Some Idiot Charged $908 On Our CC!

**many houseapes** · 12-16-2009, 07:22 PM

Okay...I did not need to deal with this at 6:30 am. I was checking our Discover balance online and to my horror, someone had charged $908 worth of stuff at a Kohl's in Ohio!!! on 2 occasions- a few days apart..They were in-store purchases and the card # had been typed in - not swiped (no pun). I am angry that Kohl's would allow this. Anyway, we called LifeLock and Discover..they shut down our CC account and they are going to be doing a full investigation of the matter. I didn't think that it was legal for a store to accept a CC if the purchaser didn't have the card physically with them...if this is the case,then something is really fishy. I am assuming that perhaps the cashier & the "purchaser" were in on it together. I am sure that the investigation would show what the person looked like if she/he were caught on the store's security camera at the time of the transaction.If it is found to be illegal for Kohl's to have accepted the CC in this manner,they may be facing a lawsuit.GGGGRRRRRRRRR.
I am so thankful that we won't have to pay for what happened.

**larabelle** · 12-16-2009, 07:36 PM

Welcome to the "ripped off" club!!!
The same thing happened to me except the thieves charged $2,0000.
One of my coworkers said that some thieves did the same to her except they charged a whole trip to Las Vegas...including air fare, hotel, food etc.
Both my coworker and I shut down the credit cards and did not have to pay for the charges. CRAZINESS!!!

**bumplett** · 12-16-2009, 07:41 PM

I would think that retail stores are a bit more careful this time of year... hmmmmm.......

**porembam** · 12-16-2009, 07:58 PM

It is really scary that they went to a physical store and purchased without the card . Something sounds very wrong.
Thank goodness you checked your balance online and caught this transaction right away! You are a good consumer.

**bumplett** · 12-16-2009, 08:06 PM

good grief, could you imagine if you hadn't checked your balance until the next bill cycle! wow, the damage that may have been done at that point!

Yikes!

**dcompton** · 12-16-2009, 08:12 PM

It could have been the cashier him/herself with no other person involved. But I can't imagine putting a job at risk in that way.

**sinopa27** · 12-16-2009, 08:38 PM

What gets me is that I have a hard time using my OWN cc and someone can do all of this without the cc. How can people charge so much without the actual card and I have a hard time when I DO have the card??
I am so glad you caught this!!

**Greebo** · 12-16-2009, 08:43 PM

But you're getting 5% cash back!!!

Ok ok - I'm kidding - but seriously - this is little more than a nuisance, really. You caught it - Discover has a fraud policy. They aren't going to hold you responsible.

You can try a lawsuit - good luck with that. A department store isn't going to lose a lawsuit if one of their employees violates company policy on their time.

As for doing it without the card - all they need is the card number and the expiration date. When you swipe a card, do you know what gets transferred from that magnetic stripe? Card # and Expiration Date. Any employee can manually key in a card # and expiration date into a register - and if the magnetic stripe is worn out, that's what they're supposed to do.

Be glad you aren't going to be held responsible. Don't get your hopes up for anything else.

**Contrary Housewife** · 12-16-2009, 08:53 PM

They could have made a fake card with your number on it. The magnetic stripe would not have worked, darn, so the cashier typed it in. The cashier could have been clueless, cards fail to work all the time, and the number of the account was valid.

Luckily you caught it before it caused you a problem. Hope they find the %$#@!s.

**Palooka** · 12-16-2009, 09:44 PM

Originally Posted by bumplett

I would think that retail stores are a bit more careful this time of year... hmmmmm.......

You would think....Our Burger King and Taco Bell ask for ID during this time of year of all places. I gues theives need to eat too.

**nodmicks** · 12-16-2009, 09:48 PM

I'm sorry this happened. We had our discover numbers stolen and $1700 charged to Verison. Discover fixed it pronto.

**tervsforme** · 12-16-2009, 10:37 PM

Well, on the positive side, you caught it early, so it should be easier to track and find the transaction. It's happened to me as well, but the people were out of the country.

**frugalfranny** · 12-16-2009, 10:43 PM

Sorry MH, that this happened. What a hassle.

But it was a warning to me to really watch my bill - I usually do but a reminder never hurts.

**mauimagic** · 12-16-2009, 10:45 PM

How frustrating for you. Mahalo for sharing this - I need to check our accounts more often and not take things for granted.

**suebeehoney** · 12-17-2009, 03:07 AM

Oh my gosh...I'm so sorry this happened to you!

Good on you though, for having protections in place. I'm sure you're very thankful that you do!

Makes me glad I no longer have credit cards, though I know it can happen just as easily with a debit card or bank account.