[Xaccers]

Couple of points.

From the email, the wife would have had to have been listening in on the phone call that her husband took if you read the last paragraph.

It has "PASS IT ON" at the end of the email.

Most credit card thieves who go through your rubbish use the information to imprint fake cards, or just to get credit in your name by putting your card details down when filling out a form.
They use those cards in person, normlly by giving them to a lacky who they won't miss if they get caught using them, or by sending them to partners abroad where it will be harder to track.
You don't need the CV2 for these transactions.
Demagnatise one of your cards just before it runs out, and take it to BHS or some other store, and when it fails to swipe, the person will put in the number manually.

What important bit of information must you always give an internet supplier when placing an order?
Delivery address of course!
Which is quite handy should anyone try and order anything using your card. The delivery address would be on record making it rather easy for the criminals to be tracked down.

Even if the caller witheld their number, it can be tracked.