One of the worst things that you can have happen to you while you’re traveling is to lose your wallet or have it stolen. While this may be a worst-case-scenario that we hope to never personally encounter, before you go adventuring around the country it’s good to know what you should do if this does indeed happen to you. Keep scrolling to find out how to keep yourself safe if you lose your wallet during your travels.
- First things first; call your bank and cancel any cards you have.
CAFNR/Flickr Don’t underestimate how quickly a thief will be able to do damage with the cards in your wallet. The sooner you’re able to report that your debit or credit cards have been stolen, the less likely it is that you’ll have to deal with being liable for any unwarranted charges or issues with identity theft. Cancel your cards, get new ones on their way, and discuss with your bank and any other representatives what charges on your cards were actually made by you.
- File an official police report.
Dome Poon/Flickr For any type of insurance claims or any other business that you’ll have to deal with when having your wallet stolen, you’ll need to have official documents that show what happened, and that you’ve reported your wallet stolen. After you’re done canceling any and all cards that you have, head to the nearest police station and file a report with them.
- Have someone wire you money for the time being.
Monito - Money Transfer Comparison/Flickr Losing your wallet while you’re traveling is a scenario most of us wouldn’t even wish on our worst enemy. How are you supposed to get anything that you need or have any fun if you don’t have any identification or money to do so? If you’re truly stuck in a bind, try having either family or friends send you money for the meantime through companies like Western Union that have shops all over the world.
- Check your credit reports.
chrisjtse/Flickr If you’re able to get access to a computer and go online to check your credit reports, this will be helpful in determining whether or not a thief has made any charges to your cards yet. You can visit sites like www.annualcreditreport.com for a free report, once every 12 months.
- Take preventative steps.
Saad Akhatar/flickr Taking preventative measures will help a great deal if you somehow do ever manage to lose your wallet or have it stolen while you’re traveling. Before you hit the road, make photocopies of all your important documents like your driver license and passport, and keep them in a separate place. Having copies of these types of documents will help make your life easier when you’re going to have to establish who you are and handle identity theft.
What advice do you give to people who have lost their wallets? For more travel tips that you’ll want to know about, read how Your Boarding Pass Can Get You Free Stuff And Huge Discounts Outside The Airport!
CAFNR/Flickr
Don’t underestimate how quickly a thief will be able to do damage with the cards in your wallet. The sooner you’re able to report that your debit or credit cards have been stolen, the less likely it is that you’ll have to deal with being liable for any unwarranted charges or issues with identity theft. Cancel your cards, get new ones on their way, and discuss with your bank and any other representatives what charges on your cards were actually made by you.
Dome Poon/Flickr
For any type of insurance claims or any other business that you’ll have to deal with when having your wallet stolen, you’ll need to have official documents that show what happened, and that you’ve reported your wallet stolen. After you’re done canceling any and all cards that you have, head to the nearest police station and file a report with them.
Monito - Money Transfer Comparison/Flickr
Losing your wallet while you’re traveling is a scenario most of us wouldn’t even wish on our worst enemy. How are you supposed to get anything that you need or have any fun if you don’t have any identification or money to do so? If you’re truly stuck in a bind, try having either family or friends send you money for the meantime through companies like Western Union that have shops all over the world.
chrisjtse/Flickr
If you’re able to get access to a computer and go online to check your credit reports, this will be helpful in determining whether or not a thief has made any charges to your cards yet. You can visit sites like www.annualcreditreport.com for a free report, once every 12 months.
Saad Akhatar/flickr
Taking preventative measures will help a great deal if you somehow do ever manage to lose your wallet or have it stolen while you’re traveling. Before you hit the road, make photocopies of all your important documents like your driver license and passport, and keep them in a separate place. Having copies of these types of documents will help make your life easier when you’re going to have to establish who you are and handle identity theft.
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