them.

Senator Cleary is now working to refine recent legislation to require instant access to credit reporting agency information (they now require subpoenas) and make other changes to help victims resolve their issues more quickly.

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