The introduction of debit and credit card has made life a bit easy for several people. With these cards, we can withdraw money without visiting a branch of our bank. We can visit the mall, grocery store, boutique, etc., without tucking wad of cash in our purses or bags. Indeed, credit and debit card is a blessing to our generation. However, there is a lot of misconception surrounding the use of these cards. And one of those common misconceptions is that freezing a card will halt a pending transaction. Will freezing a card halt a pending transaction?
Freezing a card wouldn’t stop a transaction as authorization has already been made. If you wish to cancel a pending transaction, you will have to contact the merchant ASAP or your bank if the merchant fails to cooperate.
There are many situations that would warrant you to contact your bank and request that they freeze your debit or credit card. One of those situations is the issue of a misplaced card. If your debit or credit card was misplaced, you’ll surely want to contact your bank and request that they temporally deactivate it pending when you find it. The temporary freeze will render the card inactive, thus protecting your funds until it is discovered. What about those pending transactions? Will they post? Or will they be terminated since your card has been frozen? In this article, you’ll find out.
Will Cancelling a Credit Card Stop Recurring Payments?
Will Freezing Card Stop Pending Transactions?
A bank can decide to freeze your card, or you may decide to contact the bank and request that they freeze it probably because it was misplaced or due to other reasons. When your card is frozen, you won’t be able to do anything with the card. In other words, you won’t be able to make purchases, withdrawals, or transfers. Freezing your card is the perfect way to secure your account for any reason. If you are going on a vacation, you can call your bank and request that it freezes your card.
Freezing your card renders it inactive. If you want to reactivate it, you can contact your bank and request that it is reactivated. However, if the reason you requested that your bank freeze your card is because you misplaced it, it’s best you permanently disable the card especially if you fail to find it as it may have landed in the wrong hands.
As I said, freezing your card renders it inactive. But does it annul those pending transactions? What happens to pending transactions when you freeze your card? Are they cancelled? Can a card freeze stop an awaiting transaction? These are the questions you may ask after freezing your card, and I’ll ensure that they are answered as we progress in this article.
What Is a Pending Transaction?
If you are a debit or a credit cardholder, you should know what a pending transaction is. Simply put, a pending transaction is one that is yet to post. Or it is a debit or a credit card transaction that is yet to be fully processed by the merchant. It takes about three to five days for an awaiting transaction to post, after which the pending tag being displayed on your banking app will disappear, indicating the completion or end of the transaction.
Can You Cancel a Pending Transaction?
It is possible to cancel an awaiting transaction, but you cannot do it on your own. If you made a purchase and change your mind a short while later (probably because you don’t like the product), you can return the product and cancel the awaiting transaction by contacting the merchant. If the merchant fails to cooperate, you can contact your bank.
Worthy to note is that freezing your card wouldn’t stop an awaiting transaction, especially after the payment has been authorized. It doesn’t matter who decides to freeze the card, the transaction will post eventually, and you will be notified.
Locking your card will only stop those transactions that haven’t been authorized (a request to bill the account by the merchant). As you know, all transactions in the United States required authorization to go through. If you wish to dispute the transaction, you may have to wait till it posts before doing so.
Freezing your card will only stop it from functioning. In other words, it’ll stop it from being used to make purchases, withdrawals, transfers, etc.
Have an Issue With a Transaction?
Contact the merchant or your bank if you have any issue with a transaction. A refund will be issued to you if you request one (provided your request is approved). However, a refund can take as long as seven days to ten business days or even more to appear on your card.
Will a Direct Deposit Reopen a Closed Account?
Can You Freeze a Pending Transaction?
As a credit or debit cardholder you won’t be satisfied with all transactions. That shoe you ordered online may come in bad shape, thus forcing you to return it and request a refund. The shorts you ordered could be a misfit. In that case, you’ll have no choice but to return it and request a refund. A lot of things can prompt you to return a product and request a refund. Sometimes, requesting a refund may be challenging, especially when the transaction is still pending. In that case, you may want to know if it’s possible to freeze the transaction.
You cannot freeze a pending transaction. Once the authorization has been made, and the transaction is being processed, it may be impossible to stop it. You’ll have to wait till it posts.
Most merchants will tell you that it is impossible to stop an awaiting transaction. However, sometimes, you may be lucky, especially if you dispute the transaction in time. If you wish to dispute a transaction, you should contact the merchant or your bank if the merchant doesn’t give you a satisfying response instead of looking for ways to pause the transaction. However, your bank should be your last resort.
