# Don't forget to check your bank statements.



## StephandJohn (Sep 3, 2007)

We regularly check our bank statements on line and yesterday evening we discovered that someone had used my credit card to buy £399 of stuff from John Lewis on 10th January.
I phoned the bank and they've cancelled the card and are sending a new one. Their fraud department will get in touch with us on Monday about the refund.
We've gone back over the last few statements and can't find anything else so maybe the thief now has a lot of warm bedding and won't bother us any more!
Just a warning really to everyone to check your statements as this could have been so much worse.


----------



## Pudsey_Bear (Sep 25, 2008)

Liz does ours every month, how did they manage to get your PIN or other details though.


----------



## StephandJohn (Sep 3, 2007)

Don't know how they do it. On our statement next to the entry there was a phone number for John Lewis. They said that the card had been used online but a different name and address given. They wouldn't tell us what it was because of data protection. I suppose at the moment they only have our word for it. 
After phoning Santander we phoned the police and they old us to fill in th form on Action Fraud.police.com which we did. John Lewis will act once the police have contacted them.
When we buy online we usually get the box come up from Santander where we have to give our Santander password - so how did they get past that?
Needless to say we've changed all our passwords etc.


----------



## dovtrams (Aug 18, 2009)

I check my bank account details on a daily basis and do a reconcilation every month; it is easy and only takes a few minutes. However, I do not know how the above can happen if you have all the security options available and use them. For example, once you go through a purchase procedure, the last thing I have to do is have it 'verified by VISA'. This is another stage in the security procedure, there are others.

Keep safe

Dave


----------



## randonneur (Jan 25, 2007)

We also check our Bank accounts on a daily basis and also use Microsoft Money on the computer so that the two should agree. It might seem like overkill but in this day and age it is wise to be on the ball. We had 2 items a couple of years ago when someone tried to top up their mobile phone via Vodaphone on our Nationwide credit card but in getting in touch with Nationwide the amounts were refunded within 24 hours.


----------



## 113016 (Jun 5, 2008)

I also check ours every few days>


----------



## raynipper (Aug 4, 2008)

Yep, me too, I do check bank statements two or three times a week but hardly ever our CCs as it's such a faff. 
The Post Office CC is so complex with a variety of IDs and nubers I have to have a bunch of papers in front of me to do it.

Ray.


----------



## scept1c (May 10, 2005)

I had a problem about 7 years ago.

We had returned to Italy after spending a month in Slovenia.

We were at Lake Maggiore and went to a supermarket for supplies, at the checkout my debit card was rejected. I went to an ATM and received a message to contact my bank.

When I rang the bank they told me they had cancelled my card due to suspicious activity. Someone had made two attempts to buy £1200 worth of sports equipment from an American web site. I can only think that someone had noted my card number and 3 digit security code when I was using it at a petrol station or restaurant.

Thankfully, the bank was on the ball and I didn't lose anything. We had other cards and were able to get by until we got home and ordered a replacement card.

Now I always use a credit card and only use my debit cards at ATMs


----------



## suedew (May 10, 2005)

DIL had the same over Christmas, also John Lewis, wonder if problem is there? She had purchased from the web site though.


----------



## chasper (Apr 20, 2008)

raynipper said:


> Yep, me too, I do check bank statements two or three times a week but hardly ever our CCs as it's such a faff.
> The Post Office CC is so complex with a variety of IDs and nubers I have to have a bunch of papers in front of me to do it.
> 
> Ray.


No problem Ray just send me the ids and numbers, i'm sure i could help you out.:wink2:


----------



## emjaiuk (Jun 3, 2005)

There was a spate of CC fraud a year or two ago originating at garages. Our AFAIK local Esso station was involved. Also customer not present purchases don't involve a pin number and some small transactions don't require verification, for example the National Lottery. I was told by my bank manager (in the days when I had one) that it is cheaper for banks to refund fraudulent transactions than it is to develop truly foolproof security systems. I must admit I've never had a problem getting a refund, even for several thousand on a business account

Malcolm


----------



## klyne (May 10, 2005)

suedew said:


> DIL had the same over Christmas, also John Lewis, wonder if problem is there? She had purchased from the web site though.


If it was an online purchase done automatically John Lewis would not have been involved with the actual transaction as that would be handled by the bank and JL would have just got confirmation that payment was confirmed. Even in store the assistant does not handle the card which is processed via a card reader. Over the telephone could be a different matter.

David


----------



## Mrplodd (Mar 4, 2008)

I have Kaspersky anti virus on my computer, one of the best things is that when you go to purchase something on line instead of using the keyboard you are presented with an on screen virtual keyboard. You use your mouse to click on each key, no chance of any key logging software grabbing your password or anything else like CC numbers. Simply excellent (but not free I am afraid)

Andy


----------



## Penquin (Oct 15, 2007)

One key thing though is* NOT to destroy the card* - even though your bank tells you to.... lock it away safely somewhere.

The BBC had a "Don't get done, Get Dom" programme which covered this and the card has a record within the chip of every time IT was used - in many cases the banks have said that the holder may have given the Pin Number away or allowed the use and refuse to reimburse.....

It is quite possible to have the card checked by an independent expert at one of the top Unis (can't remember the college but it was Oxford I think and the BBC would know), they can read the chip and reveal whether the card was used for that purchase or not - which in your case it was not.....

The supplier is also not supposed to deliver to a different address from the registered address AFAIK for on-line purchases - or so I am told when I try to buy things for delivery here....

So whatever,* don't destroy the card* "just in case".....

Sadly, such thefts are not included in Police figures as they are not deemed to be their responsibility but that of the Banks..... which may well explain why crime figures appear lower as credit card frauds no longer appear.....

Dave


----------



## patp (Apr 30, 2007)

Have never had our debit card hacked but then I we don't use it that much. Tend to stick with using credit card. Tesco have been excellent at picking up on fraudulent activity. They put a stop on the card and ring us for confirmation of it being us using it. Once or twice it has been unauthorised use and they have refunded us. From memory I think a garage was involved 
I must admit to only checking bank on a monthly basis. Have always assumed Nationwide would pick up fraudulent activity first? Obviously not in this case though.


----------



## peribro (Sep 6, 2009)

Mrplodd said:


> I have Kaspersky anti virus on my computer...... Simply excellent (but not free I am afraid)


Free if you use online banking with Barclays.


----------



## StephandJohn (Sep 3, 2007)

suedew said:


> DIL had the same over Christmas, also John Lewis, wonder if problem is there? She had purchased from the web site though.


That's interesting because this was from the JL website on 10th January. My bank also checked to see if the Santander Secure system had been sued and I was told that JL don't use it so a purchase can be made online using a card with no checks being made.


----------

