Jun. 29, 2017
HARRISBURG – In a win for identity theft victims of the Commonwealth, today the House voted in favor of a bill sponsored by Rep. Steve Barrar (R-Chester/Delaware) to eliminate the automatic expiration of security freezes on consumer credit reports.
“With millions of Americans becoming victims of identity theft and even more not monitoring their credits reports, criminals have a strong foothold to take advantage of our friends and families – even ourselves,” Barrar said. “My bill would give victims a tool to use in the attack waged against them.”
When a consumer freezes his or her credit report, it becomes more difficult for a criminal to commit identity theft and open accounts on behalf of the consumer. Without being able to view the consumer’s credit report, most creditors will not approve a new account or extend the credit.
House Bill 1094 would allow a consumer’s credit report to be frozen indefinitely, only to have the freeze removed at the consumer’s request. Currently, security freezes expire automatically after seven years.
A fee to place the freeze may be charged except when there is a police report alleging identity fraud or if the person is under 16 years old and in foster care.
Credit freezes do not prevent consumers from getting their free annual credit report from each of the three nationwide credit reporting companies: Equifax, Experian and Transunion. The reports can be monitored for inaccurate information, which can be an indication of identity theft.
The bill now advances to the Senate for consideration.
Representative Stephen E. Barrar
160th District
Pennsylvania House of Representatives
Media Contact: Alison Evans
717.260.6206
aevans@pahousegop.com
SteveBarrar.com /
Facebook.com/RepBarrar