Cards are helpful, but ensure you are covered
Appreciation to the growing popularity of plastic money, maintaining more than a couple of cards have become more the rule than the exception. While the increasing reliance on this mode of payment has indeed given a boost to convenience, it has also meant that the security-related risks users are exposed to have gone up considerably. Misuses of stolen cards, skimming etc continue to be cause of concern for cardholders.
Though the Reserve Bank of India’s directive making two-factor authentication mandatory for transactions carried out online has made the process more secure, the threat lives on in the offline world.
Enter card protection services
Some insurance companies and banks offer protection against misuse of credit and debit cards. For instance, Tata AIG General Insurance offers protection that covers identity theft and fraudulent charges. Under the former, expenses related to resolving the issues as well as expenses the holder has to pay for any resultant unauthorised credit are covered. The latter extends protection — up to 12 hours prior to loss reporting — against fraudulent use of your debit or credit card.
Several banks, too, have taken steps towards providing their customers access to a protection plan that offers cover in the event of their stolen card being misused. HDFC Bank offers this facility to its debit card holders, where protection is provided against fraudulent Point of Sale transactions.
In addition, over the past few months, a clutch of banks and credit card companies —