Recently, I had my wallet stolen. There's a sick feeling in your stomach when you realize that your wallet is gone- your mind starts to race, you wonder where it is, you search your memory to remember what was in it....
There are several things you can do NOW to make this problem a blip on your radar. Here's a step-by-step process to make it easy for you!
1. Take out your wallet. Empty EVERYTHING out of it. Receipts, cards, IDs, EVERYTHING.
2. Ruthlessly cull what you carry with you. Don't even think about putting your Social Security card in your wallet! Loyalty cards from your grocer? Get the keychain version. You don't need to carry 5 credit cards- I only carry a debit card, my ID, and one credit card in my wallet, along with cash.
3. Photocopy your "keepers", front and back. Take the copies and place in an old dayplanner (We'll add to this in later posts).
Now, if your wallet or purse is stolen, you will have on hand a copy of your ID, and the phone and account numbers for the debit and credit cards you were carrying. A few simple phone calls and your cards are "hotcarded" which means that they're disabled.
Yes, you'll still need to file a police report, go to the RMV, and possibly make a trip to the bank. But your collateral damage will be limited- all of your paperwork is in one place, your information is at hand, and you will be able to go right down the list and turn a potential disaster into a relatively minor inconvenience.
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