IDENTITY THEFT ATTORNEY ST LOUIS

Medical Identity Theft – A person’s name and information can be used to fraudulently obtain medical care, such as prescription drugs or other medical needs. This type of identity theft can be the most serious. The notes on the victim’s medical records, which are very concerning to the thief, could lead to incorrect and possibly fatal medical decisions in future.  Imagine a nefarious individual uses a person’s medical information to treat themselves for a major life threatening illness.  Now the defendant has records of having a life threatening illness, and they may be prescribed medication that could harm them in the future based on fraudulent diagnosis.

Business or Commercial Identity Theft: An individual who uses the name of a business to get credit, often an ex-employee.

Identity Cloning. Identity Clone refers to any or all forms of identity theft in one. The thief essentially assumes the complete identity of the other person, in all aspects of their lives.

It is important to call an identity theft attorney St Louis in order to mitigate some of the damage done.  In many cases, there are multiple areas that need to be addressed in order to properly compensate for the damages.

How Can A St Louis Identity Theft Attorney Help Me?

Hiring a St Louis identity theft attorney can help in the recovery of stolen assets.  Recovery of stolen assets and money is usually the primary concern of the individual. It can be difficult to repair any other damage done by identity theft such as damaged credit scores or reputations. Police have found it increasingly difficult to identify the identity of the thieves due to the increase in digitally accessible information, leaving many victims without any legal recourse. If the police are unable to assist, it is important that you contact an identity theft attorney such as Cook Law to discuss your options.  If you have noticed that you are mistakenly reported as deceased on your credit report, contact us today.

Cook Law has access to top-level experts in their fields, including private investigators or forensic accountants who might be able to help determine when and by whom your identity was stolen. Our St Louis identity theft attorney will review your case details, including both information gathered by our experts as well as your accounts to determine if a third party is liable.  For example, if a previous employer allowed your personally identifiable information to be leaked to the public.  If your case succeeds, you might be able to recover financial compensation, restore your reputation and reestablish credit.

Can an Identity Theft Attorney St. Louis County Help Me Sue For Compensation?

An identity theft attorney St. Louis county can help obtain compensation for damages.  Everyone would love to sue the person who stole their identity, but it is difficult to locate these thieves. If the actual thief is not identifiable or located, you might be able file suit against another party based on their negligence. These parties typically include those who have access to your credit card number, social security number, or other personally identifiable information.

• Banks
• Other financial institutions
• Creditors
• Government entities
• Employers

Depending on the facts surrounding the identity theft case, the type of liability that each party is liable for will differ.

What can I sue for?

There are many theories of liability for identity theft due to the multiple ways that an identity can be stolen. The type of identity theft that you were the victim of and the facts specific to your case will determine the type of claim you can file. These are some possible causes for action.

• Negligence
• Invasion of privacy
• Publication of private facts
• Breach of fiduciary obligation
• Infliction or repercussions of emotional distress
• Breach of contract

It is crucial to give as much information as possible to your identity theft attorney St. Louis County when you first provide details about your stolen identity. A theory of liability can be made actionable by the smallest detail. Your attorney should have all relevant information to your case in order to help determine the best path to recovery.

What compensation can be recovered?

There may be multiple forms of compensation for victims depending on the circumstances, the extent of the injury and the intended defendant. These include:

• Compensation damages for financial loss incurred due to the theft
• If the victim suffered from emotional distress such as depression or anxiety, could be eligible for damages .
• Punitive damages could be available if the victim’s personal data was deliberately or recklessly made public.
• Injunctive Relief to release the victim from any owing debts that they didn’t accrue.

You may be able to sue a variety of people if your identity has been stolen. Contact us to learn more about your legal rights and how our identity theft lawyers may be able help you.  If you are in the Chicago area and need help from our Identity Theft Lawyer Chicago, please feel free to give us a call and we will help you as soon as we can!

What Does An Identity Theft Attorney Do?

Identity theft occurs when somebody uses your personal information like name, address, Social Security Number (SSN), bank or credit card account number or any other identifying information without your consent or knowledge to open accounts, deceit or commit fraud.  An Identity Theft Attorney can help you navigate this unpleasant situation. It can be unpleasant to be a victim of identity theft because you have to deal with a complex array of legal challenges, filing the appropriate police report or identity theft report with a Federal Trade Commission, placing a credit freeze on your credit reports, or lodging credit bureau disputes. You might need to take up all these challenges to clean up your good name.

How Can Someone Get To My Personal Identifying Information And Steal My Identity?

There are many ways how someone can get access to your personal identifying information. An Identity Theft Attorney can help you find ways to go after the individuals who stole the information.  Some of the methods criminals use may include storage devices for skimming to get to your credit or debit card account numbers. Thieves usually use credit card numbers to buy items they can easily resell for cash. But no method is strange to criminals, unfortunately. They will also dig through your garbage in search of your mail from the bank or any document with any of your personal information, or with your Social Security Number. Sometimes a stolen wallet or a stolen purse is just the beginning of a larger operation of misuse of your personal information.

Criminals can also get to your personal information by stealing your mail from your mailbox. When rummaging through your mailbox they are looking for credit card statements, new checks, tax information, or pre-approved credit offers. Any paper containing your personal information may be valuable to a skilled criminal.

Once the criminals have your personal information, they may perform numerous frauds. Usually, it is opening credit card accounts using your name, birth date and SSN. They go and spend money without paying bills on those credit cards and, as a result, delinquent bills are reported on your credit report. Also, they may take loans in your name or establish services in your name.  An Identity Theft Attorney can help recover your losses, and go after the thieves and creditors that approved these accounts in the first place.

Identity thieves often divert the address on your accounts, so you are not aware of the charges and it takes some time before you realize there is a problem. This tactic gives thieves more time for spending more money from your accounts and credit cards.

When someone gives your name and personal information to the police instead of their own, it is also identity theft. This can be extremely unpleasant because the police may issue an arrest warrant in your name. It can be hard to explain to the police when they knock on your door that you are a victim of identity theft.

When Should I Consider Contacting An Identity Theft Attorney?

Failing to receive bills and mail from the bank and other financial institutions may be an indication of identity theft. This could be a signal that your address has been diverted by identity thieves. It would be helpful to contact an Identity Theft Attorney to help determine if your identity is in jeopardy.  You may be denied credit or a loan because of a low credit score which may come as a surprise to you. Your credit score could plunge because of delinquent rates and payments that you didn’t know of. If you see accounts you didn’t open on your credit report and bills for the services you didn’t establish, there is a high possibility that you are a victim of identity theft. A strong indication of identity theft is receiving calls from businesses about the products or services you didn’t buy.

Sometimes these signals are just a result of a simple mistake. But you should not ignore these facts. Always contact institutions or businesses to find out what is causing the situation. If the accounts are open and loans taken in your name, creditors may even file a lawsuit against you, for the money you owe them. When the situation escalates and the court is involved, it can be quite tricky to explain that you have no idea what is going on. When you are facing the situation described here you will probably need a lawyer. It is wise to find an Identity Theft Attorney with rich expertise in identity theft.

You Can Prevent Identity Theft

There are certain measures you can take to prevent being a victim of identity theft. Here are some tips from an experienced Identity Theft Lawyer of Cook Lawyer LLC on how to protect yourself. The most important thing is to be cautious with your personal identifying information.

• You should check your credit report regularly. Often you check the better. Try to do it at least every month. Thoroughly review your credit report. You should be able to identify all the items and activities contained in your credit report. Accounts or activities that you are not familiar with are indications of a mistake or even identity theft.
• When using your credit card, always keep it in sight. Don’t let anyone take your credit card away when paying. For example, when paying at a restaurant, a waiter should bring a POS terminal to you, not take your credit card away, and then come back with a receipt. Every time your credit card is used by someone else, you could become a victim of skimming. Information on a credit card can be stolen in a second with a device called a skimmer.
• Keep your mailbox locked and empty it daily. Don’t give thieves a chance to get to your mail that contains your personal information.
• Get a shredder and shred all the utility bills, credit card statements, solicitations, and all the other documents that contain your personal financial information. If you don’t have a shredder, at least tear up all the papers with your personal information before you throw them away. Leave nothing to “dumpster divers”.

When Identity Theft Occurs, Be Sure To Contact An Identity Theft Lawyer?

When you are a victim of identity theft, there are several steps to be taken to prevent further damage. The first thing to do is to contact your Identity Theft Lawyer at Cook Law.  Next, contact companies and financial institutions where the identity theft occurred. You have to explain your situation and ask them to close or freeze the accounts that have been compromised. If you don’t do this they will proceed to send you bills and report delinquent payment rates. They may even file a lawsuit against you for delinquent payment rates.

Write Dispute Letters To All Three Credit Report Agencies

When your identity has been stolen, you have the right by the Fair Credit Report Act to remove fraudulent information from your credit reports. To do so you have to write dispute letters to all three credit report agencies. Explain which information in your credit report came from identity theft and ask them to block that information. If you have your FTC Identity Theft Report, credit bureaus are required to honor your request to block information. Once fraudulent information is blocked credit bureaus must not include it in your credit report anymore. Also, companies cannot try to collect the debt.  Our Identity Theft Attorney at Cook Law can help walk you through this process.

In order to resolve problems caused to you by identity theft, you can ask credit report agencies to put a fraud alert on your credit report. A fraud alert requires potential creditors to verify your identity when issuing new credit in your name. This will prevent anyone with your personal information from using them. A fraud alert lasts for one year. You can also ask for an extended fraud alert to be put on your credit report which lasts for seven years.

Credit Freeze is another measure that can help further misuse of your personal information. It prevents any prospective creditor from accessing your credit report without your consent. It lasts until you remove it. It is free of charge to place it and to remove it.

Do You Need An Identity Theft Lawyer?

It can be tricky to deal with a situation involving identity theft. There are so many things to do in order to clear up the situation. Often stolen identity results in the plunge of your credit score. Although it is not your fault, it is your credit score and you have to deal with the situation. All the measures that have to be taken you can take yourself. But consider having the assistance of an identity theft lawyer. Here is why.

Sometimes not everything goes smoothly with credit report agencies. Disputing fraudulent information may result differently than you would expect. You may be denied getting your Identity Theft Report due to a lack of proof provided in your dispute letters. It could happen to you just because you are inexperienced in correspondence with three major credit bureaus and you don’t understand clearly which steps you need to take in which order. That’s why it is important to have an experienced identity theft lawyer working on your case. Someone who has no doubts about what has to be done and how.

When you are a victim of identity theft there is a lot at stake. At least for you. You can’t afford to fail when disputing fraudulent information. Credit report agencies work at a slow but steady pace, so the process of blocking fraudulent information can take some time. An identity theft lawyer from Cook Law LLC can help you to avoid mistakes in this process and make your credit report free of fraudulent information in the shortest possible time.

At Cook Law LLC we can offer you all the services an identity theft lawyer could provide and give you peace of mind in a situation that can be nerve-racking for you. Creditors and businesses that are trying to collect what they believe you owe them can be impatient and file a lawsuit against you. If the situation when your identity is stolen escalates this way, you should definitely have an identity theft lawyer hired to help you clear your good name. An identity theft lawyer from Cook Law LLC will help you make all the necessary steps to clear up the situation. It is important to take the right steps, and include valid proof, because if credit bureau agencies continue reporting fraudulent information after your dispute, it may be enough to file a lawsuit against credit report agencies for the damages you had suffered because of the fraudulent information being reported on your credit reports.

Contact our office to schedule a Free Consultation.

If you have a case, we may be able to take it contingent, meaning no money out of pocket for you.

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