To dispute a wrong credit card charge, call the card issuer, then send a written billing error notice that the issuer receives within 60 days after it sent the first statement showing the charge. Federal rules give the issuer 30 days to acknowledge the notice and two complete billing cycles, never more than 90 days, to resolve it. You do not have to pay the disputed amount while it investigates.
Key takeaways
- The 60-day clock for a billing error notice runs from the date the issuer sent the first statement showing the charge, not from the purchase date.
- The issuer must acknowledge your written notice within 30 days and resolve it within two complete billing cycles, never later than 90 days.
- While a billing error is under investigation you may withhold the disputed amount, and the issuer may not collect it or report you as delinquent for not paying it. You still owe the undisputed part on time.
- Goods that never arrived, or arrived wrong, late or in the wrong quantity, count as a billing error. Quality complaints about goods you accepted fall under a separate rule with its own conditions, often including a $50 minimum and a home-state or 100-mile limit.
- Federal rules require "provisional credit" for certain debit card errors, not for credit card billing errors, where it is an issuer's choice.
What counts as a billing error
The dispute rights come from the Fair Credit Billing Act, implemented in Regulation Z, section 1026.13. That section defines a "billing error" as one of seven situations. The ones people meet most often are:
- A charge you did not make, or that was made by someone without your authority.
- Property or services you did not accept, or that were not delivered as agreed.
- A payment or other credit that was not properly applied to your account.
- A math or accounting mistake by the issuer.
- An entry you ask the issuer to clarify, including with documents.
The remaining two cover charges not identified as the rules require and a statement not sent to your last known address when you gave it in writing at least 20 days before the cycle ended. A wrong amount, a duplicate charge or a refund that never posted usually fits one of these categories.
The "not accepted or not delivered as agreed" category is wider than it sounds. The official commentary (comment 13(a)(3)-1) gives these examples: you refused delivery because the goods did not match the contract, you received something different from what you agreed to, you received the wrong quantity, the delivery came late, or it went to the wrong place. For these, you do not have to contact the merchant before you send the notice (comment 13(a)(3)-3).
A billing error is not the same thing as being unhappy with what you bought. The same commentary excludes disputes about the quality of goods or services you accepted, and state law decides whether you accepted them. Quality complaints fall under a different rule, covered below.
Steps to dispute the charge
1. Review the statement and call
The CFPB recommends checking each statement and calling the number on your bill or card. Some issuers also offer an online form. A call or form is a good first move, but only the written notice starts the legal protections.
2. Send the written billing error notice
Under section 1026.13(b), the notice must reach the address the issuer lists on your statement for billing errors no later than 60 days after it sent the first statement showing the error. It must let the issuer identify your name and account number and, as far as possible, state why you believe there is an error and its type, date and amount.
The FTC's sample letter follows that pattern, and the agency suggests certified mail with a return receipt, copies (not originals) of receipts or other proof, and the billing inquiries address, which is often different from the payment address. If the billing rights statement says the issuer accepts electronic notices and explains how to send one, a notice sent that way counts as written (comment 13(b)-2). A letter needs no legal wording; the checklist at the end lists what to include.
3. Keep paying what is not in dispute
The rest of the bill is still due. The CFPB's guide to fixing card bill mistakes says you must still pay correct charges on time. Regulation Z also says withholding the disputed amount cannot cause undisputed balances to start carrying finance or other charges (comment 13(d)(1)-3 in the official commentary).
Deadlines the issuer must meet
Once your notice arrives, section 1026.13(c) gives the issuer two deadlines. It must acknowledge the notice in writing within 30 days, unless it has already resolved the matter by then. It must resolve the dispute within two complete billing cycles, and in no case later than 90 days.
Illustrative example of the calendar
| Event | Date (hypothetical) | How it was counted |
|---|---|---|
| Billing cycle (assumed) | Closes on the 5th of each month | Statements are sent on the 10th |
| Statement with the wrong charge is sent | March 10, 2026 | Start of the 60-day clock |
| Last day the notice can be received | May 9, 2026 | March 10 plus 60 days |
| Notice is received | April 20, 2026 | Assumed for the example |
| Acknowledgment due | May 20, 2026 | April 20 plus 30 days |
| End of two complete billing cycles | July 5, 2026 | Rest of the April 6–May 5 cycle, then May 6–June 5 and June 6–July 5 |
| 90-day cap | July 19, 2026 | April 20 plus 90 days; does not apply here because July 5 comes first |
| Resolution deadline | July 5, 2026 | The earlier of the two, 76 days after the notice arrived |
The notice deadline runs from the statement, not the purchase, and the notice must be received by the 60th day, so mailing it close to the deadline is a risk. On the issuer's side, comment 13(c)(2)-1 counts "two complete billing cycles" as actual cycles after the notice arrives: a notice received mid-cycle gives the issuer the rest of that cycle plus the next two full ones. On a monthly card that usually ends before the 90-day cap, here 14 days earlier.
What happens at the end
If an error occurred, the issuer must correct it and credit the disputed amount plus any related finance or other charges, then send a notice of the correction. If it finds no error, or a different one, it must explain why after a reasonable investigation and, if you ask, provide copies of documents showing the debt (section 1026.13(e) and (f)).
If the issuer decides you owe some or all of the amount, it must tell you in writing how much and when it is due, as the CFPB's dispute page also explains. Under section 1026.13(g), it must then give you your usual grace period or 10 days, whichever is longer, before it can report the amount as delinquent.
If you send another written notice within that time saying you still dispute it, the issuer may report the amount as delinquent only if it also reports that you dispute it and tells you who received the report. An issuer that has followed every step does not have to investigate the same error again (section 1026.13(h)).
Your protections during the review
While the dispute is open, section 1026.13(d) says:
- You need not pay the disputed amount or related charges, and the issuer may not try to collect them. If you pay through the card issuer's own automatic payment plan, a notice received up to 3 business days before the scheduled payment date stops the issuer from deducting the disputed amount. If the notice arrives later, the issuer must still leave out any unresolved disputed amount at the next scheduled debit. Bill-pay set up at another bank is not covered (comments 13(d)(1)-4 and -5).
- The issuer may not make, or threaten to make, an adverse credit report because you did not pay the disputed amount. It may report the item as in dispute, and it may report you as delinquent if undisputed amounts go unpaid (comment 13(d)(2)-1).
- The issuer may not accelerate the debt or restrict or close the account solely because you exercised these rights in good faith.
The issuer may still collect undisputed amounts, count the disputed amount against your credit limit and show it on the statement with a note that you need not pay it yet (section 1026.13(d)(4)), so a disputed charge can still reduce your available credit for a while.
Provisional credit: cards vs debit
The common claim that banks "must provisionally credit" a disputed charge describes a debit card rule. Under Regulation E (section 1005.11), a bank that cannot finish a debit card or other electronic transfer investigation within 10 business days must, with limited exceptions, provisionally credit the disputed amount within those 10 business days. It may then take up to 45 days, or 90 days for point-of-sale debit card purchases, transfers not started within a state and new accounts.
Regulation Z has no such requirement. Its commentary says only that a card issuer may temporarily correct the account when it receives a notice, while still meeting its other deadlines (comment 13(c)-1 in the official commentary).
A temporary credit some issuers show is their own policy. The issuer can reverse it if it finds no error within the resolution deadline. Once that deadline has passed, comment 13(c)(2)-2 bars reversing it, even if new evidence turns up later. An issuer that fails to send the required written explanation generally must credit the disputed amount. The protection you can always rely on is the right to withhold the disputed amount.
With a credit card the disputed money is the issuer's, so you are not out of pocket while you wait; with a debit card it has already left your bank account. The FTC's sample letter page notes that legal protections for credit cards are stronger than those for debit cards.
Fraud, non-delivery, poor quality
Charges you did not make
For a lost or stolen card, section 1026.12(b) caps your liability at the lesser of $50 or the value of what was obtained before the issuer is notified. Even that applies only if the card was one you had accepted and the issuer gave the required notice of the limit and a way to identify the user. If state law or your card agreement sets a lower limit, the lower one applies.
The FTC says that if your card is used before you report it lost, the most you might owe is $50. If you report the loss before anyone uses the card, or if only your account number was used and the card itself was not lost, you are not responsible for unauthorized charges (FTC guidance). A charge you did not make is also a billing error, so report it by phone right away and follow up with a written notice within the 60 days.
Goods that never arrived or came wrong
A charge for something not delivered or not delivered as agreed (the examples listed earlier) is a billing error under section 1026.13(a)(3). The 60-day written notice and the issuer deadlines apply, the merchant need not be contacted first, and there is no $50 minimum or distance limit. The CFPB's refund page also says a charge for something you did not receive can count as a billing error.
Poor quality on goods you accepted
A complaint about the quality of something you accepted falls under section 1026.12(c), the right to assert claims and defenses against the issuer. It covers purchases made with the card, not cash advances. It applies only if you made a good-faith attempt to resolve the problem with the merchant and, in general, the purchase cost more than $50 and happened in your home state or within 100 miles of your current address. For online, mail and phone orders, state law decides where the purchase happened.
The $50 and distance limits do not apply where the merchant is the issuer itself, controls or is controlled by the issuer, shares a parent company with it, is a franchised dealer of the issuer's products, or got the order through a mail solicitation the issuer took part in. They still apply if the merchant only accepts or advertises the card.
Your claim is capped at the credit still outstanding for that purchase at the time you first notify the issuer or the merchant, and the issuer must apply your payments to other balances first (comment 12(c)-4). While you withhold that amount, the issuer may not report it as delinquent until the dispute is settled or a court rules. For goods that never arrived, both rules can apply and you can use either. Paying off the disputed purchase ends the claims-and-defenses right, though a timely billing error notice is still possible (comment 12(c)-1).
Many issuers also reverse charges through card network "chargebacks" under their own policies. Those windows and rules are set by the networks and issuers, not by Regulation Z, and can differ from the 60-day billing error rule. Check your cardmember agreement.
Frequently asked questions
Does a dispute hurt a credit score?
The issuer cannot make an adverse credit report because you did not pay a disputed amount, though it may report the item as in dispute. You still need to pay the undisputed balance on time, because a late payment on that part can be reported normally.
Is a dispute still possible after 60 days?
The federal billing error protections depend on the 60-day notice. The separate right to assert claims and defenses over a purchase has no such notice deadline in the regulation. It covers only a dispute with the merchant over a card purchase, under the conditions described above, and only the credit still outstanding. Some issuers or networks have longer windows of their own, but those are policies to check in your card agreement, not rights you can count on.
Must the cardholder contact the merchant first?
For a billing error, including goods not delivered as agreed, you do not have to (comment 13(a)(3)-3). The FTC suggests contacting the card issuer first so you do not miss the deadline. For a poor-quality purchase you accepted, a good-faith attempt to resolve it with the merchant is one of the conditions for asserting claims against the issuer.
What if I already paid the disputed charge?
You can still dispute it as a billing error, as long as your written notice arrives within the 60 days. The CFPB says you probably will not get the money back until the company decides in your favor, and the issuer would correct the account by crediting it if it finds an error.
Where can I complain if the issuer does not follow the process?
You can submit a complaint at consumerfinance.gov/complaint or call (855) 411-CFPB (2372). The CFPB forwards the complaint to the company and works to get a response, generally within 15 days, according to its credit card bill guide.
Checklist for your dispute letter
This is general educational information, not legal advice. Check your own card agreement and statement for the address and any issuer-specific steps.
- Find the statement that first showed the charge and note the date it was sent. Count 60 days forward and aim to send the letter well before that.
- Use the billing inquiries address from the statement or agreement, not the payment address.
- Put your name, address and account number at the top, the disputed amount and charge date in the body, and a plain explanation of why it is wrong.
- Ask the issuer to correct the account and credit related finance charges.
- Enclose copies of receipts, order confirmations or messages with the merchant. Keep the originals and a copy of the letter.
- Send it by certified mail with a return receipt, or through the issuer's electronic channel if it says that counts as written notice.
- Pay all undisputed charges on time while you wait for the 30-day acknowledgment and the final answer.
Sources
- 12 CFR 1026.13, Billing error resolution (CFPB Regulation Z)
- Comment for 1026.13, Billing error resolution (CFPB)
- 12 CFR 1026.12, Special credit card provisions (CFPB Regulation Z)
- Comment for 1026.12, Special credit card provisions (CFPB)
- 12 CFR 1005.11, Procedures for resolving errors (CFPB Regulation E)
- How to fix mistakes in your credit card bill (CFPB)
- How do I dispute a charge on my credit card bill? (CFPB)
- How can I get a refund on a product or service I purchased with my credit card? (CFPB)
- Sample letter for disputing credit and debit card charges (FTC)
- Lost or stolen credit, ATM, and debit cards (FTC)
