Report a Death to the Credit Bureaus — Now Free for Everyone
Credit bureau death notification is now free for every family — closing the fraud gap that opens after a death.
A person's identity doesn't die when they do. For months after a death, a Social Security number, a date of birth, and a home address keep working exactly as they did in life — and fraudsters know it.
It's called “ghosting.” Criminals comb obituaries, estate filings, and data breaches for the recently deceased, then use their information to open credit cards, take out loans, and file fraudulent tax refunds. The deceased can't check their own statements. Their family often won't think to look for months. By the time anyone notices, the damage lands on the estate and the heirs.
Today we're making the single most effective protection against this — notifying the three credit bureaus of a death — free for everyone, whether or not they use Sunset.
Why this matters
Deceased-identity fraud is one of the fastest-growing forms of identity theft, and the reason is structural: the safety net that's supposed to catch it has been quietly fraying for years.
The Social Security Administration's Death Master File is the closest thing the country has to an authoritative record of who has died. Banks, lenders, and credit bureaus rely on it to flag deceased individuals and shut down fraud. But the public version of that file has been shrinking. After a 2011 policy change, the SSA stopped including deaths reported by states in the publicly available file — removing roughly a million death records a year from the version most companies can actually see.
The result is a dangerous gap. A person can be deceased for months while their credit file still reads “alive and in good standing.” That gap is exactly where ghosting fraud happens.
This isn't the banks' fault, or the bureaus'
It would be easy to blame the credit bureaus and the financial institutions for this. That would also be wrong. They spend millions of dollars every year fighting fraud, and they're remarkably good at it — when the person being impersonated is alive to dispute a charge, confirm their identity, or notice something is wrong.
Fraud committed as a deceased person is a fundamentally different problem, and it comes down to one missing piece of information: a reliable, up-to-date answer to a simple question — is this person still alive? When the authoritative record of who has died is incomplete, even the most sophisticated fraud systems are working blind.
And the situation families face is worse still. There's no fraud alert a grieving family can flip on. There's no online portal at the bureaus to report a death. The official channel is a physical letter — formatted to each bureau's requirements, with the right documentation, mailed to the right P.O. box. Most families don't know this exists, and the ones who do are asked to draft three formal letters and a death certificate package during the worst week of their lives.
So the bureaus are left in a difficult position too. When a death is reported, they have to decide — often on thin evidence — whether to flag the file, notify creditors, and freeze the account. Acting on a bad report can wrongly lock a living person out of their own credit; ignoring a real one leaves the door open to fraud. Without a stable, trustworthy source of truth to verify against, they're left to make that call largely on their own.
The problem isn't effort or intent. It's a broken source of truth.
What Sunset does about it
Sunset is a certified, approved subscriber to the Social Security Administration's Limited Access Death Master File. Verifying deaths and acting on them is core to everything we do — it's how we help families discover accounts, settle estates, and protect what's left behind.
Now we've turned that capability outward, for free:
- You provide the basics. The deceased's name, address, Social Security number, and date of death, plus a copy of the death certificate.
- Sunset prepares the letters. We generate three formal death-notification letters, each formatted to Equifax, Experian, and TransUnion's specific requirements.
- We mail them for you. Letters go out to each bureau's official address. You get an email confirmation within a few business days.
Notifying the bureaus places a deceased flag on the credit file. New accounts can't be opened. The “alive and in good standing” gap closes — and the most common path for ghosting fraud closes with it.
Who this helps
Anyone who has lost someone. You don't need to be settling the estate, and you don't need a Sunset account. A surviving spouse, an adult child, an executor, or a sibling can complete the form in a few minutes and know one of the most important protective steps is handled.
Get started
Report a death to the credit bureaus, for free, at hellosunset.com/report-death-to-credit-bureaus.
We built Sunset to take the weight of estate settlement off of families. Protecting a loved one's identity after they're gone shouldn't be one more thing you have to figure out alone.
About Sunset
Sunset is the leading inheritance and estate settlement software, used by thousands of families and professionals to discover assets, generate probate documents, and move inheritances where they need to go — across all 50 states and every county. Backed by Y Combinator, Sunset is built by a team that has personally been through estate settlement and knows how heavy it can be. Our mission is simple: take the weight of settling an estate off of the people who are grieving. Tools like free credit bureau notification are part of that promise — protections every family deserves, whether or not they ever pay us a cent.
HOW WE MAKE MONEY
We’re paid by banks, not families
Just like any bank, we make money from interest yielded while money sits in the estate bank account.
No out-of-pocket costs or fees
You never pay for anything out of pocket. Ever.
We make money on interest
No hidden costs. No surprise fees. No fine print.
You keep all your money
We never take a cut of your inheritance.
Frequently asked questions
What is Sunset?
Sunset is an estate settlement platform that helps families discover and close the financial accounts, assets, and debts of a deceased loved one.
Sunset Free is designed for family members, executors, and personal representatives who are settling an estate themselves. It includes the full Sunset closure suite: financial account discovery, bank notifications, assisted phone calls and emails, estate bank account setup, probate document generation, and asset transfers all at no cost.
Sunset Pro is designed for probate attorneys, licensed fiduciaries, trustees, and aftercare specialists who settle estates on behalf of their clients. Sunset Pro starts at $500 per asset search, with monthly subscription plans available for solo practitioners, small firms, and large firms.
Both Sunset Free and Sunset Pro are available in all 50 states and U.S. territories.
Who can use Sunset?
Sunset can be used by family members, executors, administrators, and personal representatives responsible for settling a deceased person's estate.
Sunset supports asset discovery and probate across all 50 states and every U.S. county, helping you manage the estate regardless of where your loved one lived or where the estate is being settled.
How does Sunset help settle an estate?
Sunset handles the most time-consuming parts of estate settlement.
We search 2,500+ financial institutions like banks and retirement funds, the credit bureaus, and state unclaimed-property databases to find accounts and assets the family may not know about. We prepare probate documents specific to your county in all 50 states and help establish an estate bank account where recovered funds can be deposited.
Then Sunset helps close the deceased person’s accounts and move the funds into the estate account, ready for distribution to the heirs.
With Sunset, about 90% of account closures can be completed without you having to call or visit a branch.
What does it mean to settle an estate?
Settling an estate means closing out someone’s financial life after they die.
It involves identifying what they owned and owed, obtaining the legal authority to act on their behalf, paying valid debts and final taxes, and transferring what remains to the people who inherit it.
Depending on the state and the size of the estate, it can be complicated or simple, either way Sunset can help.
What is required to settle an estate?
Most estates require a core set of documents and accounts, including a certified death certificate, legal authority to act for the estate, a federal EIN, an estate bank account, and an inventory of the estate’s assets and debts.
Sunset can help with all of these except the death certificate!
Depending on the circumstances, legal authority may come in the form of letters testamentary, letters of administration, or a small-estate affidavit.
Once that authority is established, the estate can begin notifying financial institutions, paying valid debts and final taxes, and distributing the remaining assets to the heirs or beneficiaries.
Sunset prepares the paperwork required for these steps and submits what we can on your behalf.
How much does Sunset cost?
Sunset Free is completely free for families settling an estate. There are no upfront fees, subscriptions, or deductions from the inheritance. Families get access to asset discovery, probate document generation, account closure, asset transfers, and estate bank account setup at no cost.
Sunset Pro is our paid product for probate attorneys, licensed fiduciaries, trustees, and aftercare specialists. It starts at $500 per asset search, with subscription plans available for solo practitioners, small firms, and large firms.
Sunset's family product is funded through our bank partnership. The estate does not pay Sunset, and all assets ultimately go to the estate's beneficiaries and heirs.
How much does it usually cost to settle an estate?
The cost of settling an estate varies widely depending on its size, complexity, and where you live.
Hiring a probate attorney commonly costs $2,500 to $10,000, with more complex estates costing considerably more. In states with statutory probate fees, attorney fees may instead be calculated as a percentage of the estate. For example, a 3% to 7% fee on a $500,000 estate would be $15,000 to $35,000.
Sunset is free for families. There’s no fee, subscription, or percentage taken from the inheritance.
Can you settle an estate without a lawyer?
Yes. In many cases, you can settle an estate without hiring a lawyer. Sunset helps families handle the process themselves by finding assets, preparing probate documents, closing financial accounts, establishing an estate bank account, and collecting the estate's assets.
What about probate documents?
You can use our software to generate and sometimes file probate documents in every county nationwide.
Online notarization is also available through Sunset.
If your case is unusually complex, or disputed, we recommend hiring experienced probate counsel.
What is an estate bank account? Who controls it?
An estate bank account is a standard bank account in the estate’s name where all funds are consolidated. You can use it to pay expenses, view a full transaction history, and eventually distribute inheritance to beneficiaries.
With one click Sunset can set up an estate bank account.
You control the estate bank account. You can pay bills, taxes, and distribute the funds to heirs.
All estate bank accounts set up by Sunset are FDIC insured and protected from fraud and identity theft.
How can I pay estate expenses?
Once you have an estate bank account, you can use it to pay legitimate expenses related to settling your loved one's estate.
If you paid estate expenses out of your own pocket before the estate account was established, you may also be able to reimburse yourself from the estate, provided the expenses are legitimate and properly documented.
Am I responsible for their debts?
No, the deceased was solely responsible for their debts. If a loan was backed by a physical asset, such as a home or vehicle, you have options to transfer or payoff from estate proceeds.
For a loan that was jointly held, the responsibility remains with the other person on the account, often a spouse. Sunset automatically identifies if a debt has a living responsible party, and clearly flags it.
What security measures does Sunset have?
Sunset is SOC 2 Type II certified and built with security and privacy at the center of how we handle sensitive estate information.
We use robust identity and fraud-prevention measures to verify deceased individuals and beneficiaries, and we conduct background checks on our employees. We continuously monitor and improve our security practices to protect the financial information, documents, and personal data entrusted to us.
Will the financial institution be notified of a Sunset search?
No, we do not notify any financial institutions of the death when performing our searches, except for in the case of life insurance.
Our process combines document review, data integrations, and indirect verification with financial institutions. Families usually discover most accounts within 1 day, although some bank account confirmations take up to two weeks.
Financial institutions are only notified after a request for closure and transfer has been made by you.
Can Sunset help me settle an estate in my county or state?
Yes. Sunset works in all 50 states and all 3,000+ U.S. counties.
Sunset generates probate documents specific to the county where the estate is being settled and helps you complete the required steps. When notarization is required, online notarization is available where permitted.
Can Sunset help my probate attorney?
Yes. Attorneys regularly recommend Sunset to their clients. Before your attorney can guide you on the right probate path, they need a complete picture of the estate's assets and debts. Sunset generates a comprehensive Estate Asset Inventory with account numbers, balances, and more, giving your attorney exactly what they need to move forward quickly.
