How to Dispute an Unauthorized Credit Card Charge in California
How long do I have to dispute an unauthorized credit card charge?
Under the federal Fair Credit Billing Act, you generally have 60 days from the date your statement was mailed to you to submit a written dispute to your card issuer's billing-inquiry address. This window starts from the statement date, not from when you noticed the charge. Some issuers have more generous internal policies, but the 60-day rule governs your federal protections.
What is my maximum liability for an unauthorized credit card charge?
Federal law under the Fair Credit Billing Act caps consumer liability for unauthorized credit card charges at $50 in most circumstances. Many major card issuers voluntarily waive even that amount as a matter of policy. Debit cards have different, less protective rules under the Electronic Fund Transfer Act, with potential liability increasing the longer you wait to report the fraud to your bank.
Do I have to dispute in writing or is a phone call enough?
A phone call to your card issuer is a good first step and often triggers a provisional credit, but it doesn't fully activate your rights under the Fair Credit Billing Act. To do that, you need to send a written dispute to the billing-inquiry address on your statement - not the payment address - within the 60-day window. Keep a copy of everything you send.
Where do I report a credit card fraud dispute if my card issuer doesn't resolve it in my favor?
California residents can escalate unresolved billing disputes to the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau at consumerfinance.gov, or to the California Department of Financial Protection and Innovation at dfpi.ca.gov if the issuer is a state-regulated institution. Filing a report with the Federal Trade Commission at reportfraud.ftc.gov also creates a paper trail that can support follow-up disputes or identity theft recovery efforts.
Can an unauthorized credit card charge hurt my credit score while it's being disputed?
Under the Fair Credit Billing Act, once you've submitted a written dispute to your card issuer within the required window, the issuer cannot report the disputed amount as delinquent to a credit bureau while the investigation is open. If the dispute is resolved in your favor, the charge must be removed. If the issuer sides with the merchant, it must notify you in writing and allow you to submit a statement of disagreement for your credit file.
Finding a charge on your credit card statement that you didn't make is more common than most people expect, and the federal and California rules that govern what happens next are actually tilted pretty heavily in the consumer's favor. But those protections only work if you know the process and move quickly enough to use them.
Related: How to Dispute an Unauthorized Credit Card Charge in California · How to Dispute an Unauthorized Credit Card Charge in California: A Step-by-Step Guide
What the Law Actually Gives You
Federal law, specifically the Fair Credit Billing Act, limits your liability for unauthorized credit card charges to $50 in most cases. In practice, most major card issuers waive even that. The FCBA also gives you the right to formally dispute a billing error, which is a broader category than just fraud - it covers charges for goods never delivered, the wrong amount billed, or a merchant who didn't honor a cancellation. California's Rosenthal Fair Debt Collection Practices Act adds a separate layer of protection by restricting how debt collectors can contact you about disputed amounts, though the dispute process itself runs through your card issuer first.
The critical number to know: under the FCBA, you generally have 60 days from the date the statement containing the disputed charge was mailed to you to submit a written dispute to your card issuer. That's 60 days from the statement date, not from when you noticed the charge. If you're past that window, you may still be able to dispute through your card issuer's own policies, which are sometimes more generous, but you lose the federal protections that compel the issuer to investigate and temporarily remove the charge.
How to File the Dispute
Start by calling your card issuer's customer service line to flag the charge - this puts the issuer on notice and often triggers a provisional credit while the investigation runs. But a phone call alone doesn't fully activate your FCBA rights. To do that, you need to send a written dispute to the issuer's billing-inquiry address, which is legally separate from the payment address and is listed on your statement. Your letter should include your name, account number, the specific charge amount, the date it posted, and a clear statement that you're disputing the charge as unauthorized or erroneous. Keep a copy of everything you send.
Once the issuer receives your written dispute, federal law gives it two billing cycles (but no more than 90 days) to investigate. During that time, the issuer can't try to collect the disputed amount or report it as delinquent to a credit bureau. If the investigation comes back in your favor, the charge is removed. If the issuer sides with the merchant, it has to tell you in writing and explain why, and you have the right to ask for documentation of whatever evidence it relied on.
What to Do If the Issuer Sides With the Merchant
If you disagree with the outcome, you can send a follow-up statement to the issuer explaining your position, and it's required to include that statement in future reports to credit bureaus about the disputed account. Beyond that, you have a few real options. You can escalate to the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau, which accepts complaints at consumerfinance.gov and can put formal pressure on the issuer. California residents can also file a complaint with the California Department of Financial Protection and Innovation, which regulates state-chartered banks and certain financial service companies, at dfpi.ca.gov. If the underlying transaction involved fraud, filing a report with the Federal Trade Commission at reportfraud.ftc.gov creates a paper trail that can help with follow-up disputes and, in more serious cases, identity theft recovery.
See also: How to Dispute an Unauthorized Credit Card Charge in California · How to Dispute an Unauthorized Credit Card Charge in California
For debit cards, the rules are different and less forgiving - the Electronic Fund Transfer Act applies instead of the FCBA, and your liability can increase significantly the longer you wait to report. If the charge you're looking at is on a debit card, report it to your bank immediately and ask specifically about your rights under the EFTA.
If the Charge Looks Like Part of a Larger Scam
An unauthorized charge is sometimes the first visible sign of identity theft. If you see multiple unfamiliar charges, accounts you didn't open, or suspicious activity across accounts, you can place a free security freeze on your credit file with each of the three major credit bureaus - Equifax, Experian, and TransUnion - which prevents new credit from being opened in your name. The freeze is free under federal law and doesn't affect your existing accounts or credit score. You can also request a free credit report from each bureau at annualcreditreport.com, which under federal law you're entitled to at least once per year, to check for accounts you don't recognize. California residents get some additional protections under the California Consumer Privacy Act and the California Financial Information Privacy Act, but for the immediate fraud response, the credit freeze and the dispute process above are the most direct tools available.
This is general information, not legal or financial advice. Federal rules and your card issuer's specific policies govern dispute timelines and liability limits, and details can change - verify current protections with the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau at consumerfinance.gov, the California Department of Financial Protection and Innovation at dfpi.ca.gov, and the FTC at consumer.ftc.gov.