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The Credit Freeze Law

A new law effective in July 2007 gives New Mexicans a new tool to fight identity theft. The Credit Report Security Act gives New Mexico citizens the ability to put a “freeze” on their credit report and gives consumers control over who has access to their credit report. The Act allows consumers to contact any or all credit reporting bureaus and place a freeze on their report, which will preclude identity thieves from establishing credit in the consumer’s name.

Once a credit report is frozen, the consumer may temporarily lift the freeze or permanently lift the freeze. A consumer who is considering major purchases such as a home or automobile would need to make certain their credit report was accessible to specific lenders authorized by the consumer.

To place a freeze on your credit report, contact each credit reporting agency through regular or certified mail. We recommend certified mail.

In your request letter include:

• Full name
• Address (previous addresses for the past 2 years)
• Social security number
• Date of birth
• COPY of a government issued identification card
• COPY of proof of current residence (this could be a utility bill, bank or insurance statement that displays your name, current mailing address and the date of issue. Experian does not accept credit card statements, voided checks, lease agreements, magazine subscriptions or postal service forwarding orders as proof.)

A fee is required by each credit reporting agency: Experian—$10.60, Equifax—$10, TransUnion—$10. The fee is waived for victims of identity theft (include a COPY of the police report) and individuals 65 and older.

Each credit reporting agency will provide you with a unique identifier that should be kept in a secure location because the identifier will be needed to lift the freeze from your credit report.   Information about the procedures for lifting the freeze should be included with your unique identifier provided by each agency. Married couples with separate credit histories need to contact the credit reporting bureaus separately to have their individual credit reports frozen.