How to Protect Deceased Loved Ones from Identity Theft

Dealing with identity theft is one of the most miserable feelings. It’s even worse when the victim is a loved one who is deceased. There are several thieves who prey on the deceased. They morbidly watch the obituaries for potential victims. Of course there are times that the theft is by a relative or acquaintance of the deceased. This often happens during family disputes or other disruptions. You should also be aware that there is no age limit for identity theft. Even deceased children can be victims. If you want to protect your loved ones from identity theft, follow the steps below.

• Many businesses will require an original death certificate, so get plenty of copies when they become available.
• Contact the credit bureaus in writing and request that a "Deceased" alert be placed on their report. Follow up with the bureaus to make sure this is taken care of. If anyone tries to get credit from someone who checks reports, they will see the notification.
• Request a copy of their credit report from all three bureaus. Look over it to see what accounts are open, so you know what needs to be closed or transferred to another account holder.
• Notify any companies that the person has accounts with. This includes mortgage companies, credit card companies, banking institutions, utilities, cellular company, etc. These accounts will either need to be settled and closed or transferred to another person.
• You should also notify the Social Security Administration, the DMV if they have a license, the Veteran’s Administration, and Immigration Services if applicable. You may also need to notify any other licensing agencies for instance if they have a professional license of some kind.
• If your loved one has any other accounts like a video rental or gym membership, you’ll need to notify these organizations as well. It’s not as urgent for you to notify these types of companies. Whenever all of the important ones are notifies, you can work on these.
• You should be able to contact all of the places by telephone. Important accounts should also be followed up with a letter mailed certified, return receipt requested. You should keep copies of all paperwork and records of all telephone transactions.

If you feel like your loved one is a victim of identity theft, you’ll want to notify the involved organization and request an investigation. Make sure they contact you with the results. You’ll need to keep all records of communication on file as well as the results of the investigation. If you have solid evidence of identity theft, you can take the case to the police and have them investigate. Either way, it’s important that you take action.

There is no way to completely safeguard someone from identity theft. It becomes even harder when the person is deceased and not able to monitor their own finances. You can minimize the risk of a deceased loved one becoming an identity theft victim by following the preventative steps above.