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Consumer News Friday 5th October 2007
Credit Freeze now allowed by the Big Three credit bureausExperian and Equifax stated this Thursday that they will allow consumers in all 50 states to request a credit freeze on their details. This action disallows the bureau from disclosing an individual’s credit history and is seen as a measure to protect against identity theft. This move comes after TransUnion made an identical announcement last month, and means that now all of the so called Big Three offer this facility.Identity theft is usually closely linked to credit card theft and misuse, but a growing trend of criminals using stolen social security numbers and opening fraudulent accounts has emerged. In many cases these accounts are then used to accumulate huge debts. Consumers wary of identity theft can freeze their credit histories to prevent such occurrences. This works because any new accounts opened by fraudsters will invariably involve a credit check. When a credit check is blocked, the creditor will refuse to open a new account. Credit freezing in has been available, at least in part in 39 states for some time as laws in these states require credit bureaus to offer this facility to consumers. In some states however this was limited to victims of identity theft. Consumers will have the option to freeze, temporarily unfreeze and permanently unfreeze their credit histories. Each instruction will incur a cost however and this has been preliminarily set by Experian at $10 per instruction. Consumers Union which has been lobbying for unified legislation has applauded the move but believes the associated fees should be much lower. They propose $5 to freeze or unfreeze details temporarily and that permanently unfreezing your history should be free. Other Consumer Recent News and ArticlesHow Long Until A Repossession Is Removed From Your Credit Report » Create An Action Plan To Deal With Your Poor Credit Score » |
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