What To Do When You Lose Your Wallet
Whether you lost at a rowdy pint night in your college town or it fell out of your pocket, an elusive wallet is never a good thing. Especially in college, it is important to recognize the risks of losing your wallet beyond the inconvenience of having to replace everything inside of it. Identity theft and ruined credit scores are both dire consequences to an already unpleasant situation. While these are extreme worries, it is important to prepare yourself for the worst.
1. Cancel Your Credit Cards and Debit Cards Immediately
Most banks have a 24-hour policy to refund fraudulent charges, but even so it is best to cancel your cards as soon as possible.
2. Never Carry Your Social Security Card On You
While it seems convenient, this nine digit number can do a lot more harm than good in your pocket. It it better to keep this someplace safe in your house where you keep your passport, birth certificate, and any other valuable documents. Try to memorize your social security number (and driver’s license number) as soon as you can so you do not need to worry about knowing the number and not having the card.
3. Have a Back-Up Form of Identification
Having your passport up to date not only allows for spontaneous travel, but can be incredibly useful in the unfortunate event that you misplace your wallet. It can substitute as a proof of age in bars, let you on to planes, and just serve as a good way of proving that you are who you say you are.
4. Remain Calm
Most likely, the only consequence of losing your wallet will be the inconvenience of replacing the cards inside and maybe losing some cash. All of these things are replaceable, and as long as you’re okay, everything will be fine.