Credit report freeze - latest news and developments
From November 1 of 2007, consumers in all 50 states should be able to freeze credit reports at all three major credit agencies to prevent identity theft. By that date, all three major credit bureaus will offer security freeze protection to all consumers living in the 11 states that have not passed laws requiring it and the 5 states that currently limit this protection to identity theft victims only. Currently 39 states and the District of Columbia have enacted laws requiring the credit bureaus to allow consumers to protect their credit files with a security freeze.
The 11 states that have not adopted security freeze laws are Alabama, Alaska, Arizona, Georgia, Idaho, Iowa, Michigan, Missouri, Ohio, South Carolina, and Virginia. For these Experian, Equifax, and TransUnion will provide the freeze at no charge to identity theft victims and charge non-victims $10 to initiate the freeze and $10 to lift it temporarily or remove it altogether.
4 states - Arkansas, Kansas, Mississippi, and South Dakota, have security freeze laws limited to identity theft victims only. Washington state has law that currently limits the freeze right to identity theft victims, but all consumers will become eligible next September. On November 1, all three major credit bureaus made this protection available to all consumers in these states, even if they haven’t had their identities stolen.
Lower fees are mandated by security freeze laws in the District of Columbia, Hawaii, Indiana (no fees allowed), Louisiana, Maryland, Massachusetts, Minnesota, Montana, New Jersey, New Mexico, New York, North Dakota, Tennessee, Vermont, and West Virginia. The states with the most consumer-friendly security freeze laws typically charge $5 or less to initiate the protection.
Consumers Union has urged the three credit bureaus to charge consumers no more than $5 to initiate and temporarily lift the security freeze and no fee to remove the safeguard altogether. The group has called on the credit bureaus to make the security freeze easier to use by enabling consumers to initiate the freeze by regular mail, phone or through a secure electronic method and to lift the freeze within 15 minutes of making a request. A number of states have passed laws requiring that a 15-minute quick thaw be available by September 2008 or soon thereafter.
All three credit bureaus require consumers to initiate the security freeze by making a request by mail. Experian enables consumers to lift the freeze within 15 minutes by making a request online or by phone. Equifax and TransUnion allow consumers to lift the freeze by phone or by mail, but the request can take up to three days before going into effect.
Consumer Union and Fight Identity Theft.
Fri Nov 16, 2007 10:11AM | Copyright: www.bad-credit-advisor.com | More in Credit Repair Tips | Comments (0)
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