Restoring your identity after an identity theft incident, that's much harder.
According to the FTC, the average identity theft victim spends over 200 hours over the time of approximately 18 months resolving an identity theft incident. Do you know what time most agencies and organizations are open which you'll need to deal with for an identity theft issue? Typically 9 to 5. What time do you work? Probably 9 to 5. Not only will an identity theft issue consume a significant amount of time, it indirectly results in lost wages or vacation hours you weren't intending on using. Most identity theft victims experience severe emotional stress due to the sheer amount of time and work it takes to restore your identity. This is just one of the reasons why it's so important to have identity theft coverage that includes identity restoration, not just incident resolution.
Now it's important to note that many services claim to offer restoration, but only offer resolution. Here are a few example questions to ask of your identity theft service to determine if they truly perform restoration.
- Will a licensed private investigator be assigned to my identity theft case? (If the answer is no, this is not restoration)
- Will I be able to sign a limited power of attorney so that your service can restore my identity for me? (If the answer is no, this is not restoration)
- Is your service guarantee (typically somewhere between $1 million and $5 million) the amount your service will spend, or is this the amount you will reimburse me for taking actions on my own? (If the answer is reimbursement, this is not restoration)
By asking these basic questions, the quality of the identity theft service can be measured appropriately.
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Further Reading: http://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20151006006149/en/Latest-Data-Breach-Spotlights-Identity-Restoration
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