Individual credit card agreements lay out specific rules to govern what happens once a credit card is lost or stolen, but the Act does establish minimum protections for the cardholder. Once you inform the credit card company that your card has been lost or stolen, you are not liable for any charges that subsequently accrue. If charges have accrued in the period before you inform the credit card company, the maximum amount for which the cardholder can be liable is $50. However, it should be noted that this $50 limitation does not apply if the lost or stolen card is used in combination with a personal identification number (PIN) at an automated teller machine (ATM). Last reviewed: October 2014