Old Cheque Books

Daliah

SusieT said:

daveyjp said:

Scissors are just as effective as a shredder.  If that is too arduos a task tear them off the books and put the cheques in a bucket of water until they are like papier mache.

Thanks for that idea, I keep looking at a huge heap of "sensitive" paperwork that needs to be disposed of, that bucket of water idea will save me an awful lot of tearing it up.

You can get a cheap shredder for less than £20. Lidl sometimes have them, or look on Amazon or Argos. They aren't high security shredders but perfectly good for the average household needs.

greyteam1959

molerat said:

Ballard said:

I don’t put anything with either my name or address into the recycling just to be on the safe side. Presuming that you only have 25 cheques it just cut out the name and account details (although I struggle to think what use they’d be to a criminal) then cut them up into smaller pieces and put them into the bin. The rest can go in the recycling.

Realistically it’s probably unlikely that any bad would come of putting the lot in the recycling but I’d rather be safe than sorry. 

This.

I never put anything identifiable in any of my bins.  Docs get shredded, envelopes have the name torn off and shredded, boxes have the labels removed and shredded.  There was a post on here a while back where someone was getting prosecuted for fly tipping because an item with their name on had turned up.  After following the recycling truck down the main road one day with bits flying out like confetti anyone who puts anything identifiable in there should be concerned not only about security but also a possible criminal record !

That's just what I have been doing for years now.
Always surprises me when I glance at the cardboard boxes at our local recycling centre how many have names,addresses & phone numbers left on all the boxes.

[Deleted User]

I rarely get any letter post these days, all accounts and what not are set to paperless. That cuts out most of the chance of fraud right from the off.

GaleSF63

I'm going to get some of those shredding scissors! I didn't know they existed. Could be useful in the kitchen too. 
If you have a cat litter tray put the bits with name/address/account numbers etc. in it. 

gsmh

Section62 said:

SiliconChip said:

I assume that those of you who advicate shredding cheques for defunct accounts do so while wearing your best tin foil hats! There are many easier and more successful ways for identity theft to take place, this isn't one to worry about.

A very unhelpful contribution to the thread. Why did you feel the need to belittle other people who have given the correct advice?

Putting items with personally identifying information on them in a domestic bin without first shredding them is a bad idea. There shouldn't be a need for an argument about it... it is a fact.

I think @SiliconChip's post was spot on. I was also going to suggest that tinfoil hats might be helpful to some. I would put money on it that no-one has actually suffered a loss from disposing of old cheque books in the bin.

Emmia

GaleSF63 said:

I'm going to get some of those shredding scissors! I didn't know they existed. Could be useful in the kitchen too. 
If you have a cat litter tray put the bits with name/address/account numbers etc. in it. 

Looking at them on Amazon, they're really only suitable for very small quantities of paper... one sheet at a time. Personally, I'd just buy a good shredder. I use it all the time for anything with my name and address or other personal details  - labels on delivery boxes, addresses printed on catalogues, receipts, banking info....

pelirocco

Section62 said:

SiliconChip said:

I assume that those of you who advicate shredding cheques for defunct accounts do so while wearing your best tin foil hats! There are many easier and more successful ways for identity theft to take place, this isn't one to worry about.

A very unhelpful contribution to the thread. Why did you feel the need to belittle other people who have given the correct advice?

Putting items with personally identifying information on them in a domestic bin without first shredding them is a bad idea. There shouldn't be a need for an argument about it... it is a fact.

The Op has said they no longer have the bank account.The only personal info on there is a name and the fact they used to have a bank account with those details

GaleSF63

Emmia said:

GaleSF63 said:

I'm going to get some of those shredding scissors! I didn't know they existed. Could be useful in the kitchen too. 
If you have a cat litter tray put the bits with name/address/account numbers etc. in it. 

Looking at them on Amazon, they're really only suitable for very small quantities of paper... one sheet at a time. Personally, I'd just buy a good shredder. I use it all the time for anything with my name and address or other personal details  - labels on delivery boxes, addresses printed on catalogues, receipts, banking info....

I don't have enough these days to justify needing one, though I used to have one which was used a lot. I just cut the relevant bits out - though some catalogues can be very annoying as they spread details all over the page!

eskbanker

pelirocco said:

The Op has said they no longer have the bank account.The only personal info on there is a name and the fact they used to have a bank account with those details

While it's technically true that they no longer have the account, the fact that it was switched with CASS means that it effectively lives on via the redirection services (that honour subsequent credits and debits for at least three years), so it's not as simple a situation as it would have been if the account had been closed without the switch.

Daliah

Emmia said:

GaleSF63 said:

I'm going to get some of those shredding scissors! I didn't know they existed. Could be useful in the kitchen too. 
If you have a cat litter tray put the bits with name/address/account numbers etc. in it. 

Looking at them on Amazon, they're really only suitable for very small quantities of paper... one sheet at a time. Personally, I'd just buy a good shredder. I use it all the time for anything with my name and address or other personal details  - labels on delivery boxes, addresses printed on catalogues, receipts, banking info....

I bought a cheapoh over-the-bin one at Lidl several years ago, for about a tenner. I keep it in the kitchen, as that's where I normally open my post. It takes up to 6 sheets at a time, and it happily shreds a debit or credit card, too. Perfectly sufficient for average household use. Miles better than shredding scissors (which I also have, mainly for herbs, and probably have used half a dozen time in so many years).

In my home office, I also have a professional shredder which cost almost ten times as much. It doesn't take more than 6 sheets at a time either, and it needs regular treatment with something they call oil and is incredibly sticky and messy. It does have its own bin, and it shreds into much smaller pieces. I rarely ever use it though.

Depending on what kind and number of documents you have to deal with, another cheapoh option are the roller stamps. They would only get expensive if you need to buy lots of refill ink.