What’s In Your Wallet? 5 Steps To Peace of Mind
If your wallet were lost or stolen, would you panic, or would you have all the information needed to begin the process of shutting down accounts? If you have taken time to do the proper documentation, consider yourself savvier than most. If you haven’t, just a few hours is all it takes to make a big move toward peace of mind.
Although yesterday was the first warm and lovely day in awhile, I spent several hours indoors working on this mundane but important task. I documented and stored information from every card in my wallet and Zane’s. From credit, debit, insurance, AAA to driver’s licenses, I recorded all information on each card and now have it stored in multiple places.
Last week, Zane thought that he had lost his wallet. It was a horrible feeling, largely because we had no idea where to start calling or what numbers to use to contact banks and businesses to freeze accounts. It was a helpless feeling that prompted me to go ahead and take care of this important to-do.
I’ve never been the victim of theft, but one of my dearest friends was mugged several years ago (in broad daylight). Despite a valiant fight on her part, the criminal stole her purse and within no time began using every card in her wallet at stores all over the city. I wrote about her experience in this post, and it has made me extra vigilant to take measures to protect against this type of crime.
This to-do list is short and certainly not exhaustive. Much more can and should be done to guard against theft and protect one’s identity and accounts. The following steps, however, are a good place to start.
5 Steps To Bank Card & Other Important Documentation
- Make hard copies of all credit cards, debit cards, driver’s licenses, and insurance cards. Make a dual sided copy of all cards–front and back–making sure that all numbers are legible. (My first copies were hard to read, so I placed a sheet of paper over the cards and printed in color ink; these turned out perfectly legible.)
- Store these hard copies in a folder that is easily accessible. Having hard copies ensures that if all mobile devices are lost or stolen, there will still be a way to get the important information.
- Scan the hard copies into your computer. I scanned mine into documents and placed all into a folder that is easily accessible on my Mac. (If you store such information, make sure your computer is password protected.)
- Enter the information in a secure mobile app. I use DataVault Password Manager, (named by CNET the #1 Must Have iPhone app) to store all my passwords, card information, and other important data. If my purse ever gets stolen, this is the first place I’ll go to start calling banks and freezing accounts. DataVault takes a bit of time to navigate at first; however, after typing information in for several cards, it gets easier.
- Make a “notebook” in Evernote–this 5th step is optional, but I can’t go without mentioning this app. (I am obsessed with it and don’t know how I ever lived without it.) Evernote has changed my organizational life. I have a “notebook” for everything–from unused gift cards to grocery lists to medical records and more. For this 5th step, I made a “card documentation” notebook with all the information contained in the hard copies and scans. If my wallet gets stolen, I can go to a computer and quickly access this information from my Evernote account.
The most important information to document from all of the cards is 1) the contact number of the bank or business on the card and 2) your account number. If cards are ever lost, multiple family members can get a list of who to call and immediately start working as a team to make the calls needed to stop fraudulent activity.
I hope these small suggestions are helpful, and I’d love to hear from any of you who have more savvy tips for staying protected and knowing what to do if the worst happens. If you have anything to share, please leave it in the comments section of this post. Thank you so much for reading, and here’s to staying safe and savvy!
