Contacting Local Police Department
How to make a report with local police
Here
are some important tips on How to contact local police, for shoppers
and merchants.
What should I do if the local
police will not take a report from me?
There are efforts at the federal, state and local level to
ensure that local law enforcement agencies understand identity
theft, its impact on victims, and the importance of taking a police
report. However, we still hear that some departments are not taking
reports. The following tips may help you to get a report if you're
having difficulties:
-
Furnish as much
documentation as you can to prove your case. Debt collection
letters, credit reports, your notarized
ID Theft Affidavit, and other evidence of fraudulent activity
can help demonstrate the seriousness of your case.
- Be
persistent if local authorities tell you that they can't take a
report. Stress the importance of a police report; many creditors
require one to resolve your dispute. Remind them that credit
bureaus will automatically block the fraudulent accounts and bad
debts from appearing on your credit report, but only if you can
give them a copy of the police report.
- If you're
told that identity theft is not a crime under your
state law, ask to file a Miscellaneous Incident Report
instead.
- If you can't
get the local police to take a report, try your county police. If
that doesn't work, try your state police.
Source: FTC
The FTC works for the
consumer to prevent fraudulent, deceptive and unfair business
practices in the marketplace and to provide information to help
consumers spot, stop and avoid them. To file a
complaint or to get
free information on
consumer issues, visit
www.ftc.gov or call
toll-free, 1-877-FTC-HELP (1-877-382-4357); TTY: 1-866-653-4261. The
FTC enters Internet, telemarketing, identity theft and other
fraud-related complaints into the
Consumer Sentinel Network, a secure online database and investigative tool available to hundreds of civil and criminal law enforcement agencies in the U.S. and abroad.
