How to lock your credit report

There are currently eleven states in the United States that allow you to lock your credit report even if you have not been a victim of identity theft.. These states are California, Colorado, Connecticut, Florida, Kentucky, Louisiana, Maine, Minnesota, Nevada, New Jersey,  and North Carolina.  In addition, the states of Texas, Vermont, Illinois, and Washington allow victims of identity theft to lock their credit reports.

In order for you to lock your credit report you first will need to contact the three major credit reporting agencies. When you contact them initially you should request from them information about what procedure they find acceptable, though the process is fairly standard for each of them.  You will also want to find out if they charge a fee to lock your credit report.

As a rule, if you have been the victim of identity theft, you are allowed to lock your credit report without paying a fee. For those who are trying to protect themselves from identity theft, there may be a small fee which is typically less than $20.00

Information

Each credit reporting agency will require that you make your request to lock your credit report in writing. You should include the following minimum information when writing to a credit reporting agency to lock your credit report:

• Supply your name including your first name, last name (maiden name if applicable), and any middle initials. Be sure to include any additions to your name including Jr., Sr., etc.
• Include your current home address.  The major credit reporting agencies will also require that you include a listing of your last five (5) years residential addresses as a way of validating your request.  Experian also requests that you include proof of your current address such as your drivers license, utility bill, bank statement or other form of validation.
• Your social security number must be included in your request along with your date of birth.  These will all be used by the credit reporting agency to validate your request that your credit report be locked.
• If you have been the victim of identity theft you should include a police report, or a copy of the complaint that you filed.
• A check, money order or credit card information to pay the fee (where applicable).

This information should be sent to the major credit reporting bureaus via certified mail (since it does contain personal information).  The names and addresses of the three major credit agencies are:

Equifax
P.O. Box 740256
Atlanta, Georgia 30374

Experian
P.O. Box 9554
Allen, Texas 75013

TransUnion
P.O. Box 6790
Fullerton, CA 92834

If you are concerned about identity theft, or you have been the victim of identity theft, you may want to know how to lock your credit report. If you live in one of the states that allows a consumer to lock their credit report, this is a good method of protecting yourself from identity theft.