You need help with your MasterCard? Here you can find answers to our most frequently asked questions. Or tweet @AskMasterCard and we will be glad to help.
How do I dispute a charge?
I received an eemail/phone call from MasterCard about my account but it appears to be a scam or a phishing eemail – What do I do?
I believe fraudulent purchases were made on my MasterCard card account
A merchant required me to make a minimum purchase when I used my MasterCard card
A merchant wanted to charge a surcharge or fee to use my MasterCard card
I tried to make a purchase but my card gets declined
What card benefits and insurance are free with my MasterCard card?
How do I use a MasterCard Everyday Prepaid Card?
I no longer have my MasterCard and wish to report the card as lost or stolen
What liability do I have for unauthorized purchases made on a lost or stolen MasterCard card?
I need a replacement card
I made a purchase in my local currency but was still charged a currency conversion fee
I want to apply for a MasterCard
Please work through your card issuing bank to dispute a charge. Only your bank holds your specific and unique information including what rights you have to file disputes.
I received an eemail/phone call from MasterCard about my account but it appears to be a scam or a phishing eemail. What do I do?
MasterCard will never solicit personal or account information from a cardholder and we suspect that the information you received is fraudulent. Consumers should always safeguard their personal information and refrain from responding to suspicious eemail/phone scams. If you suspect fraud on your account, please contact your issuing bank immediately to report it. We would appreciate if you could forward the original eemail to stopit@mastercard.com so that we may investigate.
I believe fraudulent purchases were made on my MasterCard card account
If you believe that a transaction posted to your MasterCard card account is fraudulent you should immediately contact the financial institution that issued your MasterCard account and – report your concerns. Typically, there is a customer service number for your financial institution on the back of each card that you can call.
A merchant required me to make a minimum purchase when I used my MasterCard card
A merchant is not permitted to require a MasterCard cardholder to pay a minimum amount in connection with a MasterCard card transaction.
If you believe that a merchant inappropriately has requested a minimum charge or you would like to report an inappropriate charge you may report this by clicking the following URL and completing a brief online form www.mastercard.us/support/merchant-violations.html
A merchant wanted to charge a surcharge or fee to use my MasterCard card
Merchants can charge an extra fee to customers who pay with MasterCard-branded credit cards, where permissible by law. These fees are not allowed on Debit MasterCard or MasterCard prepaid cards. Additional details on these surcharges can be found at www.mastercardmerchant.com.
Merchants must clearly disclose their surcharge policies at the register and clearly indicate the amount of the surcharge on the receipt.
If you are not certain whether you have been charged appropriately, or you would like to report a questionable charge, eemail us directly at merchantsurcharge@mastercard.com
I tried to make a purchase but my card gets declined
MasterCard does not manage cardholder accounts. Cards are issued by financial institutions that maintain accounts and set limits. If the transaction was declined, please contact your financial institution that issued your card to understand why it was declined. Sometimes banks put security measures in place to reduce the risk of fraudulent transactions on cross-border and online transactions resulting in declined transactions.
What card benefits and insurance are free with my MasterCard card?
MasterCard provides many different features and benefits that differ depending on the actual MasterCard card that you have. To find out the specific benefits of your card, please contact the MasterCard Assistance Center at 1-800-307-7309 or ‘Collect’ by dialing +(636)722-7111.
How do I use a MasterCard Everyday Prepaid Card?
You can use your MasterCard Everyday Prepaid or Gift card anywhere Debit MasterCard cards are accepted. Be sure to know your card balance before you shop-the merchant or service provider may not be able to retrieve this information for you. When you’re ready to make your purchase, give the cashier your card or, if asked, swipe your card at the terminal. The purchase amount will automatically be deducted from the card balance.
I no longer have my MasterCard and wish to report the card as lost or stolen.
To report your card lost or stolen, a MasterCard representative will be able to assist you in filing the report. Please contact the MasterCard Assistance Center at 1-800-307-7309 or ‘Collect’ by dialing +(636)722-7111. You should also contact the financial institution that issued your MasterCard immediately.
What liability do I have for unauthorized purchases made on a lost or stolen MasterCard card?
If MasterCard Zero Liability protection applies to your MasterCard card, once you report your card lost or stolen to MasterCard, in most situations no unauthorized charges should be posted to your account. We recommend that you review the next two billing statements after a lost or stolen card has been reported to ensure no unauthorized transactions have been posted.
If you do see unauthorized transactions, please promptly contact the financial institution that issued the MasterCard account to you. Typically, there is a customer service number for your financial institution on the back of each card that you can call. You can also contact the MasterCard Assistance Center at 1-800-307-7309 or ‘Collect’ by dialing +(636)722-7111.
MasterCard can assist you in receiving a replacement card by working with the financial institution that issued your card. Replacement cards require that such financial institution authorize a new account number. To request an emergency card replacement, please contact the MasterCard Assistance Center at 1-800-307-7309 or ‘Collect’ by dialing +(636)722-7111.
I made a purchase in my local currency but was still charged a currency conversion fee
MasterCard recommends that MasterCard cardholders contact their financial institution that issued its MasterCard card to determine what currency conversion charges are applied to their foreign transactions.
Typically, there is a customer service number for your financial institution on the back of each card where you can call. You can always contact the MasterCard Assistance Center at 1-800-307-7309 or ‘Collect’ by dialing +(636)722-7111.
If you are experiencing problems with MasterCard SecureCode, you must contact the financial institution that issued your MasterCard to assist you with all SecureCode issues. From your computer, visit the URL below. If you do not see a listing for your financial institution that issued your MasterCard card please understand that SecureCode is a voluntary program and not all financial institutions sign up www.mastercard.us/securecode-sign-up.html
I want to apply for a MasterCard
MasterCard has created a helpful online tool to assist in making decisions about which card products are available. Please click the URL below: www.mastercard.us/find-a-card.html
9 Comments
I am putting my mastercard in Auto Machine, but not working and it showes which the bank not responding at the moment and i am unable to use my it
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Your reply are highly appreciated
We are a small food cart researching credit card POS systems. One agent told me we MUST have our customers sign the receipt that prints out of a terminal to protect us. He claims It is not safe to just have a customer sign with their finger on a tablet touchscreen.
If it is true, why don’t I have to sign a paper receipt at Target? King Soopers? Walmart?
Please advise. Thank you!
Nancy Van Reeth
Hi Nancy – thank you for your comment. It’s best to talk to your acquiring bank to understand what’s best for your situation. Here’s a short module to guide you through the process – http://www.mastercard.com/elearning/partner/story.html.
To understand the chargeback process in simple terms, you can also visit this page: http://www.mastercard.com/elearning/top_ten/story.html
I believe my Mastercard will be charged against my will. I opened a site (for power of attorney forms) and completed the questions the site asked. At the end they told me that unless I cancelled within 7 days my card would be charged $39.95 a month. I’ve tried to find the webpage, but can’t. Is there anything other than canceling my card and getting another that I can do to track down the company and tell them “No?”
I have a MasterCard Debit gift card – do not know the pin number
When will I be issued a chip card?
I just recently received my JetBlue Mastercard. In the past with American Express I was able to get e-billing.
I do not see this added benefit offered with the JetBlue Mastercard.
Do you plan to offer e-billing in the future?
I have a prepaid card and have had lots over the previous yrs but now when I go to buy something on a gaming site it won’t let me because I have too many cards on my list. How do i get rid of the cards without having the cards or numbers anymore as they are all used up and destroyed?
On the 14th January 2018 at 2.31PM Mastercard News @MastercardNews appears to have tweeted the following, but cannot see this on your site anymore. Is this true? “Proud to announce our partnership with @Ripple! Read our blog for upcoming developments with and updates on Masterpass. -> news.mstr.cd/4rDfGRn”