Money

What Happens When Refund is Issued to Expired Credit Card?

When we try to make a payment with an expired credit card, the payment doesn’t go through. Still, if a refund is initiated to an expired credit card or even credit is initiated to an expired card, it automatically reflects the new card’s statements.

Let me share a recent incident on the matter.

I closed my hosting account with MediaTemple. After the confirmation, they went ahead and deactivated my account and issued a refund on a pro-rata basis the balanced amount to my credit card.

It was done on 4th May 2018.

The process of account closure was smooth with MediaTemple. So I wanted to leave a thanks note to the support team.

I realized I couldn’t log in to my account anymore.

Out of curiosity, I wanted to know which card will have my refund amount. This was when I realized the payment was made from a card that had expired in February 2018.

Now I couldn’t use the account’s support.

Finally, I had to tweet to @mediatemplehelp.

They assured me the refund would be processed OK even when the card has expired.

The card was an HDFC card, so I was getting ready to contact HDFC Bank’s credit card division once I was sure the refund had been processed.

To my surprise, I didn’t need to do anything. The refund to my expired credit card is reflected in my new card account statement.

In many cases, the newly issued card didn’t have the same card number with a change in the expiry date and a difference in the three-digit CVV code at the back.

HDFC had issued a fresh new card because they upgraded the card and the credit limit. So the new credit card number wasn’t the same as the old card. Still, the refund got credited to the new card correctly and on the same day, aka 4th May 2018.

Still, it is always better to first talk to the bank or the credit card team if things will be like it has been in my case.

Common FAQs

What happens if money is refunded to an expired debit card?

A debit card is either linked to your savings or current bank account. So the refund initiated on a debit card will be added to your bank account. Similar to the case of a credit card, even if your debit card has expired and if the refund is initiated on the debit card, the refund will get credited into the bank account.

What happens if a refund is sent to a closed account?

To answer this question, I visited the HDFC Bank to close my bank account and asked them what will happen if a payment is made to the account I am closing, and they had to say this.

If the amount is credited just after the account’s closure (less than a month or so), the bank will send a cheque for the said amount to the registered address with the bank.
After a specific interval, the bank rejects the incoming credits to a closed account.

Depending on when you close the account, your amount will either get credited, and you will get a check for the same, or the refund will be rejected.

If the refund gets rejected, you have to get in touch with the sender and ask them to refund again to a different source.

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Shabbir Bhimani

Blogging Since 2009. If I can leave my high paying C# job in an MNC in the midst of global financial crisis of 2008, anybody can do it. @BizTips I guide programmers and developers to Start and Grow an Online Business. Read more about me here.