Are ID Theft Protection Services Really Worth It?

There have been many discussions in recent months among industry experts, consumer advocates and members of the media in regards to whether or not enrolling in an id theft protection product is worth the cost of the membership. With some companies charging as much as $200 per year for their services, there may be some merit to arguments presented by those who feel that protecting your personal identity is something that consumers can handle themselves.

While it is true that certain features of id theft protection can be handled by consumers themselves, it simply comes down to whether or not individuals are interested in spending the time it takes to monitor all the necessary data sources, placing phone calls to credit bureaus, remembering to renew fraud alerts every 90 days, etc.

The scenario is much like dining out. Consumers are able to prepare food at home for themselves and save a couple dollars, but sometimes it is worth it to visit a restaurant because the food is prepared by professionals that are able to provide a higher quality of food, and the restaurant takes care of ensuring your glass remains full and that the dishes are washed.

Many id theft protection services also include insurance to help consumers recoup the costs associated with financial loss due to identity theft. This portion of the service should not be overlooked as it is something that consumers will have to go without if they plan on taking a "do it yourself" approach to preventing identity theft.

It is important to note that several identity protection companies no longer offer insurance, they offer a "guarantee" or "warranty", usually for a large amount like $1,000,000. While this may sound like a great benefit, if one takes a closer look they will find that the only way a consumer can get a payout in the event of identity theft is if the theft occurred as a direct result of the product malfunctioning. Due to this, it is strongly recommended that consumers make sure to take advantage of an id theft protection that offers true identity theft insurance rather than simply a guarantee.

Currently in the identity protection marketplace, most products range from $9 upwards to $20 per month. In the present economic downturn, consumers may be hesitant to spend $10 per month to protect themselves from identity theft, but with large scale corporate data breaches being reported nearly every week now and identity theft ranking as the fastest growing crime in the United States for the sixth year in a row, now is certainly the time for consumers to decide which method of id theft protection they will be using.

As with any type of insurance or protection, you need to have coverage in place before an event takes place in order to receive the benefits or the program. Don't wait until it's too late, take 3 minutes to enroll in identity theft protection and rest easy knowing that your identity is being protected by professionals around the clock.

Premium Safe Identity, a top rated id theft protection service offers a proactive solution to prevent identity theft from happening. The cost is under $10 per month, there are no contracts, they offer a "real" identity theft insurance policy of $25,000, and they even provide a free simple will to all members who sign up.

Premium Safe Identity takes all of the hassle out of keeping your identity safe. Click here to see for yourself how Premium Safe Identity provides the most protection features available at a nice low cost.

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