What to Do If Your Credit Card Gets Lost or Stolen
Credit Card Gets Lost or Stolen
Your credit card contains personal information like your name, address, saved fingerprint data and PINs. That’s why it’s important to keep track of it. A lost credit card might make you feel nervous, but it doesn’t have to be scary. Federal law limits your liability to $50 and most card issuers have zero-liability fraud policies. If you have a credit card that goes missing, the first thing you should do is report it to the issuer. Most cards have toll-free numbers and customer service representatives available around the clock to deal with these situations.
By law, if you report the card lost or stolen before the thief uses it, you cannot be held responsible for any unauthorized charges. This is true even for debit cards, although the liability protections are not as strong with those. After reporting the loss, most card issuers will cancel your old card number and arrange to have a replacement sent to you. In many cases, they may even offer overnight delivery to get the new card to you quickly if needed. If you have recurring payments set up with the old card, it’s best to update them to the new card number right away. You can usually do this online, through your credit card app or by calling the company directly.
Once you report your card missing, the credit card issuer will close the account and send you a replacement. When your new card arrives, check it for any unauthorized charges that may have been made while the old one was missing. You can usually find the company’s customer service phone number on your card statements or by logging in to your online card account.
What to Do If Your Credit Card Gets Lost or Stolen
Many card issuers allow you to freeze your account access in an app or through their website after you report a lost card. This will prevent anyone from making any new transactions on your account, and it can also help you avoid identity theft. Make sure to save the customer service numbers for all of your cards and your bank in your phone in case you lose them or they get stolen. This could help you mitigate any fraudulent activity that might have taken place and expedite the timeframe for getting a new card.
Depending on your card company, you should get a replacement credit card in the mail. You should also update any recurring payments linked to the old card number. The new card will have a different number and will prevent you from using the old card, which can help limit your liability. Having the right information in hand before you lose your card can help ensure that you don’t have to pay for any unauthorized transactions made. It can also help you spot any suspicious activity in your statement.
When you call your card issuer to report the loss, they will freeze the account, preventing any further charges from being made. You should also dispose of the old card in a secure manner, such as running it through a shredder or cutting it up into small strips with scissors. Make sure you dispose of the pieces in separate trash receptacles because crooks have been known to piece shredded cards back together.
Most credit cards have zero-liability fraud policies, which means that you won’t be responsible for unauthorized charges made on a stolen card if you report it lost or stolen to the issuer promptly. The issuer will cancel the old card number and send you a new one with a different card number so that it’s harder for anyone to track your spending and make unauthorized charges again.