I have noticed lately I am receiving a lot of credit card offers. The offers are for new credit cards or cheques to be drawn down on my existing credit cards. When I pick up the mail in my condo, there are recycling bins by the mailboxes. My first instinct is to toss the offers into the recycling bins. However, I end up taking them to my condo and shredding them.
Identity theft can occur in many different ways. Someone steals your wallet and becomes you. Someone hacks your computer and steals vital information. However, identity theft can also occur as simply as going through your garbage or recycling bin and taking your credit card offers and applying in your name but with a different address. It is so simple yet so effective.
As a practical tip, please make sure you shred all your personalized junk mail. Offers from your existing financial institution, credit card companies or investment advisors provide key insights into where you keep your money to strangers. These solicitations are both junk mail and insights into your life so guard your privacy accordingly.
I am on a business trip for the remainder of the week so no more posts this week. Have a great week.
January 20th, 2010 at 8:48 am
I don’t have a good shredder (my last one broke). I tend to do my shredding all at once, rather than as mail comes in so the volume can be huge (shredded paper takes up way more space). Plus it makes me a little irritated that I have to spend the time to shred stuff that I never asked to have sent to me.
Now I have a special ‘to be shredded’ folder that gets taken to the cottage and used as kindling/firestarters.
January 20th, 2010 at 3:18 pm
We’re getting lots of credit card/line of credit offers as well, for both personal and business use.
I guess they want to lure people in with lower rates now. Many CC offers are based on prime which I thought was interesting.
January 20th, 2010 at 3:57 pm
When I receive such offers from banks or stores I actually do have a business relationship with, i.e. use their credit card or financial services, I usually take a little bit of my time and make a call to their customer service. Then I politely ask them to stop sending me any types of offers and/or advertisements like that (insurance, credit cards, cheques, etc.) in the mail. My request haven’t been refused yet. As a result it saves me a lot of time processing junk mail in the long run, not to mention some trees and fear of identity theft. While you at it, ask them to stop offering any additional products over the phone, for example when you next time make a service call.
January 21st, 2010 at 2:35 pm
Sergei: This is a good tip. Our privacy laws allow us to opt out of marketing materials.
January 22nd, 2010 at 12:44 am
[...] Thicken My Wallet does what I do: when you get credit card offers in the mail, shred them before scrapping them. [...]
January 22nd, 2010 at 11:03 am
I send them all back in their postage paid envelope with a simple “No, thank you” note on the form. Hopefully if enough of us do that it will become too expensive for them to continue.
January 22nd, 2010 at 1:24 pm
Shred it all except for the reply envelope. Lick it and send it back empty, costing them 50 cents. Sometimes I include random coupons for them to enjoy. If we all did this, it would sure add up!
January 22nd, 2010 at 2:52 pm
I generally open the packet and tear it in half and return it in the self addressed envelope enclosed. I figure if they can pester me then let them pay for it,
January 23rd, 2010 at 2:39 pm
One tactic to consider is “never waste a postage paid return envelope.” After you shred personal information, seal the envelope and place in the mail. Your additional cost is low (since you chose to shred the pre-approved offer anyway). This tactic is important since it shifts the economics of junk mail. The junk sender must now add costs for postage (back) and mail room operations to the break-even point on accepted applications. Note – this idea is not new, just passing on the meme.
January 23rd, 2010 at 6:45 pm
Thanks for all your good suggestions to reduce junk mail.
January 24th, 2010 at 7:36 pm
Good additional points about how it communicates information to strangers. Here in the U.S., reps at Citibank didn’t believe me when I tried to tell them that – I’m getting card offers on a weekly basis and it really irks me for environmental reasons, too. I rip them up right away and am bothered by the fact that they put your name into the letter, etc. so you have to look through it to make sure you’re ripping it all up.
I like Patrick’s suggestion, above, too.
January 25th, 2010 at 9:56 am
Re: sending back the postage-paid envelope — why not tape it to a brick and send it back? That will cost them more than 50 cents.
January 28th, 2010 at 9:22 pm
[...] Thicken My Wallet has a valuable tip: make sure you shred all your personalized junk mail such as credit card offers. [...]
January 29th, 2010 at 2:34 pm
If there is a pre-paid return envelope, I put something in it and send it back.