Keep your passport safe - Business Works
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Keep your passport safe

Identity and Passport Service
M ore than 10,000 people a year accidentally throw their passports out with the rubbish, according to new figures released today by the Identity and Passport Service (IPS). Keep yours safe at all times - particularly on a business trip or holiday!

"Your passport is not only increasingly attractive to fraudsters, but it will cost you at least £77.50 to replace, so it’s really important that you keep it safe both when you are at home and when you’re abroad," says Sarah Rapson, Chief Executive of the Identity and Passport Service.

"There are four simple steps anyone can take to keep their passport safe and avoid losing it:

  • Keep it in a safe place at home - and in a place you can remember
  • Only carry your passport when it is absolutely necessary
  • Use alternatives to your passport if you need to prove your age
  • Lock your passport away in a secure location when abroad; and,
  • If it’s in a safe, make sure the safe is fixed securely to the wall."

"Remember to put your passport away after use. Don’t leave it in a trouser or shirt pocket in the laundry pile."

"Finally, if you are unlucky and your passport is lost or stolen, keeping a note of the passport number will help us identify your record and issue a replacement as quickly as possible."

The IPS research shows a 60:40 split between genders when it comes to replacing lost and stolen passports, with more than 162,500 passports replaced each year by men compared to around 112,000 by women.

Around 40 per cent (110,000) of the passports replaced each year belong to people in their twenties, with approximately 10,000 of those lost while on a night out in a bar or club.


For information on what IPS can do for you if you have lost your passport, please visit:
www.direct.gov.uk/en/TravelAndTransport/Passports/Loststolenordamagedpassports/index.htm


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