Plastic money (credit cards) seems to be the perfect alternative to carrying a bulky wallet. They are convenient to use, sleek and purchases can be made as desired even sufficient funds are not handy. But, if a credit card is lost and it falls into the wrong hands, then someone else could be making merry at your expense.

Here is a quick guide to what course of action a card holder should follow in case he/she loses a credit card and how to minimize the losses occurring out of a lost card.

Inform the card issuer about the lost card

As soon as it is realized that a credit card has been lost or stolen, the customer care executives of the respective card issuer should be informed immediately. Any delay could prove to be expensive. Usually, the contact details of the customer care executives are mentioned in the monthly credit card bills and they are also listed on the websites of the card issuers. Details like account number, date when the card got misplaced and amount of the last purchase made with the card should be mentioned to the card executives. These details would come in handy to detect any fraudulent transactions made with the card.

Follow it up with a letter/email to the issuer

In an ideal situation, just a call to the credit card company should be enough. But, in case there is no acknowledgement from the company, a formal letter/email to the company containing the card holder's name and all the above mentioned details should be written. This letter would serve as evidence that the loss had been reported, in case any disputes regarding this occur at a later stage.

Lodge a police complaint

A police complaint regarding the lost card should be made with the local police station where the card is suspected to have got lost. If the case appears to be of theft or robbery, the police will lodge an FIR. If it appears that the card has simply got misplaced or lost, the police will record the statement in the daily dairy report.

Registering a complaint with the police will be helpful in case transactions of large amounts have been made using the card, as in these cases card issuers usually try to shift the liability on the customer.