What To Do When Your Wallet Is Stolen

What to do when your wallet is stolen? If this happens, it can definitely put a damper on your travel plans. When you are in a panic, it’s easy to forget the things you should do to protect yourself. You also want to make sure to cover all of your bases, so you don’t become a victim of identity theft. Here are the steps you should take to protect yourself if this happens.

What To Do When Your Wallet Is Stolen

1. Call Your Bank And Credit Card Companies

Always keep copies of both sides of your credit and ATM cards in case your wallet is stolen. This way, you have the phone numbers within easy reach. This is something you need to do immediately, as your liability will increase by the number of days you wait to contact them. They will cancel your cards which will help prevent fraud from occurring. Make sure if you have any bills on auto pay directly from your bank account that you pay those bills manually. Otherwise, you could also have to pay service charges if those payments fail to go through. This is the most important step you can take when you are wanting to know what to do when your wallet is stolen.

2. Put A Fraud Alert On Your Accounts

Don’t forget to alert the credit-reporting agencies, too. This way, no one can take your identity and open new credit cards. Your identity will have to be proven before any new credit accounts can be opened by you. You can also put a credit freeze on your credit report to restrict access to it without your permission. Here are the numbers for the credit card agencies:

• Equifax: 1-800-525-6285
• Trans Union: 1-800-680-7289
• Experian: 1-888-EXPERIAN (1-888-397-3742)

3. Always Keep Some Cash And One Of Your Credit Cards In The Hotel Safe So You Have Emergency Funds

Never carry all of your cash and credit cards in your wallet. I always keep at least one credit card and extra cash behind in the hotel safe. I even have two banks, so that I have an extra ATM card behind, too. Your bank can also usually rush a new ATM card to you, so that you have access to your funds.

4. File A Police Report

You need to make an official record that your wallet was stolen, so don’t forget to file a police report. This will be evidence that you need in case someone does steal your identity. Make sure to keep a copy of the police report for your records.

5. Make Sure Your Wallet Isn’t Just Lost

You may think that your wallet has been stolen when, in fact, it may just be lost. Make sure to call all the previous places you have been to see if anyone found your wallet. It would be terrible to go through all the steps of cancelling your cards only to find out your wallet was really just lost and not stolen.

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