Nationwide Credit Freezes

[Dubh Aingeal]

In a little-noticed press release issued Tuesday, credit reporting bureau TransUnion said it would begin offering credit freezes to all Americans, a change the belies the credit industry's oft-uttered claim that doing so would be too expensive and burdensome. The program takes effect Oct. 15, 2007, will cost $10 each to place and to remove, and request and must be filed by certified mail. As The Washington Post reports, the move comes as some 39 states and the District of Columbia have passed laws entitling their residents to credit freeze rights. The new right may have little benefit unless the other two major credit reporting bureaus follow suit, and both companies are staying mum about any plans to do so.

[Fierce Critter]

what exactly does a credit freeze do?

[know_buddy_kares]

what I'm thinking and hoping is that lets say you have some dept that you bit off more than you could chew, or had bad luck and can't make payments, instead of having no choice but to become a sitting duck and let the interest murder you over time, you can freeze it until you get a fighting chance to pay off the dept. I belive that's what it is, and i bloody hope that's what it is... yet i could be wrong...

[Gaf The Horse With Tears]

um, no.

It means noone is allowed to look at your credit report.

[sass_in_the_pants]

It's another measure to protect against fraud and identity theft.

Since no one would be allowed to look at your credit report, new credit cards, loans, etc. could not be opened in your name until the freeze was lifted.

[Kit Kat P]

The most widely used tool against fraud continues to be the fraud alert, which advises lenders to take special precautions prior to extending credit. A fraud alert can be conveniently placed or renewed by a consumer at all three nationwide credit reporting companies by placing a single phone call. A file freeze restricts lenders from accessing a consumer's credit, preventing, among other things, the opening of new accounts.