These Common Wallet Mistakes Could Be Putting You At Risk

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Published February 5, 2019 at 11:42 pm

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Some of us literally want to have every piece of information about ourselves located in one place…and that place is usually our wallets.

Whether it’s your social insurance number, your passport, birth certificate or your permanent residency card if you’re only a permanent resident, the instinctive notion is that having them on your person is crucial and importan–not to mention convenient.

And most of us think that as long as we know where our wallets are at all times, we can avoid having them stolen.

But unfortunately, mistakes happen and wallets get stolen more often than you think–and what do you think will happen to all your important documents once your wallet is gone. It’s a chore and an uphill climb just to put things back to the way they were.

That’s why Peel Regional Police have advised people that they should give their wallets a ‘tune up’, which means removing things like your SIN card, passport and birth certificate from your wallet that are not needed on an every day basis like your credit card or your driver’s license.

“You do not need these items on a daily basis. If you were to lose your wallet with these items in it, not only would this be a huge inconvenience for you to replace these cards, but there is an increased risk of you becoming a victim of identity theft,” police say.

Other steps to get your ‘tune up’ started include:

  • Take inventory of what you have in your wallet.

  • Photocopy the front and back of all the cards you use.

  • Remove documents that aren’t needed on a daily basis.

  • Keep your special documents, including any photocopies you have made, in a safe and secure area or within a safety deposit box.

By doing so, you can make your life easier and not worry if you lose your wallet. Driver’s licenses and credit cards are much easier to replace than more important government documents like a passport.

Will you be ‘tuning up’ your wallet anytime soon?

Photo courtesy of Peel Regional Police

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