Does your mail box fill up with offers from credit card companies? Sometimes they will mail you checks and pre-approved credit cards. It is annoying, and its also a waste of time to go through them. You must also shred them to be sure no one steals your identity.
Those of you with an ecology or stewardship mindset would no doubt consider it a tremendous waste of our natural resources to make the paper, as well as a waste of energy to print and ship the offers. And 99% of the offers end up in the trash–the right place for them anyway.
Stopping those annoying credit card offers also helps remove the temptation to accept them. Today I went to the Federal Trade Commission website to see their most current instructions, and I cut and pasted the following for you to easily start the process:
- To opt out for five years: Call toll-free 1-888-5-OPT-OUT (1-888-567-8688) or visit OptOutPrescreen.com. The phone number and website are operated by the major consumer reporting companies.
- To opt out permanently: You may begin the permanent Opt-Out process online at OptOutPrescreen.com. To complete your request, you must return the signed Permanent Opt-Out Election form, which will be provided after you initiate your online request.
When you call or visit the website, you’ll be asked to provide certain personal information, including your home telephone number, name, Social Security number, and date of birth. The information you provide is confidential and will be used only to process your request to opt out.
