I have read a lot of postings about people losing their credit cards while on vacation and I would like to share some advice that someone told me a long time ago. Spouses should never carry the same credit cards whether on vacation or around town. At least one of the cards should be different. The reason for this is if one person has their wallet or purse stolen, the other person will have a credit card that was not stolen and the trip can still be continued without having to wait for new cards to arrive. My wife and I even have different ATM card numbers so we could immediately cancel the card for the account and still use the other ATM card.
Posted by
Reading, PA, USA
1637 posts
With our bank, USAA, my wife's and my credit card each have different numbers but are on the same account. I recently had my number "stolen" and my card was canceled. My wife continued to use her card. The same applies to our Debit/ATM cards.
Posted by
California 🦋
5294 posts
Yosemite,
Great advice, thanks!
Good advice for couples, but most of my trips have been with my elderly mother & she doesn't ever carry any valuables.
I carry my valuables in my money belt, under my clothes, so fortunately have not had any valuables stolen.
Posted by
Windsor, Ontario, Canada
4088 posts
Lacking a travel companion of any sort or relationship, I still follow a similar tactic. I have credit cards, and ATM cards, from two different banking companies, and they are never all in the same pocket/wallet together. I also have photocopies in another place, along with the emergency phone numbers, in case I need to report one gone missing.
Posted by
San Francisco Bay Area
5697 posts
I'm with Southam -- two debit cards on separate accounts plus his-and-hers credit cards. And the card list with telephone numbers stashed in a secure suitcase pocket.