Things To do if Credit Card is Lost or Stolen While Travelling Overseas

Travel, no matter when and where excites a person but can prove to be stressful too. This is because there are a lot of things that need to be planned and taken care of before planning a travel. Amongst this, comes the use of credit cards as well. Credit cards seem to be the most suitable way to spend money as you do not have to carry hard cash with you while you are on a vacation. But along with it comes the responsibility of safeguarding your credit card as well. Even after great security, fraudsters sometimes find a way to steal your credit card information and make purchases through it.

You have to be very careful about keeping your credit card safe. Losing your credit card while on a vacation can create a panic kind of situation and will ruin your left-over days. Credit cards can be stolen in many different ways – by card skimmers, via data breaches, theft of physical cards, etc. Though Zero Liability protection may save you from all the fraudulent transactions taking place on your card, you might face a lot of inconveniences.

What Needs To Be Done?

Unfortunately, if you have lost your card while traveling internationally, the following is the list of things that can be done to prevent any loss of yours:

Inform the credit card customer care centre:

In the unfortunate circumstances where you have lost your credit card or it has been stolen, the first thing that should be done is to inform your respective bank about the loss. You can call the 24-hour customer care number and ask them to block the card on immediate basis.

Via Phone

You can call on the customer care number of your respective card issuing authority from your registered mobile number and request them to block your card so as to prevent it from any fraudulent transaction.

Via e-mail

You can also drop an e-mail to your bank regarding the loss or theft of your card. The mail should be initiated via e-mail id which is registered with the bank. The mail should include all the details about the loss like date, time, location, how it happened etc. Along with all these details, you should also mention that you had already informed the customer care as well.

Via NetBanking

Credit card can also be blocked via NetBanking. Log-in to your netbanking account. Under the credit cards tab, select your card number, reason for blocking the card and then hit confirm. In this way you can block your credit card via netbanking as well. Further you will have to inform the customer care that you had lost your card or it had been stolen and that you have blocked your card via NetBanking.

Card Lost/ Stolen Reporting:

While on a vacation or a business trip, the last thing you would have thought of is having your credit card stolen or losing your credit card. If in case this happens, the first thing that should be done is to report to the nearest police station. Give them the details about the loss and they might help you in finding your lost card.

Zero Liability Protection Policy:

Most of the cards these days come with Zero Liability Protection, which means the cardholder will not be responsible for any fraudulent activity taking place with his card after his card is lost or stolen only if the cardholder informs about the same to the card issuer’s 24-hour call center. Hence, be assured that you will not be held liable for any unauthorized purchases taking place through your card if you have been informed about the loss in the prescribed time frame.

Always make a note:

You should have all the details of your card including card number, expiry dates, and security questions because, in rare circumstances, where your card is lost or might have been stolen and you inform the bank officials about the same, then they might ask for such details as a confirmation process for verifying your identity and your card.

Always carry cash with yourself:

Even though we are in a digital era, wherein we believe in cashless spending, we must carry some hard cash with us to face unwanted circumstances. There might occur a situation wherein you might have had a meal at a restaurant and you are unable to pay through your card because of any reason. Hence, hard cash can come to the rescue. Similarly, in a situation where you have lost your credit card or it has been stolen, you can use the hard cash to continue with your daily needs till a new card gets delivered to you.

Card Replacement Request:

Once you have reported the loss of your card to the card issuer company, the next thing is to place a request for the new card which you will require to pay off your bills. The card issuer company, upon verifying all your details, will accept your card replacement request and deliver you the new credit card.

Travel with multiple credit cards:

You should really not depend on a single card for all your monetary needs during your vacation. Rather you should have multiple cards and your money should be scattered amongst them. This is because even if 1 of your cards is lost or stolen, you have the access to other cards which will be really helpful in times of need overseas.

Also Read: How Many Credit Cards Should I Have?

Placement of cards:

All of your cards should not be placed in a single place. Distribute the cards at different places. You can place some in your luggage bag, some in your wallet, or some in your handbag. This is because, in case of theft of the card, you will still be left with a few cards that you had placed at different places to continue will your daily needs.

Bottom Line

Theft/ Loss of your credit card, while you are traveling overseas, might get you into apprehension because you are already in a new land, and getting into such a situation might make it difficult for you to survive. But instead of panicking, just sit back and try to find out the ways by which you can find your lost credit card like by searching your bag and visiting the places where you last swiped your credit card because there is a possibility that you might have left your credit card at the store or on the billing counter.

Secondly, if you are sure that your card has been lost or stolen, report the loss immediately to the police authorities near you and also inform your bank about the loss of the card so that you are not responsible for any fraudulent activity taking place through your card. Also, ask the issuer bank to cancel the existing credit card and issue you a new credit card and deliver it to you overseas. And lastly, always carry hard cash along and do not rely on a single credit card. Have different credit cards with yourself so that you can fulfill your daily needs. You should be prepared for such emergencies beforehand and deal in the best possible way you can.