12Serious credit infringements

12  Serious credit infringements

 (1) This section is made for the purposes of subsection 6N(l) and section 21D of the Act.

Note 1: A credit provider’s opinion that an individual has committed a serious credit infringement is credit information and may be collected, disclosed and used subject to the restrictions in the Act.

Note 2: A serious credit infringement is defined in the Act as:

1.      an act done by an individual that involves fraudulently obtaining consumer credit, or attempting fraudulently to obtain consumer credit; or
2.      an act done by an individual that involves fraudulently evading the individual’s obligations in relation to consumer credit, or attempting fraudulently to evade those obligations; or
3.      an act done by an individual if:
4.          a reasonable person would consider that the act indicates an intention, on the part of the individual, to no longer comply with the individual’s obligations in relation to consumer credit provided by a credit provider; and
5.        the provider has, after taking such steps as are reasonable in the circumstances, been unable to contact the individual about the act; and
6.      at least 6 months have passed since the provider last had contact with the individual.

Disclosure of serious credit infringements: fraudulently obtaining credit

 (2) Where a credit provider discloses to a credit reporting body that, in the provider’s opinion, an individual has committed a serious credit infringement as described in paragraph (a) of the definition of that term in the Act, the provider must be able to reasonably establish that:

 (a) when obtaining or attempting to obtain consumer credit, the individual made, or arranged for someone else to make, a material false statement to the credit provider or knowingly allowed the provider to rely upon a material false statement or premise; and

 (b) the individual did this knowing that the statement or premise was untrue and, with intent to deceive the credit provider, aware that the false statement or premise was likely to materially affect the provider’s decision about whether or not to provide credit to the individual.

Disclosure of serious credit infringements: fraudulently evading obligations under credit

 (3) Where a credit provider discloses to a credit reporting body that, in the provider’s opinion, an individual has committed a serious credit infringement as described in paragraph (b) of the definition of that term in the Act, the provider must be able to reasonably establish that:

 (a) the individual made, or arranged for someone else to make, a material false statement to the credit provider or knowingly allowed the provider to rely upon a material false statement or premise; and