 TITLE: Does a Credit Freeze Hurt Your Credit Score? CONTENT: Can a Credit Freeze Affect Getting Approved for Credit?\n-------------------------------------------------------\nIt's important to understand that credit freezes prevent access to your credit reports, but they don't affect tracking activity on current credit accounts. Payments on your existing loans and credit accounts will continue to be reported whether or not a credit freeze is in effect, so timely payments and careful use of credit will continue to benefit your credit during a freeze. By that same token, late or missed payments and excessively high credit card balances will damage your credit even if a credit freeze is in place.\nA credit freeze doesn't change your ability to qualify for a loan or credit card, but it can be an obstacle to getting your application approved: Unless you unfreeze your credit before you submit your application, the lender will not be able to use your credit report to judge your qualifications as a borrower.\nLenders cannot use a credit freeze as grounds for denying your application, but they also are not obligated to follow up with applicants whose credit reports are inaccessible. Setting aside your application technically isn't the same as denying it, but the end result could be the same for you: You won't get the credit in question, even if you're qualified for it based on your scores and credit history. END