Jill Foster

Wallet Wellness-Protect Yourself in 3 Steps

What would happen if your wallet was lost or stolen? Jill Russo Foster recommends taking three steps to protect your information.

I'm borrowing the line from the Capital One TV commercial: "What's in your wallet?" Do you know? If your wallet was lost or stolen, would you know what was lost? Of course, you can always check your records at home, and cancel everything just to be safe, but what if you're on vacation or your filing system at home proves less than helpful? Would you remember to cancel the major credit cards but forget about the department store cards?

Some folks like a light wallet and carry only what they need. Others are of the "take it all for convenience" variety. No matter which category you fit into, if you don't know exactly what's in your wallet, you could be in big trouble if these items are lost or stolen. Here are a few preventative steps that can save you lots of time and anxiety, both short and long-term:

1. Determine what you need. Do you really need to bring all your credit cards, bank cards, checkbooks, etc. at all times, or can you just take what you need when you need it? Give this some thought. Leaving unnecessary items behind can not only lower the risk of having them lost or stolen, it can prevent impulse buying as well.

2. Keep records of your wallet items. Make a record of everything you keep in your wallet. One way to do this is to make copies of everything - fronts and backs, making sure to include the contact phone numbers. Friends of mine who are professional organizers have suggested making two copies - one for your own records to be kept in a safe place, and the other to be kept by a trusted friend to have in case you can't get to your records immediately. Be sure to review and update these copies annually, and add or delete information as accounts are opened or closed.

3. Leave your social security card at home. Your social security number is the number one item identity thieves need to make your life a mess, so you should never carry your social security card with you. If your healthcare cards use your social security number as your identification number, here's a clever suggestion - make copies of your medical insurance card to carry with you with your social security number blacked out. If you need the number for a medical visit, you can recite the number from memory.

A little "wallet wellness" today can prevent a lot of heartache tomorrow!

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