I know I have read it on the board but I am so crazy now that I can't find it. We must have some rights and I need to know that they are. This concerns the MBNA account opened in my husband's name. The account is not his but MBNA would never send affadavit of fraud for him to sign. I did every thing I was supposed to do but the police wouldn't even fill out a report because MBNA would never send anything about this account. Now it is turned over to collection agency. I don't know how much more I can take. Thanks
What have you done so far? I believe that any time you feel you are the victim of Identity theft, you should file a police report as one of the first steps. I believe that your local police, under the "Identity Theft and Assumption Deterrence Act of 1998" have to take the report. It is possible that your local police do not know the law. You may want to contact the higher ups in the police department or contact the FTC.
Sue59, The police cannot refuse to take a report if someone is reporting a crime. This really sounds as if you or your husband have some idea who opened the account and don't want to turn them in. I'd advise you cooperate with both MBNA and the police.
We have no idea who opened the account! I have called FTC and AG. All I can find out is that the credit card companies should check everything on application against the credit report, but they are not doing it. All they had to do was called the number on CR before mailing a card to an incorrect address. If we knew who did this, we would have turned them in before now. I have no idea, don't even know where charges were made. I guess I am the only person that isn't smart enough to figure this out. Thanks anyway for the support.
Sue59, The police cannot refuse to accept a report when someone is reporting a crime. Also, have you filed a complaint with the Postal Service? Postal Inspectors will take a complaint about mail fraud. Neither the police nor, the postal service need MBNA's cooperation in order for you to file a report. Try the police again and if they won't take the report, come back with a lawyer.
Sue 59 Here are some steps you can take to deal with a case of identity theft related to a credit card. Have you done any of these? One: Get a notebook and make a log of all communications related to this mater. Two: Contact the fraud department of the three major credit bureaus and report the card as fraudulent. Have a fraud alert placed on all of your credit files and ask for a free credit report. Then follow up with a certified return recite addressed letter stating the same thing to all three bureaus. CREDIT BUREAU ADDRESSES FOR REPORTING IDENTITY THEFT OR FRAUD Equifax To report fraud, call: 800-525-6285 and write: Equifax Credit Information Services, Inc. PO Box 740241 Atlanta, GA 30374-0241 TransUnion To report fraud, call: 800-680-7289 and write: Fraud Victim Assistance Department PO Box 6790 Fullerton, CA 92834-6790 Experian To report fraud, call: 888-397-3742 write: PO Box 9556 Allen, TX 75013-9556 Three: Call the credit card company and ask for the security or fraud department and report the card as not yours due to identity theft and ask them to close it immediately. Four: File a report with the local police and get a copy of the report. You want to file a police report with your local police so you have proof their was a identity theft problem. Five: Consider filing a victim statement with each credit bureau. You can file a victims statement that will stay on your report for seven years asking people to call you before granting credit. You need to do this in writing. Say "Someone has been fraudulently applying for credit in my name. Do not authorize new credit without talking to me in person." Six: Fill out a ID theft affidavit. For this step you will need the police report. A new standardized form was made available by the FTC in February 2002. The purpose of this form is to not become legally responsible for debts that were incurred from identity theft where a new account was established in your name. This is a new form and not all institutions will accept it, so call the credit card company first and ask if they will accept it before you fill it out. You can download the form from the following link. You will need to have the form notarized. You bank or credit union should be able to notarize the form for free. Then send a copy of the form, not the original, to the credit card company. Send the forms certified mail/return receipt requested. Keep the original in a file folder and hang on to them permanently. When you get your green cards back, staple it to the originals. http://www.consumer.gov/idtheft Seven: File a complain with the Federal Triad Commission. You can file a complain with the FTC. FTC identity theft hot line: 1-877-438-4338 https://rn.ftc.gov/dod/widtpubl$.startup?Z_ORG_CODE=PU03 OR http://www.consumer.gov/idtheft Eight: File a complaint with the United States Postal Inspection Service Mail fraud may have occurred if your mail was stolen, someone filed a change of address for on you, an application for a credit card was fraudulently filled out and mailed in, or a fraudulent application for checks was mailed in. http://www.usps.gov/websites/depart/inspect Use the following link below to find a local field office http://www.usps.com/ncsc/locators/find-is.html Please follow these steps and if you can't get the police report I am sure we can come up with some ideas as to who to call. Good luck.
I know I have read it on the board but I am so crazy now that I can't find it. We must have some rights and I need to know that they are. This concerns the MBNA account opened in my husband's name. The account is not his but MBNA would never send affadavit of fraud for him to sign. I did every thing I was supposed to do but the police wouldn't even fill out a report because MBNA would never send anything about this account. Now it is turned over to collection agency. I don't know how much more I can take. Thanks Sue59 ===================== Typical proper treatment of the consumer
