Wednesday, September 23, 2009
Category:
Consolidation
According to new research by LV= home insurance, in excess of 8 million British adults have shared their PIN with someone else during the course of the past year. This has been to allow another person to make a purchase, or to withdraw money from a cash machine. Findings reveal that 34 percent of Brits have been asked to do this and that 24 percent of the PIN holders in question have fallen victim to fraud.
It was found that websites, cash points and petrol stations are the main locations in which people use friends’ and families’ cards – most of whom are reported to be spouses or partners. However, 20 percent of children, 17 percent of parents and 15 percent of friends are also routinely asked to conduct transactions on behalf of someone else. Of those who have used another person’s card, 98 percent said that they were not caught doing so.
Despite the introduction of the chip and PIN system in 2004, for enhanced security and reduction of fraud, LV= reveals that one in ten card owners have consequently become less security conscious when it comes to their details.LV= points out that ID fraudsters can accumulate thousands of pounds worth of purchases by cloning a card, and that banks are able to refuse any form of refund if the account holder has made others aware of their PIN. This is because the actions of card holder could be classed as lacking ‘reasonable care’.
The research showed the worst offenders to be younger people, with 36 percent of those under 35 admitting to asking another person to use one of their cards. With regard to the method by which card details are shared, 9 percent have cited these details over the phone, 7 percent have made a note of them, 6 percent have disclosed them in person, and a few have sent the details in an e-mail or text message.
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Homeowners who have multiple cards and therefore multiple bills each month could consider consolidating these debts with a secured loan. One of many finance options available, a secured loan for debt consolidation could leave the borrower with just one monthly repayment as opposed to juggling several. This single monthly repayment could even be lower than existing outgoings. However, when taking out a debt
consolidation loan, it must be remembered that consolidating your debt may increase the amount you pay back overall and extend the repayment periods of your debts.
