If your wallet or purse is lost or stolen you will need to contact all your card holders in order to cancel the cards to prevent them from being used fraudulently, and to order replacement cards.

A simple solution that exists that means you only need to make one phone call in order to cancel your cards and get replacements. The solution is 'Card Protection'. This covers all types of cards, not just credit cards.

Card Protection is currently offered by two companies:

Card Protection Plan (CPP) - 0870 241 24 40
Sentinel Card Services - 0800 41 47 17

The service is relatively inexpensive. CPP charge £12 per person for one year or £29 for three years. Joint policies will cover two people at the same address and this costs £18 for one year and £44 for three years. Sentinel charges £12 per year and that includes everyone at a given address.

A card protection plan offers more than a multiple card cancelling / ordering service. Some of the additional benefits include an emergency cash advance, an emergency hotel bill payment, cover for cash if lost with your cards abroad and replacement travel tickets home. This is not the full list of benefits. Contact CPP or Sentinel (contact details given above) for latest details on the policy benefits on offer, and the amount of cover for those benefits.

You also have the option of including other vital documents on the insurer's record, such as passport details or driving licences.

CPP's 6 million customers across 140 countries have access to a 24 hours a day, 365 days a year help line from anywhere in the world. They can also amend their details using the internet, as well as by post.

Remember; if you have a card protection policy you will still need to contact the police, whether you are at home or abroad, because you will need an incident report number if you need to make a future claim on household or travel insurance. For example, changing your locks or replacing other items in a handbag.