How much?
Most card providers offer protection policies, with the cheapest
starting from around £12 a month, while some policies offer you a
discount if you sign up for more than one year, typically £50 for
three years.
How does it work?
You register the details of your cards, as
well as important documents, such as your passport and driving
licence, so that if your wallet or handbag is lost or stolen, the
card protection company will contact the card providers on your
behalf so you don't have the hassle of having to make lots of
calls to different companies.
The insurer will be able to supply you with
the numbers of your passport and driving licence when applying for
new ones, while some policies will even include the cost of
replacing such documents.
What should I do if my cards are lost or stolen?
Notify your card protection insurer
immediately using the freephone or reverse charge number you will
have been given when you took out the policy. The card protection
company (the insurer) will do the rest and will normally have a 24
hours a day/ 365 day a year helpline.
It is essential that you inform the insurer
immediately so that it can contact all your card providers to put a
stop on the cards as soon as possible
What happens if someone else uses my cards?
Most card protection policies include fraud
protection, which means you're covered if your cards are used
before you report them lost or stolen. However, under the
Banking Code, unless you have been reckless or negligent
in the use of your cards, you are covered for any losses in
excess of £50.
Some policies also incorporate a protective
registration service which is activated if identifying documents
are lost when your cards are stolen. The service ensures that your
details are registered with CIFAS, the UK’s fraud prevention
service.
CIFAS will make extra checks on any subsequent
applications for credit made in your name in order to block
fraudulent attempts to commit identity fraud.
Policy features
What about cash?
The worst thing about losing your cards is
that you could find yourself marooned in the middle of nowhere
without cash.
But this is where your policy will come into
its own. If you are abroad, you can typically have emergency cash
of up to £3,000 wired to you, as a loan or advance.
For an extra premium, you can buy cover for
any lost or stolen cash of up to £200 a year.
Lost your keys?
If you lose your keys, some policies include a
tag and retrieval service, whereby you are provided with a coded
key ring so that if your household keys are found, they can be
posted back to you. With premium cover you can also get up to £500
towards locksmith charges, car hire and transportation costs.
What about travel tickets?
Some policies include cover to replace your
travel tickets, with some paying up to £5,000. Lost baggage cover
of around £200 is offered with some policies.
Other expenses
Cover of up to £100 may be provided if you
have to shell out for phone calls or internet usage as a
result of your cards being lost or stolen.
There may also be up to £200 of cover to
replace a lost handbag or wallet.
But you are likely to have to pay an excess of
at least £25 on each and every claim.
But before you buy...
Before you buy card protection insurance,
check that you are not covered by your home contents or travel
insurance policy. Lost or stolen cash may be covered for when you
are abroad under these policies, although you may not be able to
claim for the lost cash until you get home.
It is also worth noting that a number
of premier bank accounts include card protection as a free
extra, so check that you haven't got cover already.