The Costs of Identity Theft Recovery
Though having your identity stolen is bad enough, the costs tend to get a consumer even further down. Aside from the physical money that may or may not have been stolen from a consumer, the cost to recover from identity theft is going to add up as well. If a consumer recognizes the identity theft early enough and contacts the proper authorities, they can incur fewer costs than those that allow it to go on for several years.
Contacting Credit Card Companies
By law, if a credit card is used fraudulently and the consumer notifies the credit card company of such, the creditor cannot hold the consumer responsible for any fraudulent charges incurred on the account. In the event a credit card is used prior to a consumer contact the credit card company, then the average cost is $50.00 per card to recover, even if the charges were in the thousands.
Often when a consumer falls victim to credit card theft, “insurance protection” agencies will come out of the wood work. They will tell consumers they will be liable for all credit card charges and that by purchasing their insurance they will not have to pay anything. As a consumer, always remember that the only amount a credit card company can hold a consumer liable for is the $50.00 per card. Therefore insurance is not needed.
Stolen ATM and Debit Cards
It is important for a consumer to realize that they are not entitled to the same protection on their ATM/debit cards as they are with their credit cards. By not reporting the unauthorized use of an ATM/debit card promptly, a bank may hold the consumer liable for ALL charges. To this, there are a few exceptions:
- *If the consumer contacts their bank prior to the card actually being used fraudulently, then they cannot be held accountable for any charges that occurred after that notification.
- *If a consumer reports an ATM/debit card stolen within two business days of fraudulent charges, then they can only be held liable for $50.00.
- *If a consumer reports and ATM/debit card stolen after the two business days, but within 60 days they can only be held up to $500.00.
- *After the 60 day waiting period, a consumer can be held liable for any charges that occurred on the account.
Stolen Checks
When a consumer incurs losses from a stolen checkbook, majority of the state legislatures will hold the banking institution liable for the forged check, not the consumer. There is one exception, however. If the consumer does not notify the bank that their checkbook was stolen or that they think a check was written fraudulently, they can be held liable for the money stolen.