By John Campbell

If you ever lose a credit card, time is probably not on your side.

Chances are the card will be long gone before you even notice it’s missing. It could have fallen out of your wallet, you may have forgotten to get it back from the server at the last restaurant you dined at - or it could be stolen.

If your credit card has found its way into the wrong hands, you may already have thousands of dollars in fraudulent transactions posted to your account. Your card could have been used to purchase goods or services online or anywhere else, for that matter. Making matters worse, many clerks don’t bother to check your ID when you use a credit card at a lot of businesses. Many department stores and grocery store chains have “do it yourself” check out lanes, which make it easier for a thief to rack up charges on your card.

Once you discover your card is missing you may not be able to notify your credit card company because you simply won’t have the issuer’s contact information handy. Chances are you never bothered to write this information down! Unless you happen to have a credit card statement handy, you’re going to have a very hard time contacting the credit card company if there’s a problem. You don’t want to end up in this position.

Luckily, all you need to do is get out an index card or post-it note and start writing down all the contact information that’s available for each of your cards. Jot down the name of each credit card along with any associated contact numbers and addresses. If you’re worried about the information falling into the wrong hands you shouldn’t need to write down your account number. Any credit card company should be able to verify your identity and locate your account if you can provide them with either your social security number or a password you set up in advance.

Ideally, you should have a copy of your credit card issuer’s contact information in your wallet, in the glove compartment of your car and at home. That way, you’ll be able to report a lost or stolen card immediately.

The few minutes it takes you to jot down your credit card issuers’ contact information today will save you a lot of time in preventing fraud on your account. Every second counts if a thief is trying to steal your credit and max out your accounts.

© cashbuzz.com
John Campbell is the writer and editor of CashBuzz, A financial portal for the rest of us. Check out cashbuzz.com for the latest articles on money management and tips and tricks that can help improve your finances. This article may be reprinted on your Web site if the copyright, author information and active link are included.