ID protection launched as employee benefit

Offering staff an identity protection programme as part of their employee benefits package is now possible following a launch by P&MM.

The employee benefits provider has linked with CPP Group to introduce a low-cost solution to ID protection.

Richard Davies, head of employee benefits at P&MM, says:“The consequences of identity fraud can be serious and prolonged with a ruined credit rating, county court judgements and bailiffs chasing overdue payments. Highly stressful, it may take a victim over 200 hours of work to resolve fraud where a ‘total hijack’ has occurred, perhaps involving 20 to 30 different organisations. Consequentially, we have identified CPP’s latest identity protection product as an ideal solution for the employee benefits market allowing employers to offer their staff assistance in protecting personal information.”

The package provides identify protection software for home PCs, with anti-virus and online “data patrol” to ensure personal information is not being entered into non-secure websites. Users have unlimited access to personal credit reports to track account activity at banks, online retailers and mail order companies. This alerts individuals to significant changes in their credit status which often follow ID hijacks.

A recovery process and insurance cover for losses and cost of up to £60,000 is included. There is also a stipend of up to £1,500 for day-to-day expenses during the resolution process. Victims are helped to register on the National Fraud Database to avoid recurrence of the theft.