Pre-Approved Credit Card Offers

Many credit card issuers send out direct mail solicitations to encourage the public to obtain one of their credit cards. Often, the mail pieces present the idea that the consumer is, "pre-approved," to receive a credit card.

Some people do not wish to receive pre-approved credit card offers. They may object to direct mail, or lack interest in obtaining more cards (or any cards at all), or may have privacy or security concerns. If this includes you, then you can call the following number to request that the credit bureaus not include your file in any pre-approved/promotional sweeps:

You will be required to give the automated system some identifying information. A two-year block can be requested over the phone, or you can obtain instructions for a permanent block. You can reverse this at any time.

To be thorough, you can also contact each credit bureau directly at addresses and telephone numbers specifically set up for opting out of pre-approval screening:

The bureaus supposedly share opt-out requests, so theoretically you only have to contact one. But we tend to be very careful and thorough, so if we were inclined to opt-out, we would send written requests to all of them.

Financial Privacy Menu