You won't know about fraudulent credit card charges unless you thoroughly review your monthly credit card statement. The quicker you spot fraud, the faster you can take action to reverse charges and to prevent the thief from making additional charges. The longer it takes to identify and report unauthorized credit card charges, the less likely your credit card issuer will remove the charges from your statement. Also, you must report fraudulent charges within 60 days, or your liability won't be legally reduced to $50 or less.
To reduce chances of credit card fraud, keep your credit card in a safe place and never give your credit card number to someone you don't trust, especially to a telemarketer or through an email solicitation.
Immediately Contact and Dispute Fraudulent Credit Card Charges with Your Issuer: As soon as you spot unauthorized credit card charges, call your credit card issuer through the phone number on the back of your credit card. You can also get the phone number from a recent billing statement or through your card issuer’s website.
WARNING: Don't be a scam victim - Never respond to an unsolicited telephone call or email, even the caller claims to be your credit card issuer. This is often a phishing scam that thieves use to get access to your credit card information, usually the three-digit security code or your zip code. Always initiate contact with your credit card issuer using a trusted phone number.
After you report the disputed charge, your credit card issuer may suggest that you cancel the compromised credit card number and reissue another credit card with a new account number.
Be sure to follow up your phone call with a dispute letter that explains the unauthorized credit card charges. Reference your phone call and include the name of the customer service representative you spoke with.
Some credit card issuers require you to first try to resolve the unauthorized charge with the merchant. You can typically figure out who the merchant is by looking at your credit card statement. However, thieves sometimes spoof merchant information making it appear as though charges were made with a particular merchant when they really weren’t.
Government regulations make you liable for up to $50 of unauthorized charges made before you reported a missing credit card, but many credit card issuers have zero fraud liability policies that removes your liability for many fraudulent charges. In addition, the FCBA says that you’ll never be liable for unauthorized charges made while your card was in your possession. In other words, if the unauthorized charges were made with your credit card account information rather than your credit card, you won’t be held liable. Once you dispute the unauthorized charge, the credit card issuer will typically remove it from your account. In the meantime, you’re not responsible for paying the disputed portion of your balance. The card issuer can’t charge any fees or interest on that unpaid balance unless it’s later determined that you indeed authorized the charge.
Disputing credit card charges - did you know?
The burden of proof that the credit card legitimate rests with the merchant (company) which placed the charge against your account. They must prove that they not only charged you in accordance with the terms of the sale, but that you also received the goods or services that you bought and that they reasonably met your expectations. In many cases the evidence of a signature is all that is required for a merchant to provide proof.
At the end of your credit card company investigation (often within 30-90 days of your initial dispute), a decision is made regarding the transaction. If the merchant is determined to be truthful, he will be credited with the amount of the sale and you will be responsible for paying the amount. But if you are found to be in the right, you will not be responsible for the transaction cost. Due to abuse, some merchant companies have compiled a listing of people who routinely reverse credit card charges, and those people may be denied to make purchases via credit cards.
Credit Card Chargebacks: When To Dispute Card Charges - Here's a list of common reasons to seek reverse credit card charges.
- The credit card account number doesn't match yours.
- You did not authorize the transaction on your card.
- You authorized the charge, but you never received the services or goods.
- Your card was expired card yet someone placed a fraudulent charge.
- The purchase transaction charge was processed multiple times instead of only once.
- You were over-charged for the product/service.
- The product or service you purchased was not what you expected or what was advertised.
- The transaction performed was counterfeit.
- The signature on the transaction is not yours.
- The transaction date is incorrect.
- You have problems with your order.
- You are unhappy or dissatisfied with products or services rendered.
NOTE: For some of the reasons listed above, your credit card company may first require you to seek correction directly from the merchant (seller).
Sample credit card dispute letter:
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[Date]
[Your Name]
[Your Address]
[Your City, State, Zip Code]
[Your Account Number]
[Name of Creditor]
[Billing Inquiries]
[Address]
[City, State, Zip Code]
Dear Sir or Madam:
I am writing to dispute fraudulent transaction(s) on my credit card account [number] in the amount of $[___].
Unless this is an error on your part, I can confidently assume to be a victim of identity theft because I did not initiate and approve the transaction(s).
I am requesting that the transaction(s) be removed from my account and all finance and other charges related to the fraudulent transaction(s) be credited as well. I also request a revised account statement to ensure appropriate changes were made to my account.
Enclosed are copies of my statement with the fraudulent transaction(s) highlighted [and my identity theft police report; if any] to support my position.
Please investigate this matter and remove the fraudulent transaction(s) as soon as possible.
Sincerely,
[Your Signature]
Enclosed: [Credit Card Statement & Police Report (if any)]
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