Pampering Plus Inc. Blog
Purge Your Paperwork Annually to Reduce Identity Theft
Are All of Your Important Documents In Order?
Are you a paperwork hoarder or a minimalist who keeps nothing? Most of us are somewhere in between. Each year when the earth is renewing itself, we can focus our efforts on cleaning out our files while making sure we're keeping the paperwork we need. Whether you keep important documents on paper or strictly adhere to electronic files, very few of the organizational experts talk about which files should be retained and which should be destroyed, or when. Many of us keep documents much longer than needed or toss out things we should be storing. And these documents often contain a lot of personal and financial information that any identity thief would love to steal.
ID Theft Is Real !
The Consumer Sentinel Network reports that identity theft complaints were filed in the US have increased by 19.8%. Credit card fraud using another person's ID represented 40% of all identity theft followed by tax fraud, new mobile phone accounts, and fraud using someone else's ID for health benefits, emailing, online shopping, and insurance and securities account fraud. Avoid becoming a part of these statistics by categorizing and purging your documents.
What Are ID Thieves After?
The types of items identity thieves seek include:
- Expired credit and debit cards
- Credit and debit card receipts
- Unused credit card checks
- Credit card statements
- Pre-approved credit card offers & applications
- Checking and savings account statements
- Canceled checks
- Investment account statements
- Pension account statements
- Paycheck stubs
- Wage & earnings statements
- Phone & utility bills
- Retail invoices and statements
- Tax returns and statements
- Medical bills
- Insurance claim information
- Insurance policy information (auto, health, life)
- Expired Identification (driver's licenses & passports)
Document Categories - What To Keep & What To Toss?
It's best to organize your documents by how long you need to hold on to them. The first category is
Forever for those documents that you will keep indefinitely. Next are those you will keep
Long Term, until you no longer own a piece of property, for example. Next, there are documents that you will keep for
Up to 7 Years, followed by those you will hold on to for
Up to 1 Year. Another category is for
Temporary documents that you will keep until you have completed using them. Finally, there are those that you may feel free to shred
Immediately. One category that is missing is
Toss. Documents should never just be thrown away; they need to be discarded thoughtfully.
When Should I Shred It?
Immediately:
- Sales Receipts
- ATM Receipts
- Paid Credit Card Statements
- Paid Utility Bills
- Credit Offers
- Cancelled Checks (not tax-related)
- Expired Warranties
Temporary:
- Receipts for Items to Be Returned
- Restaurant Receipts
- Expense Account Receipts
After 1 Year:
- Pay Stubs
- Bank Statements
- Paid, Undisputed Medical Bills
After 7 Years:
- Tax-related Receipts
- Tax-related Cancelled Checks
- W-2s
- Records for Tax Deductions
Long Term:
- Auto Titles - Keep as long as you own the vehicle
- Home Deeds - Keep as long as you own the property
- Disputed Medical Bills - Keep until the issue Is resolved
- Home Improvement Receipts - Keep until home is sold and capital gains taxes are paid
Forever:
- Birth Certificates
- Social Security Cards
- Marriage or Divorce Decrees
- Citizenship Papers
- Adoption Papers
- Death Certificates
- Tax Returns
Document Destruction – How Should Unnecessary Items be Destroyed?
It may sound extreme, but anything you plan to throw away that has ANY personal or financial information on it should be shredded. Shredding is vital because an ID thief can take information most of us think of as trash and ruin our lives. Some of the documents that you shred may actually have little value by themselves, but ID thieves use each and every piece of information that they can obtain to build a complete identity.
Purchasing a shredder is a good investment. The best kind of shredder to purchase is a micro-cut shredder that will cut your documents into confetti-like pieces of paper. You can also take advantage of office supply businesses that offer free shredding. Local municipalities often offer a monthly shredding event. Keep in mind to never just give your important papers over to someone to shred, but make sure you are there watching while they are destroyed.
Document Storage - How Should the Items Kept Be Stored?
Now that all of those papers and documents have been sorted, how will you keep it all safe? Storing everything on your computer is not recommended. While it is convenient to have scanned copies of everything available at the click of a mouse, all it takes is one hacker finding a way into your computer to make those critical documents available to ID thieves! If you or a client have their documents in electronic form, we recommend storing those documents on something like a flash drive. The flash drive and/or paper copies should then remain locked up either in a safe location at home, or in a safety deposit box.
An exception to this are advanced medical directives. A copy of these should be given to medical professionals, your estate planner, and to the person who has medical power of attorney. In addition, it is wise to have a copy of this document in the home and another to carry with you in case of an emergency that requires an ambulance or other transportation to a hospital. Other people in the household including in-home health care personnel should know where these documents are kept as well.
Encourage Seniors to Complete an Annual Paperwork Purge
Assisting older adults by discussing the importance of having all of their paperwork and documents in order could be a vital and supportive activity. Going through that paperwork will no doubt bring up many wonderful stories and memories. Not only will seniors feel relieved to have everything organized, but they will have taken steps to reduce the risk of being a victim of identity theft. Remember that scam artists may pose as professionals who will help organize your home and documents. When facilitating older adults using these services, it is very important to help them check references before allowing these services into the home.
Rely on Pampering Plus Inc. - the Home Care Agency You Can Trust
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wide range of services to meet the individual requirements of each client. If you are considering
in-home care services, talk to the friendly dependable staff at Pampering Plus. We can answer your questions and help you understand more about the
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