MY WALLET IS GONE !

Good Advice when your wallet is lost or stolen:

Prior to loosing your wallet:  Place the contents of your wallet on a photocopy machine; do both sides of each license, credit card, etc.  In the event your wallet is lost or stolen, you will know what you had in your wallet and all of the account numbers and phone numbers to call and cancel.  Keep the photocopy in a safe place.

Actual case:  We've all heard horror stories about fraud that's committed to someone using their name, address, SS#, credit, etc.  Here is an actual case:  A mans wallet was stolen and within a week the thieves ordered an expensive monthly cell phone package, applied for a VISA credit card, had a credit line approved to buy a Gateway computer, received a PIN number from DMV to change his driving record information online, and more.

But here's some critical information to limit the damage in case this happens to you or someone you know: 

1.  Cancel your credit cards immediately.  The key is having the toll free numbers and your card numbers, so you know whom to call. Keep those where you can find them easily.  This is where that photocopy of your wallet comes in handy.

 2.  File a police report immediately in the jurisdiction where it was stolen.  This proves to credit providers you were diligent, and is a first step toward an investigation. 

 3.  Call the three national credit reporting organizations immediately to place a Fraud Alert on your Name and SS#.  The victim in our actual case above, had never heard of doing that until advised by a bank that called to tell him an application for credit was made over the Internet in his name.  The Alert means any company that checks your credit knows your information was stolen and they have to contact you by phone to authorize new credit.  By the time the victim was advised to do this, almost 2 weeks after the theft, all the damage had been done.  There are records of all the credit checks initiated by the thieves' purchases, none of which were known about before placing the alert.  Since then, no additional damage has been done, and the thieves threw the wallet away.  It seems to have stopped them in their tracks.

The numbers are:

Equifax: 1-800-525-6285

Experian (formerly TRW): 1-888-397-3742

Trans Union: 1-800-680-7289

Social Security Administration (fraud line): 1-800-269-0271