Fraudulent charges on your card mean someone else used it without permission — and you have legal protection against paying them

If you see charges on your credit card statement that you did not make, your card issuer is required by federal law to investigate and remove them from your bill while the investigation runs. You are not responsible for fraudulent charges once you report them. The process is straightforward: call your card issuer, dispute the charges, and the bank will contact you within 30 days with findings.

Speed matters because the sooner you report fraud, the sooner your card gets replaced and the sooner the issuer can stop the person using it. Most card issuers have a fraud department that operates 24 hours a day. The phone number is on the back of your card or on your statement.

Key Takeaways

  • Call your card issuer when ready when you spot fraudulent charges — the sooner you report, the sooner they stop and your card gets replaced.
  • Your card issuer must investigate within 30 days and remove disputed charges from your bill while they investigate, so you do not pay for fraud.
  • You will receive a new card with a new number within 7 to 10 business days in most cases, and the old card will be deactivated.
  • File a report with the Federal Trade Commission at IdentityTheft.gov if the fraud involved identity theft or if multiple accounts were compromised.
  • Check your credit report at AnnualCreditReport.com for accounts you did not open, which signals identity theft rather than straightforward card fraud.

Call your card issuer and report the fraudulent charges

Find the fraud department phone number on the back of your card or on your most recent statement. When you call, have your card number and statement ready. Tell the representative which charges are fraudulent and when you first noticed them. The issuer will ask whether you lost the card, if it was stolen, or if someone used the number without the physical card.

The representative will cancel your current card when ready and order a replacement. You will receive the new card by mail within 7 to 10 business days. Until it arrives, you can still use your account online or by phone if the issuer allows it — ask before you hang up. Some issuers will rush a card to you for a fee, usually $15 to $25, if you need it sooner.

The issuer will create a dispute case and assign you a case number. Write this number down. You may be asked to sign a fraud affidavit — a form stating that you did not make the charges. Some issuers send this by mail; others handle it over the phone. Either way, you are not paying for the disputed charges while the investigation happens.

Understand what happens during the investigation

Your card issuer has 30 days to investigate the dispute. They will contact the merchant where each charge occurred and ask whether you were the person who made the purchase. The merchant will either confirm the charge was legitimate or agree it was fraudulent. Most of the time, the merchant confirms it was not you, and the charge is removed.

If a merchant disputes your claim and says you did make the charge, the issuer will contact you for more information. You can provide evidence that you were not there — a receipt from somewhere else that day, a credit card statement from another account showing you were elsewhere, or a police report if the card was stolen. The issuer weighs this evidence and makes a final decision.

Once the investigation closes, the issuer sends you a letter with the results. If the charges were fraudulent, they are permanently removed from your bill. If the issuer sides with the merchant, you are responsible for paying that charge — this is rare when fraud is clear, but it can happen if the evidence is mixed.

File a report if identity theft is involved

Card fraud and identity theft are not the same thing. Card fraud means someone used your card number without permission. Identity theft means someone used your personal information — your name, Social Security number, or date of birth — to open new accounts or take out loans in your name.

If you see charges from merchants you have never heard of, or if you received bills for accounts you did not open, file a report at IdentityTheft.gov. This is the official government site run by the Federal Trade Commission. The report creates an official record and gives you a recovery plan tailored to your situation. You do not pay to file.

If your card was physically stolen or lost, straightforward card fraud is more likely. If your card number was used online or over the phone without the physical card being present, it could be either — but if multiple accounts show fraud, identity theft is more probable. The FTC report helps you sort this out and tells you what to do next.

Check your credit report for accounts you did not open

Request your free credit report at AnnualCreditReport.com, the only official site for free reports. You get one free report per year from each of the three credit bureaus: Equifax, Experian, and TransUnion. You can request all three at once or space them out over the year.

Look for accounts you did not open — credit cards, loans, or lines of credit listed under your name. If you find any, this is a sign that someone has your personal information and has used it to open accounts. Contact the creditor when ready and tell them the account is fraudulent. Ask them to close it and remove it from your credit report.

You can also place a fraud alert on your credit report, which tells creditors to verify your identity before opening new accounts in your name. Call any one of the three bureaus and ask for a fraud alert. They will notify the other two automatically. A fraud alert lasts one year and is free.

Prevent future fraud by monitoring your accounts

Check your credit card statement every month, either online or when the paper statement arrives. Most card issuers let you set up alerts that notify you by text or email when a charge over a certain amount is made. This catches fraud quickly — the sooner you report, the sooner it stops.

Do not share your card number, expiration date, or CVV (the three-digit code on the back) with anyone unless you initiated the transaction. If a website or caller asks for this information unsolicited, it is a scam. Legitimate companies do not ask for your full card number by email or phone.

Use a credit monitoring service if you want ongoing protection. Some are free; others charge a monthly fee. Free services usually show you your credit score and alert you to new accounts opened in your name. Paid services may include identity theft insurance, which covers costs if your identity is stolen. Your card issuer may offer free monitoring as a cardholder benefit — check your welcome materials or call to ask.

What to do if your card is compromised but not yet used

If you lost your card or suspect someone has your number but you have not seen fraudulent charges yet, call your issuer and ask them to cancel it. They will send a replacement with a new number. You do not have to wait for fraud to appear — preventing it is faster than disputing it later.

If you gave your card number to a website that was later breached, you will usually hear about it from the company or from news reports. You do not need to do anything when ready unless you see fraudulent charges. Monitor your statement closely for the next few months. If charges appear, report them right away.

Frequently Asked Questions

Will I have to pay for fraudulent charges while the investigation happens?

No. Federal law requires your card issuer to remove disputed charges from your bill while they investigate. You pay only the charges you made yourself. Once the investigation closes, if the issuer finds the charges were fraudulent, they stay removed.

How long does it take to get a new card?

Most issuers mail a replacement card within 7 to 10 business days. Some offer rush delivery for a fee of $15 to $25, which can get the card to you in 2 to 3 days. Ask your issuer about rush options when you report the fraud.

What if I recognize the merchant but did not make the charge?

Report it anyway. Someone may have stolen your card number and used it at a store you shop at regularly. The merchant will confirm whether the person who made the purchase was you. If they cannot verify it was you, the charge is removed.

Do I need to file a police report?

You do not have to, but you can. A police report is useful if your card was physically stolen or if you suspect identity theft. The report creates an official record and can help if you need to dispute charges later. Contact your local police non-emergency line to file.

Can fraudulent charges hurt my credit score?

Fraudulent charges themselves do not hurt your score because they are removed from your bill. However, if someone opened new accounts in your name and did not pay them, those accounts will damage your score. This is why checking your credit report matters — you need to close fraudulent accounts quickly.