If someone ran up charges on your credit card without permission, federal law caps what you personally owe at $50, and most major card networks waive even that. To get unauthorized credit card charges removed, you send your issuer a written billing-error notice within 60 days of the statement that first showed the charge. The issuer then has to investigate, cannot try to collect the disputed amount while it does, and must correct the account if the charge was in fact unauthorized.
What You Actually Owe
The Truth in Lending Act sets a hard ceiling on cardholder liability for unauthorized use. Under 15 U.S.C. § 1643, you cannot be held responsible for more than $50, no matter how much the thief spent.1Office of the Law Revision Counsel. 15 USC 1643 – Liability of Holder of Credit Card That $50 applies only when the issuer gave you notice of your potential liability, provided a way to report loss or theft, and supplied a means to identify authorized users. If any of those conditions weren’t met, your liability is zero.
The cap also applies only to charges made before you notify the issuer. Once you report the card lost, stolen, or compromised, you owe nothing for anything charged afterward. Report it before any fraudulent charge posts and you owe nothing at all.1Office of the Law Revision Counsel. 15 USC 1643 – Liability of Holder of Credit Card The burden of proof sits with the issuer: to charge you even part of the $50, it must show the use was unauthorized and that the statutory conditions were satisfied.
Most large card networks go further. Visa’s zero-liability policy, for example, covers you whether a physical card was stolen or your number was used online.2Visa. Zero Liability Mastercard offers a similar policy. These are voluntary, so they can carry exceptions for products like anonymous prepaid cards, but for the typical consumer credit card the real-world number is almost always zero.
How to Dispute the Charge
The Fair Credit Billing Act gives you a formal process with real teeth, and it runs on one critical deadline: your written dispute must reach the creditor within 60 days of the date it sent the first statement showing the unauthorized charge.3Consumer Financial Protection Bureau. 12 CFR 1026.13 – Billing Error Resolution Miss that window and you risk losing your federal protections. Check your statements.
Send the notice to the address the creditor designates for billing inquiries, not the payment address. Those are usually different, and sending a dispute to the wrong place can cost you your legal standing. The billing inquiry address is on your statement or in the billing rights notice that came with your account agreement.
Certified mail with a return receipt is the traditional route because it gives you proof of delivery. Electronic disputes now count too: if your creditor states in its billing rights disclosure that it accepts online disputes and tells you how, submitting through the creditor’s portal satisfies the written notice rule.3Consumer Financial Protection Bureau. 12 CFR 1026.13 – Billing Error Resolution Most large issuers offer online dispute tools. If you use one, save screenshots and confirmation emails.
The legal bar for what the notice must say is lower than most people expect. You need enough information for the creditor to identify your account, which usually means your name or account number, and you need to describe the error along with the type, date, and amount of the charge to the extent you can.3Consumer Financial Protection Bureau. 12 CFR 1026.13 – Billing Error Resolution “To the extent possible” matters. If your statement shows a $347.82 charge at an unfamiliar retailer, say that. If several fraudulent charges appeared and you’re not sure of exact amounts, describe what you know.
A workable dispute letter includes your name and account number, the approximate date and amount of each charge, the merchant name as it appears on your statement, and a short explanation. Something as simple as “I did not make this purchase and do not recognize this merchant” is enough.
What the Issuer Must Do
Two clocks start when the creditor receives your dispute. It must send written acknowledgment within 30 days unless it resolves the dispute entirely in that window. It must complete the investigation and either correct the error or explain its finding within two full billing cycles, and never more than 90 days after receiving your notice.3Consumer Financial Protection Bureau. 12 CFR 1026.13 – Billing Error Resolution
While the investigation is open, the creditor cannot try to collect the disputed amount, report it as delinquent to credit bureaus, or threaten to damage your credit standing over it.4Office of the Law Revision Counsel. 15 USC Chapter 41 – Consumer Credit Protection Your credit score is insulated while the facts get sorted out.
If the investigation confirms the charge was unauthorized, the creditor must remove it along with any interest or late fees that accrued because of it, and send you a written notice explaining the corrections.4Office of the Law Revision Counsel. 15 USC Chapter 41 – Consumer Credit Protection
If the Issuer Says the Charge Was Valid
Sometimes creditors conclude the charge was legitimate. You still have options. You can write back within 10 days of receiving the explanation, or by the payment due date if that’s later, stating that you still dispute the charge and refuse to pay. The creditor can then begin collection, but if it reports the amount to credit bureaus it must report it as disputed.5Federal Trade Commission. Using Credit Cards and Disputing Charges
You can also file a complaint with the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau. The CFPB forwards it to the issuer, which generally must respond within 15 days, with up to 60 days for complex cases.6Consumer Financial Protection Bureau. Submit a Complaint File online or call (855) 411-2372. Include all documentation the first time, because you generally cannot file a second complaint about the same issue.
Creditors that ignore the dispute rules face real consequences. If a creditor fails to acknowledge within 30 days, blows the two-cycle investigation window, or threatens to report you during the dispute period, it forfeits the right to collect up to $50 of the disputed amount plus related finance charges, even if the original charge was valid.5Federal Trade Commission. Using Credit Cards and Disputing Charges A cardholder who sues under 15 U.S.C. § 1640 can recover actual damages plus statutory damages of twice the finance charge, with a floor of $500 and a ceiling of $5,000, along with attorney’s fees and court costs.7Office of the Law Revision Counsel. 15 USC 1640 – Civil Liability
Debit Cards Are Not Covered by These Rules
A quick boundary, because it trips people up. Debit card fraud runs under the Electronic Fund Transfer Act, not the Truth in Lending Act, and the protections are weaker. Under 15 U.S.C. § 1693g, your debit card liability climbs the longer you wait: capped at $50 if you report within two business days of learning about the loss, up to $500 if you report after that but within 60 days of your statement, and unlimited for anything stolen after the 60-day window closes.8Office of the Law Revision Counsel. 15 USC 1693g – Consumer Liability And with a debit card the money is already out of your checking account while the bank investigates; provisional credit is not always guaranteed. If the card in question is a debit card, this article’s timeline and dollar figures don’t apply.
What to Do Right Now
The billing dispute handles the charge on paper. A few other steps protect you from the next round.
Call your card issuer’s fraud line first. Notification can be given by phone, in writing, or in person, and it takes effect as soon as you’ve taken steps reasonably required in the ordinary course of business to provide the information.9eCFR. 12 CFR 1026.12 – Special Credit Card Provisions Don’t wait to draft a letter. A phone call stops the liability clock; the written dispute follows.
If your personal information may have been exposed beyond the card number, report the identity theft at IdentityTheft.gov. The site generates a personalized recovery plan and provides pre-filled letters you can send to creditors and debt collectors.10Federal Trade Commission. Report Identity Theft A police report is worth filing too; some creditors and credit bureaus require one for certain fraud claims.
Consider a free credit freeze at Equifax, Experian, and TransUnion. Federal law requires each bureau to place a freeze within one business day of an online or phone request and to lift it within one hour when you need to apply for credit.11Federal Trade Commission. Starting Today, New Federal Law Allows Consumers to Place Free Credit Freezes and Yearlong Fraud Alerts A freeze doesn’t touch your existing accounts, but it blocks anyone from opening new credit in your name.