The incidence of credit card fraud is rising daily, but it’s especially prevalent during tough economic times. Making sure your credit is protected will help you avoid becoming a victim of fraud. If your credit card is lost or stolen, you should immediately safeguard its information and notify your issuer.
Here are some actions you can take if your credit card information is taken away and how you can limit your exposure to fraud.
Reporting Credit Card Fraud
Contact your credit card’s issuer
Your credit card issuer should be contacted immediately if you suspect fraud on your account. You can reach them at the number on the back of your card. You can check online or through your issuer’s mobile app to see whether you can lock or freeze access to your card while you’re waiting to speak with a representative. This stops someone from using your card to make purchases in the future.
Tell the customer service agent that your account has been hacked and provide a list of the fraudulent transactions when you speak with them. Bank will terminate the card (this does not imply that your account has been closed) and send you a new card with a different account number, security code, and date of expiration.
It could take up to ten days for the new card to arrive in the mail. Although you might be able to request an urgent delivery, which might be charged. As you wait until your new card arrives, you won’t be able to use the previous one because it was canceled.
Modify your login details
If your credit card has been used fraudulently, you should change your username, password, and PIN to stop further fraud, whether the card itself was stolen or just your account number. By doing so, you can further secure your account and stop scammers from accessing your details. Moreover, if you discover that certain online accounts have been hacked, such as your Amazon or Flipkart account make sure to update those login details as well.
Wait until you get a new credit card
Your current card will be canceled and a new one provided to you by the credit card company after you report the loss. If they believe that your details have been damaged, they might get in touch with you and, as a safety measure, send you a new card. As a result, you won’t be able to access your credit accounts for a few days. Thus, you must have a backup card (like a debit card) and an emergency fund. You may also wish to review the fees that arrive in the following few days, so they can decide which charges are true and which are false.
Submit a Police Report
You need to contact the police as well if a credit card was lost or stolen. This report will be required to defend yourself if necessary. In case your identity is stolen as a result of this theft, you will have to file a report going back to when the theft first happened. This justifies the significance of the police report. Make sure to keep multiple copies of it and you may use the same police statement if you had various cards stolen. Remember that you must send a copy of this to your bank as well. However, it’s important to save one or two copies for your records.
Modify your automatic payments
Another additional crucial step is to change all of your automatic payments that are connected to the credit card. This can involve your rent or mortgage as well as automatic withdrawals from your bank account for paying bills or other obligations. You can avoid being charged late fees and falling behind on payments by updating your card details. The process of updating your payment information across all of your accounts can be time-consuming but it’s a crucial phase in the procedure.
Read More: How To Protect Credit Card Information Online?
Conclusion
Although there is no way to stop credit card fraud, it’s important to be active and take quick action to prevent fraud. If you recognize fraud and report it the right way, then your time and stress can be reduced. You should also take the steps outlined above to reduce the likelihood that your credit card information will be stolen.