We certainly hear plenty about protecting our credit cards, ATM cards, and financial identities. Lots of crooks are out there stealing not just cash but entire credit accounts and they can hijack your whole credit history without leaving a trace of evidence behind. People sell us ways to lock down our social security numbers. They teach us to come up with more creative passwords that cannot be decoded. Companies have technology to protect our computers, our homes, and our cars. But rarely do we hear of any good strategies for protecting our credit cards and ATM cards from physical damage. The magnetic strip or stripe on the back of those cards – the bar that holds so much valuable account information about us – is really nothing more than a thin piece of magnetic material not much thicker than scotch tape or an onion skin. But if it gets corrupted, scratched, scraped, or otherwise damaged it can render a credit card or bank ATM card useless.
That can present huge problems, especially if you are traveling to a foreign country, are trying to use your card late at night when banks and other offices are closed, or if you are using a machine – like to pay for gas or get money from an ATM. There you are with a perfectly good credit score, a valid credit card or bank debit card. But you cannot use any of it thanks to some grit or grime that got the best of that inconspicuous strip of magnetic material on the back of the card.
The good news is that there is an easy way to protect your cards and those fragile magnetic stripes that get swiped by ATM machines and merchant gadgets. Keeping your wallet free of sand or grit is one way, but sometimes your card is not even in a wallet. A better solution is to keep it always stored in a little credit card sized envelope or sheathe. Many banks have these and will give them to you for free. Just ask a bank officer for one. If they do not have any, you can make your own by taking an ordinary envelope and cutting it and then gluing or taping it so that it is just the perfect size to hold your credit card. Or you can use something like a thin plastic luggage tag cover.
The idea is to find something thin and sleek that won’t take up room but will easily cover your card to guard it from scratches. Slip the card inside this simple protective cover whenever you’re not using it and it should last for years and years – rather than breaking down on you just when you need it the most.
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