What is a Forgery Affidavit?

A forgery affidavit is a legal document that is filled out and signed by a consumer who became a victim to a type of identity fraud. Both financial institutions and police departments use this statement as evidence that a crime has been committed, and when they enter either civil or criminal court to seek prosecution, a forgery affidavit is required among the original documents filed. Within the document, there will be a detailed list of each of the items that were forged, including, but not limited to, credit card receipts, checks, and legal documents that were not signed or authorized by the actual consumer. An entirely separate statement within the document will also state that the victim did not receive any proceeds from the commission of the crime.

Banks and credit-reporting agencies will rarely correct any inaccuracies reported by the consumer until a forgery affidavit is signed and returned to them, so this legal document is important when trying to recover stolen finances or credit. After reporting the crime to a lending institution by telephone or in person, many banks will generate a customized statement that needs to be filled out by the victim as quickly as possible. A copy of this form is then brought to a police department in order to help locate a suspect, and the officers involved with the case will use the forgery affidavit in order to receive court orders to seize possible video surveillance or other information about where the crime occurred. Once a suspect is identified and arrested, the forgery affidavit is normally one of the first pieces of evidence submitted during a trial.

Often a forgery affidavit will benefit consumers in other ways as well. For instance, if a homeowner was trying to refinance her home after becoming a victim of identity fraud, the statement can be used by lending institutions as proof that the unauthorized charges were indeed not the fault of the consumer. The same type of procedure will take place when replacing a stolen driver’s license, social security card, birth certificate, or other personal document. Each government agency or medical association responsible for issuing these types of identification forms will require proof of an injustice taking place, and a forgery affidavit is normally the standard method.

Submitting false information on a forgery affidavit is a crime within most jurisdictions. There are thousands of cases each year where consumers will inaccurately report that a crime had taken place when it actually did not, usually to erase large amounts of debt or to void an agreement contract. In these types of cases, signing a forgery affidavit under false pretenses is a criminal act that is considered fraud and it could result in a civil penalty or incarceration. If this type of matter were to be brought before a courtroom, the forgery affidavit would be among the most important pieces of evidence against the consumer.