6 Reasons to Go Paperless

Introduction

Paper has been around for thousands of years, and over time displaced other materials like papyrus, silk and parchment. In fact, the invention of paper changed the world, as did the printing press. This combination made it possible to spread information and ideas to the masses. Without it, great philosophies, works of literature, and other information that influenced our civilization and culture might never have been recorded or shared.

Let’s not forget wallpaper, wrapping paper, coffee filters, boxes, and of course, facial tissue and toilet paper. Paper still has a lot of important uses today. And recycling has given us the ability to provide many types of used paper with a new life.

However, there are definite downsides to using paper, which is why more and more companies are encouraging their customers to go paperless. While you and your family may never be able to go completely paperless, it’s relatively easy to skip the paper statements and communications from banks, credit card companies, mobile phone providers, utilities, and other companies that regularly bill you for services.

Here are six reasons you should consider making the switch:

1. It’s More Environmentally Friendly

The average American uses about 750 pounds of paper products each year, according to the American Forest & Paper Association. On top of consuming countless trees, manufacturing all this paper also wastes other resources, including up to 20 liters of water (that’s more than five gallons) to make a single sheet of paper.

Disposing of it also takes a toll, as paper and cardboard account for almost 12% of all municipal solid waste that ends up in landfills — although it’s getting better, as close to 70% is recycled instead of tossed, according to the Environmental Protection Agency.

Of course, the paper recycling process uses resources too. And discarded electronic devices can also cause environmental damage through “e-waste” if you throw them in the trash (although you can usually recycle those as well). But when you add up all the pros and cons, and consider that you probably have a computer or smartphone anyway — in fact, you’re likely using one right now to read this — what’s the conclusion? That harnessing those devices to digitally access your statements and other documents is the eco-friendly choice.

2. It Could Reduce Clutter in Your Life

If you’re old enough, you may remember “paper drive” fundraisers where school kids and Boy Scouts would go door to door asking for stacks of old newspapers so they could earn recycling money. As a bonus, the donor would have the clutter reduced from their garage or basement. This was when used paper fetched a premium, and curbside recycling had not yet become widespread, so those days are gone now. But paper clutter from mailed statements and other communications can still get out of hand pretty quickly — especially if you save them.

By going paperless, statement clutter is eliminated. Instead of being stored in a shoe box or filing cabinet, your documents are stored electronically. And with many companies — Credit One Bank included — you can easily access past statements online if you need to view, save, or even print one.

3. It Makes Staying Organized Easier

This one goes hand-in-hand with reducing clutter. If your statements are stored electronically and organized chronologically, accessing them is easy — and you always know where they are.

This isn’t the case with a shoebox stuffed full of statements, or even a filing cabinet that you only update when you remember to. And if you’re receiving company communications by email instead of letter, you don’t need to worry about misplacing them. They’ll stay right there in your email inbox or computer documents, where you can quickly find them with a simple search. Unless you delete them, of course.

4. It Provides Quick Access

When you go paperless you get quick and easy access to your account, anytime, anywhere. Right from the palm of your hand.

Why would you want to wait for your statement to come in the mail when you can just log in to your mobile app and check your balances? You get up-to-the-minute transactions so you can monitor any suspicious activity, and you can see how much money or available credit you have before buying something that could put you over your limit.

Every time your new statement is posted, you’ll get a notification. That happens on the same day the paper document would have been mailed, so instead of waiting several days for your bill to arrive, you can check it right away.

5. It’s Typically More Secure

Most reputable companies have multiple policies and protections in place to protect your sensitive data, including firewalls, secure layers, encryption, limiting employee access to accounts, and more.

Of course, no system is infallible, and you’ve probably heard about data breaches at major retailers, financial companies, casinos and more. Even if a company’s website is secure, accessing your account over a public Wi-Fi network, like at your favorite coffee shop, could make your information vulnerable to being compromised. But there are a number of things you can do to help protect your data and minimize any risk, like keeping your anti-virus software updated, setting up text alerts, and using secure passwords and multi-factor authentication.

As far as the security of paper goes, if you have a printed copy of a statement with your personal information on it, gaining access to that information is just a matter of obtaining the document. Even though your full account number isn’t always included, plenty of your other data is.

So how do scammers get your paperwork? Identity thieves aren’t afraid to get their hands dirty. Rummaging through trash for statements and other sensitive hard-copy documents is a tried-and-true method of finding your personal information. So is stealing a printed statement directly from a mailbox.

6. It’s Easy to Do

Once you’ve decided to go paperless, it’s typically just a matter of logging in to your account to make it happen. For example, if you have a Credit One Bank account, all you need to do is sign in to your account through the website or mobile app. Then select Features > Paperless Delivery and toggle it “On” to get started. If you have more than one card, you’ll need to do this for each one. But we’re talking a minute or two max to enroll — less time than it takes most of us to walk to the mailbox and sort through our mail.

Bottom Line

Going paperless may seem like a big change, but if you’re like the majority of folks who’ve done it, you’ll probably wonder what took you so long. With a few clicks, your statements can go the way of the paper phone book — once considered an essential item in almost every household, and now practically obsolete.