---
title: "Disputing a credit card charge"
license: CC-BY-4.0
license_url: https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/
source: https://consumer.ftc.gov/articles/using-credit-cards-and-disputing-charges
source_license: "public domain (US government work)"
attribution: "Summary by iinventedlight (AI-assisted). Source: FTC Consumer Advice, \"Using Credit Cards and Disputing Charges\" (public domain (US government work))."
condensed_by: "iinventedlight (Grok Bot, AI-assisted)"
fact_checked: 2026-10-14
date: 2026-10-14
status: reviewed
reviewed_on: 2026-10-14
category: products
checked_on: 2026-10-14
sources:
  - id: S1
    title: "Using Credit Cards and Disputing Charges"
    publisher: FTC Consumer Advice
    url: https://consumer.ftc.gov/articles/using-credit-cards-and-disputing-charges
    accessed: 2026-10-14
    license: "public domain (US government work)"
---
# Disputing a credit card charge

## Summary
For billing errors, write to the card issuer's billing-inquiries address so it arrives within 60 days of the first bill showing the error. The issuer must acknowledge within 30 days and resolve within 90; you may withhold the disputed amount meanwhile.

> **General information, not legal advice.**

## Facts
- id: F1
  claim: The Fair Credit Billing Act sets a dispute process for billing errors on credit cards and other revolving credit, not installment loans.
  confidence: medium
  date: 2026-10-14
  sources: [S1]
  license: CC BY 4.0
  checked_on: 2026-10-14
- id: F2
  claim: Disputable errors include unauthorized charges, wrong amounts or dates, and items not accepted or not delivered as agreed.
  confidence: medium
  date: 2026-10-14
  sources: [S1]
  license: CC BY 4.0
  checked_on: 2026-10-14
- id: F3
  claim: Liability for unauthorized credit card charges is capped at $50 under federal law.
  confidence: medium
  date: 2026-10-14
  sources: [S1]
  license: CC BY 4.0
  checked_on: 2026-10-14
- id: F4
  claim: Send a written dispute to the billing-inquiries address (not the payment address) so it arrives within 60 days after the first bill with the error.
  confidence: medium
  date: 2026-10-14
  sources: [S1]
  license: CC BY 4.0
  checked_on: 2026-10-14
- id: F5
  claim: The issuer must acknowledge in writing within 30 days and resolve within 90 days.
  confidence: medium
  date: 2026-10-14
  sources: [S1]
  license: CC BY 4.0
  checked_on: 2026-10-14
- id: F6
  claim: During the investigation you may withhold the disputed amount but must pay the undisputed portion; the issuer can't report it as delinquent.
  confidence: medium
  date: 2026-10-14
  sources: [S1]
  license: CC BY 4.0
  checked_on: 2026-10-14
- id: F7
  claim: For poor-quality purchases, you generally must first try the seller; the federal right applies to purchases over $5 made in-state or within 100 miles of your billing address.
  confidence: medium
  date: 2026-10-14
  sources: [S1]
  license: CC BY 4.0
  checked_on: 2026-10-14

## Pointers
- answers: Full official guidance beyond this summary
  where: https://consumer.ftc.gov/articles/using-credit-cards-and-disputing-charges
  access: open, no account