Pros and Cons of Going Paperless with Your Card Statements

Many people these days are making the switch to paperless credit card statements. This means that they’ll stop getting statements (and often other types of written communication) in the mail and will instead only use online statements and email communication when working with their credit card companies. There are many great reasons for switching over to paperless communication with your credit card companies but there are also some drawbacks to this that you should be aware of if you’re considering going the paperless route.  There are several benefits to going paperless, the most common of which include:

1. Saving the Earth. Many people switch to paperless because less paper means less trees are killed and less recycling needs to be done. Some credit card companies even make donations to environmental causes for every customer that goes paperless.
2. Saving money. Some credit card companies waive various transaction fees for those customers who are willing to go paperless
3. Reducing some forms of identity theft. Many cases of identity theft have occurred because credit card statements were carelessly tossed into the trash and found later by thieves who used the information to steal the individual’s identity.
4. Quicker exchange of information. You’re going to get up-to-date information with online statements whereas snail mail communications are delayed.

Not all is good about going paperless. Some of the most common drawbacks include:

1. Lack of physical records. Some people prefer to have paper statements in hand because they fear that records can be lost online due to computer crashes and other issues.
2. Lack of communication proof. Some people fear that dealing with customer service representatives via email reduces the proof that is available regarding the communication. In the event that there is a problem with the credit card company, this lack of proof could be a concern.
3. Increase in some forms of identity theft. Although going paperless reduces identity theft caused by stolen statements from the trash, it increases other identity theft concerns related to online information theft.
4. Too easy to forget about. Some people find that they just don’t pay their bills on time or notice email communication from their credit card companies in a timely manner when they aren’t getting statements and notices in the mail. It’s just too easy to forget to pay that online bill.

We are living in a world which is rapidly moving towards paperless communication. It’s something that we need to at least consider adjusting to because it’s likely that we will eventually hit a time when paper statements and communication are a thing of the past. Nevertheless, we need to be aware of the fact that there are drawbacks to this type of communication with our credit card companies and we need to do what we can to mitigate those drawbacks in order to make paperless statements something that works to the benefit of the consumer. With several benefits already in place, this is certainly something that can be done.

This entry was posted on Wednesday, July 2nd, 2008 at 12:31 pm and is filed under Tips & Advice. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.