Commonwealth Consolidated Acts

PRIVACY ACT 1988 - SECT 20C

Prohibition on collection

  (1)   A credit reporting body must not collect credit information about an individual.

Civil penalty:   2,000 penalty units.

Exceptions

  (2)   Subsection   (1) does not apply if the collection of the credit information is required or authorised by or under an Australian law or a court/tribunal order.

  (3)   Subsection   (1) does not apply if:

  (a)   the credit reporting body collects the credit information about the individual from a credit provider who is permitted under section   21D to disclose the information to the body; and

  (b)   the body collects the information in the course of carrying on a credit reporting business; and

  (c)   if the information is identification information about the individual--the body also collects from the provider, or already holds, credit information of another kind about the individual.

  (4)   Subsection   (1) does not apply if:

  (a)   the credit reporting body:

  (i)   collects the credit information about the individual from an entity (other than a credit provider) in the course of carrying on a credit reporting business; and

  (ii)   knows, or believes on reasonable grounds, that the individual is at least 18 years old; and

  (b)   the information does not relate to an act, omission, matter or thing that occurred or existed before the individual turned 18; and

  (c)   if the information relates to consumer credit or commercial credit--the credit is or has been provided, or applied for, in Australia; and

  (d)   if the information is identification information about the individual--the body also collects from the entity, or already holds, credit information of another kind about the individual; and

  (e)   if the information is repayment history information or financial hardship information about the individual--the body collects the information from another credit reporting body that has an Australian link.

  (5)   Paragraph   (4)(b) does not apply to identification information about the individual.

  (6)   Despite paragraph   (4)(b), consumer credit liability information about the individual may relate to consumer credit that was entered into on a day before the individual turned 18, so long as the consumer credit was not terminated, or did not otherwise cease to be in force, on a day before the individual turned 18.

Means of collection

  (7)   A credit reporting body must collect credit information only by lawful and fair means.

Solicited credit information

  (8)   This section applies to the collection of credit information that is solicited by a credit reporting body.