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Hello All,
I hope someone can help me. Three weeks ago, I got stuck out of town without the ability to use my HSBC Discover card after I had used it the night before. HSBC locked it as part of a fraud alert because I dared use it out of state, then began to ask me a series of questions that did NOT pertain to me, therefore, I could not correctly answer the questions! They insisted that the information they had came from my credit report and/or public records. Even going into a branch did not help resolve this issue, and last Friday, I had to fax in a ton of information to prove my identity - I did with a long critical letter as well - Well, tonight I checked ALL THREE reports and NONE of the information they tested me on appears on ANY of the credit reports.
They finally did unblock my card tonight , but I am so darn afraid of this happening again when I just cannot convince these people that I cannot choose a previous address from a list when I, in fact, have never lived at ANY of the provided addresses! Now what am I supposed to do?
Sounds like they pulled your LexisNexis report, which is notorious for having lots of incorrect info. They're also good about asking impossible-to-answer questions, like what was the name of your ex-sister-in-law's third-grade teacher and other idiocies.
Slightly off topic - any way to get LexisNexis to update to correct information??
Have had this happen to me too. FICO, credit approved. But since I "miss" a crucial identifying question, I am denied. And I *know* the answers to my questions!
It's always a good idea to give your CC a call and let them know you are going out of state. Some of them have an allowed 500 miles range before they put a fraud block.
Does this calling your company when you travel out of state needs to be done for all cards or only HSBC?
I have:
Amex Zynz
Bofa Platinum
DCU
US Bank Flex perks
Cap 1
IMO, it doesn't hurt to call, especially if you haven't had the card very long, or if you've never used it out of your own zip code.
Lots of companies will get excited with a big change in pattern.
I had had my PenFed Visa for quite a while when I charged a MacBook on it and then went out of town and kept using it. They called my cell phone to verify that it was me.
If you've already done a bit of traveling with your AmEx, you're probably OK. When mine was newish, I called to let them know I was taking it to New Orleans, and they wished me a good time. I don't bother any more.
While I don't advocate calling CS every day with every wacko question under the sun, this seems like a reasonable cause to check with them.
(I don't look at them as playing Big Brother --I consider this an instance of them watching out for me. )
Thanks a lot. this makes sense to me. I will call the ccc before I go out of my home state.
@vish1 wrote:Does this calling your company when you travel out of state needs to be done for all cards or only HSBC?
I have:
Amex Zynz
Bofa Platinum
DCU
US Bank Flex perks
Cap 1
It depends on what your usual pattern of activity has been in the past. For over 20 years I have spent nearly every Christmas in Colorado, and most years I also go there in February. I don't bother calling any of my credit card companies before these trips, and my purchases in Colorado don't trigger security flags. When I visit my mother in law, who lives in a small Southeast town, I usually go to Walmart because in her town many things are only available at Walmart, and again these purchases don't trigger the security alarms. Nearly every week I make purchases at places like Stop & Shop, Walgreen's, etc., in the town where I live. But if I go to Walmart near where I live, which I do maybe one a year if that, there's about a 50 percent chance the credit card company will phone me to verify the transaction, because it is outside my typical pattern. And when somebody tried to use my account for a three hundred dollar charge at a Florida liquor store the credit card company's security department called me within the hour.