Losing or getting your credit card stolen is more common than you think and happens almost daily. Therefore, making it necessary to know the steps you would need to take immediately to protect your credit and reduce the loss that can be caused.
If someone steals your card, then they can also access much of your personal information, which would be used to cause more trouble. In such a case, you must act fast to safeguard the information on your credit card.
Steps to Immediately Take if Your Credit Card is Stolen or Lost
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Inform the credit card issuer
As soon as your credit card is stolen or lost, you must inform your card issuer first and foremost. While you remain connected to the appropriate representative, you can look for ways online to see if you can freeze or lock access to your card. If you find the option, then it would prevent the individual from making any future transactions using your credit card.
Eventually, when the representative contacts you, you can inform them of your card being stolen or lost, and if any transaction has already been made, that needs to be told. After this, your card gets canceled by the bank without closing your account, and then you are given a new card with a brand-new security code, expiration date, and account number.
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Alter login information
If you see any fraudulent activity with your credit card, irrespective of whether that was the actual card stolen or only your account number, you would still need to change your PIN, username, and password to prevent future misuse. It prevents fraudsters from using your information and secures your account.
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Observe the statement of your credit card
Once you have reported the fraud to your bank, you can sign into your online account and see whether you are refunded for the fraudulent charges, and no new fraud signs exist.
Upon receiving your credit card statement, you should check whether or not the information provided is up to date. Also, verify every transaction detail along with the payments and overall balance.
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Reviewing credit report and disputing fraud
After reviewing the information on your credit card account, you need to get your credit report from CIBIL, which is given for free once a year. Whatever fraudulent activity went unnoticed on your account could appear on the credit report. You must ensure that the correct information is given in your credit report. Your credit score remains safe if you catch the unauthorized charges before and inform the bank.
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Protection from future fraud of the credit card
Even if you have never been a victim of fraud, you could take specific measures to ensure you decrease your chances of having your credit card stolen. You could study your credit card accounts through your bank’s mobile application or online. You can also sign up for transaction notifications if you do not have them already. You are informed if balance transfers are done from your account and international purchases.
So, in the future, if your card is stolen and someone is trying to use it, the bank will notify you of any fraud. You could also freeze your credit, check your credit score periodically, get credit monitoring services, and secure your physical cards.
Conclusion
Having your credit card stolen or lost can be very troublesome. Hence, after any of these incidents, when you need to check for any unauthorized transactions quickly, you can utilize the credit card app that is available online. The application keeps you updated on any changes caused to your information without your notice.
