How to Properly Get Rid of Financial Documents

American Investment Planners LLC

500 North Broadway, Suite 260, Jericho, NY 11753

(516) 932-5130 / (866) 932-5130

When you receive junk mail or have paperwork that you no longer need, what do you usually do with it? If you answered "throw it out," you're likely not alone - tossing old papers or unwanted mail into the trash is common practice for most people. However, the same doesn't apply to financial documents or anything else that has confidential information on it. 

As your trusted financial planner, we want to share with you the best way to get rid of any paperwork that you don't want others to get a hold of - the answer is: shred it. From tax information to bank statements, canceled checks, mortgage paperwork, paychecks and more, anything that has your personal information on it belongs in the shredder. While yes, some documents may seem safe to throw in the trash, the fact of the matter is that anything you don't want people to get their hands on should be shredded. Let us remind you of why:

A common identity theft attack is known as dumpster diving, and the act is carried out exactly as it sounds - thieves literally go through trash cans and dumpsters in search of documents with people's personal information on them. Often these thieves will look for documents such as credit card bills, utility bills and bank statements, which is why it's so important to avoid throwing these in the trash (you should even shred things like personalized credit card offers). 

While you may feel confident that no one is going through your personal trash can, you don't know where your garbage actually winds up, which is why you should avoid the trash can altogether when it comes to your personal information.

Even if you've thrown out sensitive information like this in the past, what we ask is that from here on out, you start shredding everything that can give an identity thief clues about who you are! If you have any further questions about how to dispose of financial documents or would like more information about identity theft and how you can protect yourself, please call (516) 932-5130 or email info@americaninvestmentplanners.com today.