8 Important Steps You Should Take If Your Credit Card Is Lost or Stolen

1. Inform the credit card issuer:

When you realise that your credit card is lost or stolen, you should immediately call your credit card issuer to report the loss or theft of your missing card. The customer care executive will block the card either temporarily or permanently, as per your request. Reporting and blocking the card will ensure no liability if any unauthorised transaction takes place in the future. The credit card issuers usually mention the customer care number on the back of a credit card. So, if you have a picture of your card, you can easily get the right contact number to report the loss of your credit card.

If not, do not panic; you can get the customer care number from your credit card statement or the official website of the company. It would be better to check for the customer care number only from the authorised sources of the credit card issuer as you might not get an updated number from other sources like financial websites. Besides, there are chances that scammers might try to take advantage of your situation to obtain your banking information. Hence, if you face any difficulty, it is better to visit the nearest branch of the credit card issuer and report it in person.

If you do not want the hassle of waiting on a call to report the loss, you can log in to your internet banking or credit card account and block your credit card. This will avoid any further transactions on your card. If you permanently block the credit card, you can request a duplicate card, which shall reach you within 7 to 14 days, as per the terms and conditions of the issuer.

To avoid any unauthorised charges on your credit card, it is necessary to block the credit card before any transaction takes place.

2. Register an FIR:

Many people avoid this step as they think it will be time-consuming. However, once the credit card is blocked, it is crucial to file a First Information Report (FIR) at the nearest police station. This will ensure you are protected against any possible misuse and fraud. The FIR copy acts as proof of theft, which the credit card issuer may demand in case any transaction takes place.

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3. Change the password of your credit card account:

There is no need to change the PIN of your lost or stolen credit card because you should straightaway block the card. However, if your card is lost and you think it must be somewhere in your home, but you are unable to find it, and you have temporarily blocked your card, it is advisable to change your PIN to ensure the card is not misused. But, in either case, it is advisable to change the internet banking or credit card account password to avoid fraudsters getting access to your credit card information.

4. Check your credit card insurance:

Many insurers offer a credit card protection plan that protects you against any unauthorised credit card transactions. Besides, some credit cards come with free credit card insurance. To make sure you get the benefit of credit card insurance, you must inform the credit card issuer as soon as you realise your credit card has been lost or stolen. If there are any unauthorised transactions on your credit card, it is worth checking with the credit card issuer if your card is insured.

5. Inform the Credit Bureau:

After filing an FIR, it would help if you inform your Credit Bureau about the loss or theft of your credit card. The credit bureau will put a fraud alert and ensure that your credit score does not get impacted by the unauthorised transactions. Also, after a period, you should check your credit score and inform the credit bureau if there is any mismatch in the information.

6. Keep an eye on your credit card statement:

When you lose your credit card, it is important to keep an eye on your credit card statement and SMS alerts to know if any unauthorised transaction takes place. Although it can rarely happen that the transaction takes place on a reported card, it is better to be alert than regret it later. In case of any suspicious transaction, you can immediately report the credit card issuer.

7. Deactivate Autopay:

If you have enabled autopay requests on your credit card bills, it is advisable to disable it through internet banking or an online credit card account so that you avoid repaying for the unauthorised transaction that took place after reporting the loss of credit card.

8. Reapply:

Some credit card issuers automatically issue a new credit card in case you have a blocked card due to loss or theft. However, in most cases, you have to Reapply for a new card. It is advisable to reapply for a credit card only if you need it. If you already have other credit cards and the lost card is not your primary card, think again before applying for a new one. It is better to close the unused credit card accounts. Click here to know how many credit cards you should hold.

How to prevent fraud of a lost or stolen credit card?

• Always keep your credit card in a secured place.

• Set a transaction alert for all your online and offline credit card purchases. This way, you will immediately come to know when an unauthorised transaction takes place by using your card.

• For most transactions to proceed, you will require either a 4-digit Personal Identification Number (PIN) or an OTP; it is advisable never to share your PIN or OTP with anyone.

• All the credit cards have a CVV (a 3 digit number) mentioned at the back of the card. A few transactions that might not require a PIN or OTP will never proceed without a CVV. Therefore, it is advisable to memorise your CVV and scratch it off the credit card.

• As soon as you realise that your credit card is lost or stolen, you should contact the customer care service of the credit card issuer and get the credit card blocked permanently; you can also block your credit card through internet banking or mobile banking. Blocking the credit card ensures you have no liability against any future fraud.

• If an unauthorised transaction has already taken place, you must immediately contact the customer care service desk of the credit card issuer and inform them about the same; it is also advisable to register a complaint to the nearest police station as it will help in resolving the issue faster.

• You should immediately remove the stolen or lost credit card details from all the websites where you have saved your credit card information for faster checkout.

To Conclude:

Losing your credit card does not mean you have to deal with the repayment of unauthorised transactions if you report the loss immediately. Reporting or blocking the credit card ensures no liability towards future frauds. It is advisable to buy a credit card protection plan if your card does not come with inbuilt insurance as it provides financial protection against all unauthorised transactions. Make sure you take necessary precautions to avoid any fraud, even if you lose your card or it gets stolen. However, if your credit card is already lost or stolen, do not panic and follow the steps discussed above in the article to ensure the card is not misused and you do not have to bear the unauthorised charges.

Warm Regards,
Ketki Jadhav
Content Writer