Opt-out guide

How to opt out of Experian and remove your name

Experian offers more separate consumer controls than any other bureau, and they are genuinely separate: direct mail, telemarketing, email, targeted advertising and preapproved offers each have their own opt-out. Doing one of them does not do the others, which is why people are surprised to still be getting mail after opting out.

Experian's opt-out requests are processed on OptOutPrescreen, jointly run by all four credit bureaus's system, so one request can cover more than one site. Check both afterwards rather than assuming.

Wondering whether Experian is even legitimate first? Read our honest Experian check for what it is, what regulators have said about it, and what it exposes.

What Experian exposes

• Credit account and payment history
• Name, address history and date of birth
• Marketing and audience segments built from the above
• Prescreen eligibility lists sold to lenders and insurers

Step-by-step removal

1. 1

   Open Experian's opt-out index

   Go to experian.com/privacy/opting_out, which lists the separate controls rather than a single switch.

2. 2

   Do the preapproved-offers opt-out first

   This is the one that stops prescreened credit and insurance mail. It runs through the joint bureau site at optoutprescreen.com and covers all four bureaus at once, so it is the highest-value single action.

3. 3

   Choose five years or permanent

   Five years can be done entirely online or by calling 1-888-5-OPT-OUT. Permanent requires starting online and then signing and returning the Permanent Opt-Out Election form that the site produces.

4. 4

   Then work through the other four

   Return to the opt-out index and complete the direct mail, telemarketing, email and targeted-advertising opt-outs individually. Each is its own form.

5. 5

   Expect a delay before mail stops

   The FTC states requests are processed within five days, but offers can keep arriving for several weeks because companies that already pulled your details will still mail you.

Open Experian's opt-out page

Good to know

• This is a marketing opt-out, not a security freeze. It does not stop new accounts being opened in your name, and it does nothing to the contents of your credit report. A freeze is a separate, free request made to each bureau.
• The prescreen opt-out asks for your Social Security number and date of birth. The FTC states the information is confidential and may be used only to process the opt-out - it is asked for because the bureaus have to match you to the right file.
• Opting out of prescreening does not hurt your credit score. Prescreen inquiries appear on your report but do not affect scoring.
• It only stops offers built from bureau lists. Mail from companies you already do business with, local businesses, charities and anything addressed to 'resident' keeps coming, and DMAchoice is the separate route for those.