Every credit cardholder is aware of the credit card billing statement they receive on a monthly basis and how important it is. A credit card statement consists of all the information about the transaction performed on the card. If there are any errors found on the credit card billing statement like mistakes in the figures, unauthorized payments, or any other errors, it can be dealt with easily but the cardholders should not delay in getting it fixed.
The way a credit cardholder should deal with the errors on the credit card statement is,
A detailed study
Firstly, every credit cardholder must not miss making some time to take a thorough review of the credit card statement he receives. Some common errors that can usually happen are,
- Whether you’ve been charged for some unauthorized payments
- Incorrectly charged for some transaction
- Cashback not reflected.
- Rewards(if any) not added or wrong figures are updated
- Annual fees(if you are eligible for no annual fees) added to the bill amount, etc.
Apart from these, there can be some other errors too, so the cardholder must take a deep look into the statement. If there are such mistakes found, you can get it fixed by your cardholder. Ignoring these can end you up paying more than what is required.
Gather proofs
After the detailed study, if you find any errors be it minor or major, you need to gather some proofs like, in the case of the payments errors, you can provide the credit card receipt you’ve received when you made the purchase or the screenshots of the payment message that you receive on the transaction from the credit card provider.
Contact merchant
In the case of incorrectly charged transactions, you can first contact the merchant where you’ve used the card. If the error is from their end, then most of the merchants would revert back the payment. If the merchant refuses to resolve the issue or can’t resolve it from their end, then you can contact your card provider.
Related: Know about the working of a Credit Card
Inform the card provider
Once the proofs are gathered, you can send an mail to the provider’s customer care. Ensure that you are not attaching any confidential details like a card pin number, any login credentials, passwords to the mail. Even though you send a mail, it is advisable to approach your credit card provider in person and give the required details. Make sure you approach your cardholder at the earliest before your payment due date closes.
Even after approaching the card provider, you must follow them up about the status of the report. Usually, this process might take some time. So you must get it fixed before the payment due date or ask your provider about the payment amount you can make. If your proofs are strong and valid, the issue will be resolved at the earliest else it might take time to convince your credit card provider and get it solved.
Review the next statement
After the issue is resolved, the cardholder must review the next statement completely and ensure that is request has been accepted and there are no further errors in it. Not only errors, but credit cardholders can follow the same process if they want to get their phone number or address on the billing statement changed. Like said, in the case of payment or transaction errors it is better to report it before the payment due date else you will be charged for late payment and interest rate will be added as well.
Errors in the credit card statement are common and it can be resolved easily if you approach the card provider on time with relevant proofs. One thing to be kept in mind is complaining about your card provider regarding the errors that will do no harm to your credit report. It is always recommended to study your credit card statement completely and take significant action if required.
Check: What is the best time to make a Credit Card payment
Important points to be noted about your credit card
- Never share your credit card or any other bank account details to anyone
- While sending a mail to the provider, don’t add any confidential details like passwords, banking credentials, CVV number, etc.
- Don’t share your personal information to anyone on the phone even if they claim to be calling from the bank/ provider
- It is always advised to approach the bank or the provider and get your issue resolved
About the author
Nikitha is a Senior Analyst at MyMoneySouq.com. She has been writing about personal finance, credit cards, mortgage, and other personal finance products in the UAE. Her work on Mortgage loans has been featured by the GulfNews and other popular Financial Blogs in the UAE.
