Jump Start January: Week 1 Day 5
Did you get those bank statements filed yesterday? Hope so! Today we’re going to have the War on Error so it’ll help if the filing’s already been done.
Today’s task is to go through current account and credit card statements from the last 12 months, and look for errors, whether that’s your own mistakes, the bank’s mistakes or even possible theft or fraud.
Starting with your current account, skim down the list of purchases, standing orders, direct debits and transfers. See if anything looks out of place. For example:
- A membership, savings payment or subscription you forgot to cancel
- A utility bill that continued being charged by the original company after you changed suppliers
- Bank fees that might not be fair
- Any transactions that just look out of place, even if they’re just for £1 or £2.
Now go through and do the same thing with any credit cards, and possibly PayPal as well.
If you spot any potential fraud, contact the bank or other institution immediately. Anything else can keep until tomorrow, but keep a note of it as and when you see it.
Let us know if you find anything dodgy – it’s a lot more common than you might think.
