PREDICTED: NEARLY ONE MILLION CREDIT CARDS MAY BE REPORTED LOST OR STOLEN OVER THE FESTIVE SEASON

With the Boxing Day sales in full swing and the biggest night of the year fast approaching, research from CommBank reveals nearly one million¹ credit cards may be reported lost or stolen over the festive season².

Whether out shopping the sales or celebrating the New Year, the vast majority (61 per cent) of cancelled credit cards will simply be misplaced. In other words, more than half a million³ cards will be needlessly cancelled over the festive season, with Aussies wasting around 400,000⁴ festive hours updating the details of cancelled credit cards.

With Aussies expected to be spending an extra $1000 over the festive period and the majority planning to make payments with their credit or debit cards⁵, CommBank is encouraging customers to use the CommBank app to put a temporary lock on their misplaced credit card while they look for it.

Angus Sullivan, Executive General Manager Consumer Finance, Payments and Strategy, Commonwealth Bank, says: "It's the time of year when we all like to let our hair down and enjoy the sales and festivities, and perhaps unsurprisingly, many of us are likely to misplace our card at some point."

"While misplacing your credit card is always frustrating, the latest CommBank app feature allows our customers to put a temporary lock on a misplaced credit card while they look for it. Enabling them to enjoy the holiday season with the peace of mind their misplaced credit card is secure and safe in the knowledge they have the convenient option to unlock it again if it turns up."

Interestingly, the most common places people have misplaced their credit cards include their home (61 per cent) and in bars or restaurants (37 per cent). However, there are some differences between men and women, with men more likely to lose their card on a night out (31 per cent versus 22 per cent), while woman are more likely to lose their card when out shopping (52 per cent compared to 45 per cent).

For more information or to learn how to use the new temporary lock for CommBank credit cards, please visit commbank.com.au/cardsecurity.

AVAILABLE TO DOWNLOAD NOW
For existing CommBank app users, the temporary lock feature can be installed via the latest CommBank app updates in Google Play and the App Store. For new users, the CommBank app is available to download from Google Play and the App Store.

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¹ According to Lonergan Research there are 11,488,965 credit cards reported lost or stolen each year. This averages out at 957,414 per calendar month.

² The festive season refers to the period 1 December 2014 to 31 December 2014.

³ According to Lonergan Research there are 6,976,865 cancelled credit cards that are recoverable or later turn up each year. This averages out at 581,405 per calendar month.

⁴ According to Lonergan Research Australians spend 4,578,224 hours a year updating cancelled credit card details such as direct debits and regular payments. This averages out at 381,519 per calendar month.

⁵ According to Lonergan Research 60 per cent of payments made during the festive period will be made using a credit or debit card.

Notes to editors:

The study:

• Was conducted by Lonergan Research among 1,244 Australians aged 18 years and older.
• Fieldwork commenced on Wednesday 17 September and was completed on Saturday 20 September 2014.
• After interviewing, data was weighted to the latest population estimates sourced from the Australian Bureau of Statistics.