Many users receive many pre-approved credit card offers, which they are usually not interested in. For this reason, it is worth knowing how to opt out of prescreened credit card offers and thus avoid receiving them either temporarily or permanently.
There are ways for us to either take a five-year break from these offers or opt-out permanently. With either option, the credit bureaus will not include us on the prescreened consumers they send to creditors.
With an opt-out, we may stop receiving many calls, emails, and letters. However, we may miss out on some offers that would otherwise be unavailable, so we must be sure we want to opt out of receiving these offers.
What is a pre-approved credit offer?
As stated in the Fair Credit Reporting Act, credit reporting agencies may include our name on lists used by creditors or insurers. It is to make firm offers of credit, credit cards, or insurance.
Normally the agencies review the databases and create pre-selected lists based on different specifications to reach a specific audience. At this point, the companies or banks will send pre-approved offers to those who pass the screening process.
This screening process will help companies not to send offers to consumers who do not need them or do not qualify for them. They also aim to ensure that we do not receive irrelevant offers.
On the other hand, if we get these types of offers when we apply, they will most likely be approved. It is unless, of course, the credit or financial situation has worsened since the selection process was made.
Why else opt-out?
Opting out of prescreened credit and insurance offers can help us avoid identity theft because it reduces the sharing of our information. When we do so, lenders and insurance companies are prohibited from making unsolicited offers to us.
However, we will still be able to receive offers from companies or banks with which we already have accounts. In addition, we will not have our spam folder full, and if we want to opt out of any credit card offers, we will be able to find multiple offers from different institutions.
How to opt-out of receiving firm credit offers?
As consumers, we have the right to opt-out of pre-approved credit offers. To opt out of these offers, we may call 888-5-OPTOUT or submit an online request directly from the Opt Out Prescreen page. For the application to be processed correctly, we must share our name, Social Security number, and date of birth.
By these two means, we can opt out of receiving these offers for five years. However, if a permanent opt-out is desired, we will have to send a form by email that we can use to request to be permanently unsubscribed from the notifications.
For the request to be effective, it will be enough to send it only once, although we must consider that we will no longer receive the available offers. It could mean that we will not have access to them, and therefore we will have problems with them.
How do I opt-out of receiving other direct marketing offers?
When we opt out of receiving pre-selected credit offers, we will not be out on other mailing lists. It is because many companies, including marketing companies, buy or rent lists of potential customers from other companies so that we may receive other types of offers.
To avoid receiving these direct marketing offers, we will have to follow some steps:
- We will have to log on to the DMA Choice website and make an application priced at $2 for ten years.
- Within the website, we can update our email preferences to reduce the email we need.
- We will also be able to request to be removed from non-DMA mailing and marketing lists.
- We may send a request by postal mail.
However, this will not necessarily eliminate the offers we receive, but it may help to reduce their volume greatly. Sometimes, we may have to contact each company individually to be removed from their marketing lists.
Is it possible to participate again in the offers after unsubscribing?
Yes, we can call 888-5-OPTOUT again or directly from their website. We must select the subscription option to re-enroll in the pre-approved credit offers.
By receiving these pre-approved offers, we will often receive offers unavailable to the general public. In addition, these offers can help us compare current credit accounts and insurance plans with current offers. This way, we can determine if we can save money by switching companies.
We can also choose to be reviewing different credit card offers that match our needs without affecting our credit score. It will always allow us to achieve maximum versatility and avoid any inconveniences that may arise in this regard. Therefore, the last decision will be in our hands to know whether or not we want to receive these offers that sometimes could save us a lot of money.