What to do if you lose your credit card

Losing a wallet can be a real inconvenience – between ID’s, health fund cards, membership cards and bank cards there’s a lot of damage control to do.

If you realise you’ve lost a credit card the key is to act quickly. Here’s four things to do when you lose your credit card:

1. Lock, block or cancel your card

As soon as you realise your card is missing it’s important to either lock, block or cancel your credit card. If you’ve got a credit card with Heritage Bank then you’ll be able to do this easily via your Mobile Banking App card management feature or in Heritage Online. If not, you might have to ring or visit your bank in branch.

If you've lost your Heritage Bank card while overseas, you may be able to order an emergency replacement card (a fee applies). Get in touch with us and we can help you through the process.

2. Check what’s been spent

Check your card’s spending history to see if there’s been any fraudulent activity. This includes any transactions that you did not carry out or authorise.  Most banks have zero liability policies. However, they could be dependent on you reporting the fraudulent activity as soon as possible.

3. List and contact businesses you have any recurring charges with

List and contact any businesses who you have recurring charges with. For example, it could include charges such as utilities, phone bills, gym membership, Spotify or Netflix memberships, and rent. If you don’t contact these businesses to let them know your new card details, you could be charged a fee for providing an “invalid card”. If you find yourself losing your cards often you might like to consider giving these companies your BSB and Account number instead (you’ll need to make sure funds are available in your debit account for this to work).

4. Check your credit rating

Checking your credit rating is often overlooked when dealing with a lost credit card. By checking your credit card rating you might be able to see whether you’ve been the victim of identity theft. For example, if somebody has used your name to take out a loan it should show up on your credit rating. For more information on checking your credit rating visit our help guide on Comprehensive Credit Reporting.

Losing a credit card can be stressful. By using a credit card management tool, such as the one found in the Heritage Mobile Banking App, you can have instant access to managing your cards.