How To Report Stolen Credit Information

Taking action quickly is the key to reducing the damage done when your credit card information is stolen. Fortunately, many credit card companies offer 24-hour customer service telephone numbers, enabling you to report stolen credit cards as soon as possible. If you discover that your credit card or credit card number has been stolen, you will need to take several steps to protect your accounts and ensure the safety of your credit information in the future.

Instructions

1. Call your credit card company immediately if your card is lost or stolen. According to the Federal Trade Commission, the Fair Credit Billing Act (FCBA) will limit your loss to $50 if your card is used fraudulently and you report the stolen card within two days of its disappearance. If you report your card missing before it has been used and a thief later uses it, you will not incur a loss.

2. Ask your credit card company to issue you a new card and new account number and close the old account to prevent any new charges from being processed.

3. Contact the three credit reporting agencies, Equifax, Experian and TransUnion (see Resources), and place a fraud alert on your credit accounts. When someone tries to open a new credit account in your name, take out a loan or any other transaction, the lender should call you and ask if you want to perform this transaction. The initial fraud alert is good for 90 days and can be renewed.

4. Look at your new credit card billing statement for any unauthorized activity that might have been incurred since your reported the loss of the card. If you find an additional charge, send a letter to the credit card company reporting this new charge and mentioning when you reported your credit card missing.

5. Check your credit card and bank statements daily if you have Internet access. For more peace of mind, pay for a credit monitoring service offered by the credit reporting agencies.

6. Keep detailed records for each company you contact to report stolen information. Take notes that include the name of the representative taking your call, the date and time of the call and the action promised. Follow up phone calls with letters if at all possible.

Tips & Warnings

• Help keep your credit care information safe by only making online purchases if you see the online security symbol, usually a small lock, on the web page. If you submit your credit card number to an unsecured website, you increase the risk that your number will be stolen because computer hackers will be able to access important information. Ask for copies of your credit report from each credit reporting agency every year to check for fraudulent charges to any of your accounts. Charges can be made or new accounts opened without you noticing and a checking your credit report can help you catch these fraudulent charges. You are entitled to one free report each year from these agencies.

• Make sure you report a stolen credit card as soon as you know that it is missing. If you wait longer than two days to report a stolen credit card, you will be required to pay $500 of any fraudulent charges.

References

• Federal Trade Commission
• Privacy Rights Clearinghouse

Resources

• Fight Identity Theft website