Protecting Your Valuables

Nothing can spoil a wonderful vacation more than the loss of money, travelers. checks, credit cards, your passport, your jewelry or other valuables. The following suggestions may be helpful to protect yourself from loss:

1. Leave non-essential jewelry and expensive watches at home. Travel with only things you need.
2. Limit the number of documents, credit cards, and other identification taken with you on a trip. Ask yourself, .How many credit cards will I need?. Leave the rest at home.
3. It is very easy to become distracted in new surroundings. Keep your most important valuables attached to your body. Be aware of your surroundings and valuables at all times.
4. List on a Document Inventory everything of importance in your wallet, purse, carry-on, and suitcase.
5. Several copies of your Document Inventory should be carried in different places with you. A copy may be left at home with someone you trust and are able to contact.
6. It is important to protect your credit card numbers if someone should locate your credit cards or Document Inventory of your cards. When listing your credit card numbers it is wise to encrypt them in some way: example: my card number is 8960-3640-7995-8989, I could swap digit locations as follows 8989-3640-7995-8960 or transpose digits: 8960-3640-5997-8989 or Adding a number to each group (I added 1): 8961-3641-7996-8990. Please make it simple, as you must remember how you encrypted the credit card number. (Do not write the encryption code on your Document Inventory).
7. Make a color copy of your passport and visa for the country you are traveling in. This copy may be helpful with immigration officials or with the US Embassy if you have to apply for another passport.
8. If you have a loss, in order to collect from an insurance company, you may need to file a police report.

Document Inventory Form (pdf)