When you choose to get a cash advance from a direct lender, there is little to worry about when it comes to the transaction process. The money is electronically deposited into your bank account and a date is set up for the loan plus fees to be debited back to the lender. You can protect yourself financially through this process by choosing a responsible lender right from the start. Monitor your bank account to make sure the correct amounts are put in and taken out. There is little else you can do to protect your finances with a cash advance lender.

A cash advance is a short-term loan, usually about 14 days.

Credit cards are a bit trickier. Since these accounts are revolving, where money can be continuously charged, protecting them, the credit cards themselves as long as they are open accounts, takes a bit more effort than a cash advance. Identity theft is being more widespread and the thieves are quite clever in obtaining your information. There are some things you can do to help protect your finances.

• Stay in control of your cards. In other words, refrain from lending your cards to family and friends. Identity thieves are in restaurants, gas stations or even sitting in public waiting to obtain your information. If you do lend you card to someone, kindly request a list of charges. Ask to know where the charges were made and for the amount charged. This information is not to be snoopy, but for clarification if you need to make a report for unauthorized charges.
• Don’t leave credit cards in your car. Anyone who wants to break into our vehicle will have direct access to your balance once the person finds your card. Protect your finances by keeping your credit cards with you.
• Creditors do not want to see you charging all of the available balance. Keep your balance at less than 30% of your limit. You can do this by using multiple cards and splitting expenses among them. Stay in control of how much gets used and on-time payments to make this a credit building strategy.
• Anytime you receive a call from a financial institution, you will want to verify the call before you answer any of their questions. Ask the person to give information about your account to you to prove that they are who they say they are. Legitimate callers will have your account information in front of them. Remember, they called you. It is their job to prove their legitimacy.
• Each time you receive a statement or when you go over your credit report, review the information to verify accuracy. Some creditors offer text or email alerts to relay transaction information as they occur.
• Keep a master list of your credit cards in a secure place. Make copies of the front and back to each card. This will give you information on your account if you need to report it stolen or missing

Use a cash advance to support an emergency cost.

Credit cards are useful as long as they are used appropriately and kept safe. When you use a cash advance to get fast money deposited into your bank account, make sure you are with a lender that uses responsible practices.