Many people find credit cards easy to use and relatively safe as opposed to cash in which they can lose or misplace with no way to get it back. Credit cards are convenient, but they are also at risk of being lost or stolen. With the new ways of checking out of stores where you swipe your own card, it is rare anymore that anyone actually looks at the name on the credit card that you are using. Therefore it can be used multiple times before you even notice that it is gone.

The liability if your credit card is stolen is very small compared to the purchases that could have been made during the time you had it and the time you noticed it is gone. Under federal law the maximum liability for a stolen credit card is $50.00 if you report it within 60 days. If you report your credit card stolen before any charges are made you are not held responsible for any charges made to the card. It is the same if the number of the credit card was stolen, but not the card itself, you are not responsible for any charges. So the most out of pocket expense for you will be $50.00 and that is only if they thieves use the card before you get to the phone.

As soon as you notice that the card is missing you need to call the credit card company immediately. Usually all credit card companies are set up with 24 hour a day phone numbers strictly to handle stolen cards. It is also advisable to follow up the phone call with a letter to the billing department stating exactly what day you reported the credit card stolen and when you noticed it missing.

For an annual fee you can have a company notify the issuers of all your credit cards that they have been stolen. This allows you only to make one phone call as opposed to calling many different credit card companies. This is especially helpful if your entire purse or wallet has been stolen. This is not required however and it is just more of a convenience to you. You can also just keep your credit card numbers, billing phone numbers, expiration dates, and names on a piece of paper that is kept securely in a lock box or somewhere you can find it as soon as you need it.