TL;DR: Mail in a stranger's name at your home is often harmless (a previous tenant), but it can mean someone is using your address to open credit or receive stolen goods. If your own mail stops, someone may have filed a fake change of address. USPS mails a Move Validation Letter to your old address when a change is filed, so report anything you didn't request at once. Check your credit reports, freeze your credit and report fraud at IdentityTheft.gov.
Signs someone is using your address
- Mail, parcels or bills for a person who doesn't live with you
- Credit card offers, account statements or collection letters in a stranger's name
- Your own mail suddenly stops arriving
- A letter from USPS confirming a change of address you didn't make
- Deliveries you didn't order, sometimes followed by someone asking to "collect a misdelivered package"
- Accounts or inquiries on your credit report you don't recognise
Scenario 1: mail for a stranger
Often it's just a previous occupant. But criminals also use real addresses to open credit cards and accounts, then intercept the mail. Don't open someone else's mail. Write "Not at this address, return to sender" on it and put it back in the mail. If credit cards, loan documents or bank statements keep coming in someone else's name, contact the lender's fraud department and tell them the person does not live there.
Scenario 2: your mail stops arriving
That can mean someone filed a fraudulent change of address (COA) to divert your mail. A USPS Office of Inspector General audit found:
- The online change of address process charges a $1.10 card fee presented as identity validation, but it verifies the card, not that the requester lives at the address.
- USPS mails a Move Validation Letter to the old address and a confirmation to the new one, and forwarding starts after a seven-day delay if nobody reports a problem.
- Confirmed fraudulent COAs jumped to 23,606 in 2021, more than double the year before.
What to do: contact your local post office straight away to cancel the change, and report it to the US Postal Inspection Service. Sign up for USPS Informed Delivery, which emails you a preview of letter mail due to arrive, so you notice quickly if mail stops.
Scenario 3: accounts opened in your name at your address
- Get your credit reports from Equifax, Experian and TransUnion at AnnualCreditReport.com and look for accounts and inquiries you don't recognise.
- Freeze your credit at all three bureaus: how to freeze your credit.
- Report identity theft at IdentityTheft.gov for a recovery plan: how to report identity theft to the FTC.
- File a police report if the lender or bureaus ask for one: how to file a police report for identity theft.
Scenario 4: a business or package scam using your address
Some scams use real home addresses as drop points for goods bought with stolen cards, or register fake businesses at them. If couriers or strangers come asking for packages you didn't order, don't hand them over. Report it to the retailer and the police. If someone has registered a business at your address, contact your state's business registry.
Protect your address going forward
- Use a locking mailbox or a PO box for sensitive mail.
- Shred mail with account numbers or pre-approved offers, and cut junk mail at the source: how to stop junk mail.
- Remove your address from people-search sites: opting out of US people-search sites.
- If you're at risk from a specific person, look into an address confidentiality program.
Address fraud usually starts with leaked personal details. A free email exposure check shows which breaches your email appears in.
Frequently Asked Questions
What do I do if someone is using my address?
Return mail marked "not at this address," call lenders who send credit in another name, check your credit reports, freeze your credit and report fraud at IdentityTheft.gov.
Can someone change my address without my permission?
They can try. The USPS Inspector General found the online change of address process verifies the payment card, not the person. USPS sends a Move Validation Letter to the old address, so report any change you did not request.
How do I report change of address fraud?
Contact your local post office to cancel the change and report it to the US Postal Inspection Service.
Is it illegal to open someone else's mail?
In the US, intentionally opening or destroying mail addressed to someone else is a federal crime. Mark it return to sender instead.
How can I tell if my mail is being redirected?
Sign up for USPS Informed Delivery to preview incoming letter mail, and watch for a Move Validation Letter or a sudden stop in mail.