Unknown Charge on Your Card or Bank Statement? How to Identify It and Get It Reversed

Short answer: first work out what the charge is: search the exact merchant name from your statement, and check your email for a receipt from around that date. If it is a subscription you did not knowingly agree to, or you cannot identify it at all, call your bank or card issuer: ask them to block further payments to that merchant and to dispute the charge. Act quickly, because dispute windows are limited.

Step 1: Read the statement line carefully

• Note the exact merchant name, amount, date and any phone number or web address printed next to it. Payment processors often show a short or odd name.
• Search your email (including spam) for the amount or the merchant name. Many "unknown" charges are a forgotten free trial, an app store subscription or a family member's purchase.
• Check app store subscriptions (Google Play and Apple) and PayPal automatic payments: these often appear under the store's name rather than the app's.

Step 2: Is it a trial that turned into a subscription?

A very common pattern is a small first payment (for example $1 for a "report" or a 7-day trial) followed by repeated larger charges. If that matches, read how $1 trial subscription traps work. If the charge is from trustcheck.club, note that it is not TrustCheck; see how to cancel a TrustCheck Club subscription.

Step 3: Stop it happening again

• Cancel on the merchant's website if you can, and screenshot the confirmation.
• Ask your bank or card issuer to block future payments to that merchant. If they cannot, ask for a replacement card with a new number.
• On PayPal, cancel the merchant under automatic payments in your settings.

Step 4: Dispute the charge

Tell your bank you want to dispute (charge back) the payment. Explain plainly whether you never authorised it at all, or you authorised one payment but not the repeat charges. Give dates and amounts, and any proof you tried to cancel. See how chargebacks work in the US, UK, Australia and elsewhere.

If you think your card details were stolen

If you see several charges you cannot explain, especially small "test" amounts, treat the card as compromised: ask your bank to cancel it and issue a new one, and check your other accounts.

Do not pay anyone to recover your money

People who post about an unknown charge are often contacted by fake "refund" or "support" agents. Your bank can reverse a card payment; nobody else needs your card number, a one-time code or remote access to your device. Read about fake support refund scams.