How to Stop Credit Card Offer Junk Mail

Thu Feb 21, 2008 1:52PM EST

See Comments (180)

You have already been approved!

If there's a credit crunch going on, no one has told the card issuers at Chase, Bank of America, and every other lender on the planet. Credit card offers continue to roll in to the Null casa at a record clip, complete with courtesy checks, zero-interest balance transfers, and unbelievable introductory rates that I can't afford to miss.

Only I have plenty of credit cards (including two from one bank that keeps sending junk mail), and if I need a new one, I can track down an application myself.

But preapproved credit card offers aren't just junk mail, they are also major financial risks: Identity thieves and credit scammers love to get their mitts on these things, fill them out for you, and start running up the bills. These offers have to be shredded regularly in order to protect yourself... but wouldn't it be better simply not to receive them at all?

Good news: OptOutPrescreen.com is an official service letting you stop credit card offers cold. Much like AnnualCreditReport.com and DoNotCall.gov, this website is officially sanctioned to help eliminate these offers. Opting out is a simple matter. You can opt out for five years (by filling out the web form) or permanently (if you mail in a paper form), but all it takes is a simple name, address, date of birth, and SSN (the latter two are optional, but recommended for reasons explained on the site) to get the job done, whichever method you choose. What better way do you have to spend the next 60 seconds?

The catch is that it can take weeks for the offers to stop, but eventually they should trickle to a halt. Happy unsubscribing!

UPDATE: If you're uncomfortable with the web form, you can opt-out via telephone by calling 1-888-5-OPT-OUT instead. 

RELATED: GreenDimes Helps Eliminate Junk Mail 

MORE: The debate over OptOutPrescreen's legitimacy continues here...

ALSO: For those who advocate sending back business reply envelopes filled with trash in protest, this doesn't really work. 

Comments on How to Stop Credit Card Offer Junk Mail

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Join in the discussion. Here you'll see the comments in the order they were posted.

  • 66 Posted by seewave55@sbcglobal.net on Thu Sep 3, 2009 9:12PM EDT Report Abuse

    The best solution I found is: They always send a return postage paid envelope for you to respond. In the darkest black ink write on the sheet where they are making you the incredible credit card offer, NO MORE OFFERS TO THIS PERSON OR THIS ADDRESS! Then stuff the return "postage paid" envelope along with everything they sent you, I mean everything. They have to paid for the postage, your junk mail from them will stop real fast. One week I sent 11 total. You kinda catch them at their own game and it feels good knowing they had to pay to get the junk back that they sent you. It works.

  • 67 Posted by tucker9045@sbcglobal.net on Thu Sep 3, 2009 10:23PM EDT Report Abuse

    Who are you guys and why is Yahoo even letting you have air time by asking for SS numbers. Are you Nukkin futs?

  • 69 Posted by kfox3js@sbcglobal.net on Thu Sep 3, 2009 4:50PM EDT Report Abuse

    I'd rather take the time to mail the empty envelopes back to them than give out my ssn. If they have my mailing address and name, that's all they need. The applications get to me, so they can stop them with the same info.

  • 72 Posted by mamdlphn@sbcglobal.net on Thu Sep 3, 2009 7:04PM EDT Report Abuse

    No way would I give my SSN to a website to opt out. Here it what I do whenever I get those credit card offers. I tear up the application leaving my name and address in tact so they know who is sending it back. I put the torn application in the prepaid envelope they send with the offer and mail it back to them. I have not got many offers since.

  • 74 Posted by racurtis3767@sbcglobal.net on Thu Sep 3, 2009 8:25PM EDT Report Abuse

    I like getting 8-10 offers a week, I mail the empty postage-paid envelopes back to them...I'm a letter carrier, job security!

  • 75 Posted by waynemcguire@sbcglobal.net on Thu Sep 3, 2009 10:41PM EDT Report Abuse

    Giving my name, address, date of birth and social security number to someone I don't even know who, is stupid. We are told over and over again not to give out information if someone calls or sends us something in the mail. Then you tell us to do it. We are even told by the U S Postal Service in a pamplet not to even carry your social security card on you. Now why would anyone who knows anything about the risk give you the STUPID advice to give out that much information to a web site you know nothing about. You compare it to donotcall.com, well that is a goverment site but this site you tell about, WHO ARE THEY AND WHAT GOVERMENT DO THEY SERVE.

  • 76 Posted by mzn959 on Thu Sep 3, 2009 7:32PM EDT Report Abuse

    thank you for working hard to stop all this risk credit card prblems ,after what i am deep dieng whith hi intrest rate a lot credit card

  • 77 Posted by supermsgt@sbcglobal.net on Thu Sep 3, 2009 9:48PM EDT Report Abuse

    The credit card offers that i get don't have my SSN so why do I need to give it to stop them?

  • 78 Posted by g.houston@att.net on Thu Sep 3, 2009 4:05PM EDT Report Abuse

    Exactly, I have the same problem about the SSN, but its because I'm a senior. My social security card is my safe deposit box, but I must carry my Medicare card in my billfold. At least the scondary insurances no longer uses the SSN on their card. aaat least mine doesn't. We need to get Medicare to adopt other numbers. GAH

  • 79 Posted by ldlaforge@sbcglobal.net on Thu Sep 3, 2009 4:58PM EDT Report Abuse

    All of us should just keep stuffing their crap back into the return envelopes. They have to pay for that postage, let's get them where it hurts, with their dollars.

  • 80 Posted by maenault@prodigy.net on Thu Sep 3, 2009 7:03PM EDT Report Abuse

    I refuse to send my personal information to a website on the chance it could stop the junky credit card offers. I prefer to return everything back to the company from which it came, in their return envelope, even if they have to pay for the postage. I write on the insert, "Not interested! Take me off your mailing list!" Most of the envelopes are already prepaid. My card offers have been stopped. This seemed like a lot less effort and safer.

  • 81 Posted by racre8iv@pacbell.net on Thu Sep 3, 2009 8:25PM EDT Report Abuse

    My first thought was that I'm not sending my SSN and other info to some guy named Null that I never heard of and isn't associated with any news media. Then I read all the comments that seem to have reached the same conclusion. Make this guy NUll & Void. My $80 shredder is still my best financial friend.

  • 82 Posted by roncarr@swbell.net on Thu Sep 3, 2009 8:49PM EDT Report Abuse

    I shred the offers, then send them back in the pre-addressed pre-paid envelopes.

  • 83 Posted by sschmidt-01@sbcglobal.net on Thu Sep 3, 2009 9:38PM EDT Report Abuse

    Better yet. . . When those approval applications come, just open them up and on the page where your information appears, print in Big Black Felt Tip "Please remove from mail list". Then take the total contents of what you received and put it in the return prepaid envelope, seal it and drop it in the mail. You do not need to get out the shredder and they have to pay someone to open junk mail. I don't get those things any more. It took a while but it worked. (I want to know who "officially sanctioned" OpOutPrescreen.com to collect your SSN. A name and address should be enough to stay off of a mailing list. No one needs you SSN to mail anything to you so why would they need it to not send you mail. da!)

  • 84 Posted by kelglen2@sbcglobal.net on Thu Sep 3, 2009 4:49PM EDT Report Abuse

    Actually, this does not STOP the offers from coming in the mail, but rather stops the credit card companies from requesting your credit report info. It is legit. Mr.Null makes it seem like it will stop your junk mail. It is to stop inquiries of your credit. Google the company name with the word "reviews", you will find a lot of info.

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