Disposing of a Credit Card Properly–How to dispose of your old credit cards. Whether it is time to activate a new credit card or the need arises to eliminate a credit card account, it is very important to dispose of a credit card properly. In the wrong hands, a misplaced credit card can cause many years of financial woes for the original cardholder–especially in the event of credit card identity theft.
Reasons to Dispose of a Credit Card
Dispose of a Credit Card To Eliminate Debt
Many people have hundreds and thousands of dollars of credit card debt. It may be nearly impossible to pay off these debts off without first eliminating spending. Once cardholders make the decision to dispose of the credit card, the elimination process can begin. Eliminating debt helps consumers get a little closer to achieving financial dreams.
Dispose of a Credit Card if Cardholders Have Bad Credit
Credit card debt weight heavily on credit scores—especially when cards are maxed out or cardholders do not pay monthly bills on time. Bad credit can prevents cardholders from ever owning a home, car, or anything else that requires good credit. Getting rid of credit cards is the best way to rebuild credit and restore creditworthiness so that potential creditors will extend credit.
Dispose of a Credit Card if Cardholders Receive a New Card
Credit card companies send new cards when the old card is about to expire. Once the new card is received in the mail, the old card should be destroyed.
Dispose of Credit Cards To Prevent Identity Theft
Credit cards that are not properly disposed can cause problems for the cardholder. It could take months before a cardholder realizes that someone has used the credit card, and by that time, the damage is already done.
Steps to Properly Dispose of a Credit Card
Credit card disposal is important if a cardholder wants to protect his or her identity. The following are tips to dispose of credit cards:
Shred and Cut Credit Cards
Some shredders have the capability to shred a credit card. The shredder cuts the credit card in equal strips but this is not enough. Take a pair of scissors and make sure to cut the security code, the account number, and any additional numbers on the credit card. Throw away a few pieces each trash collection day. It is impossible for someone to reconstruct the credit card if these steps are followed.
Burn the Credit Card
The fireplace or an outside fire pit is great for destroying a credit card. Make sure that the process is monitored. The fire should destroy any existence of the credit card.
Destroy Magnetic Strip
The magnetic strip contains all of the cardholder’s information. Take a strong magnet and drag it across the magnetic strip a few times. This demagnetizes the card and makes it unusable. The next thing to do is to place the credit card inside of a powerful blender to shred it to pieces. Dispose of the card in various trash bags.
Identity protection is so important these days. If a cardholder does not properly dispose of a credit card and it gets in the wrong hands, there can be years of problems caused by this simple mistake.