Credit Card Caution

PaleoDan

Member
Just a quick "head's up" to make sure you review your credit card accounts often.

I went to my local gun shop to purchase some ammo to take to the range this coming weekend and my CC got declined. I called my bank and they began reviewing the recent charges with me. There were two new ones, 1 for $16K and another for $9K.

The scary thing is if I had not tried to purchase ammo today - it would have slipped by until my next bill.

Two morals here:

1. Be careful with your online purchases and keep track of your statements...

2. Buy Ammo often!

Dan
 
We had something like that happen a few years ago with our Sears card, somehow they got the number and had went into the store and purchased stuff including a laptop and big screen TV with out even having the card or ID of who they were with them...

I got it all adjusted but boy what a pain!!


16K and 9K dollar purchase what the heck were they buying???
 
We went thru that when my son was in college. Someone got his info and charged a $4500 tv in British Columbia and then 4 round trip tickets to Montreal. It took almost 3 years to get it cleared up. Two years ago someone stole my wifes identity and charged over a thousand dollars on a newly opened (not by her) card. The bank had no record of where, when or how the card was opened other than they have an app with her name on it but insisted my wife did it. The address on the application is a empty lot in a city 30 miles from us. I know because I went there as the local law enforcement people wouldn't. It has taken my lawyer 1 1/2 years to get the bank to admit it was a case of stolen identity yet we still get nasty letters from them.
 
Some one tried to do the same thing to me. Luckily, the credit card company realized something was wrong with the application and rejected it. When they sent the rejection letter, it came to me instead of the the person who tried to use my name.
I was pretty sure who did it ("kids" living up stairs from me when I was in an apartment, called in noise complaints on them multiple times) but we couldnt get enough evidence to prosecute for attempted identity theft.
 
It amazes me how often this seems to go on. I specifically asked the Card Company for a report that I could give to the police and they told me it would do nothing. These were internet purchases and no one would go after them.

The two purchases were for "Lawn Services" and "Online Paintball".

I was lucky in that the bank did "hold" the charges and only had them as "Pending" that is why my purchase was declined - they blocked the account.

Always fun...
Dan
 
One suggestion is to open a credit card that is only used for online purchases. Much easier to prove that it was not you charging things on it should someone steal the number of the net. Much easier to go back to the merchant and the CC company if unaccounted for charges appear.

You can alos put a limit on this card as to when a certain amount is charged to it, the card shuts down. I know what I purchase/month off the net (a close approximation at least) and this is the amount we told the CC company that was the limit to ever be charged at one time.

This is what we do.

Mark W
 
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Yes and the other thing to remember is to NEVER use your DEBIT card online - that money is instantly taken from your account.
 
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