Consumers are unaware of true online fraud liability

Do you know what your online fraud liability is? While fraud protection and security are the most important factors for online shoppers, 68% of online shoppers who pay with a credit card do not know their liability coverage. This is according to a new national survey of 2,706 consumers conducted by JupiterResearch and commissioned by eBillme, the payment alternative that brings online banking to the eCommerce checkout.

And, based on the distribution of other responses from the survey on this topic, it is clear that there is a high level of confusion as to the definition of maximum liability coverage, even among those who think they know what their level of maximum liability coverage might be. With similar data reported among debit card users, it is apparent why consumers are still hesitant to checkout.

The survey evaluated consumers’ considerations when selecting a payment method online and examined potential opportunities for online merchants to convert these hesitant shoppers into confident buyers. The results uncovered interesting insights into consumers’ online shopping behavior indicating that buyer protection is far more important than purchase rewards, which is one of the least important factors for consumers choosing an online payment option:

• 81% of credit and debit card users value fraud protection as the most important factor when selecting a payment option; over 4 times more important than rewards.
• 60% of credit card users and 56% of debit card users prefer product and service guarantees; over 3 times more than rewards on their purchase.
• 45% of credit card users and 50% of debit card users value price protection and being offered the lowest available price; 2.5 times over rewards or points earned from making purchases for credit card users and over 3 times for debit card users.

The study also found that 68 percent of credit card users don’t know what percentage of purchases they would be liable for if their card were lost or stolen. And, 77% of credit card users stated that they would accept changes in the online checkout payment process if it would enhance security. 65% of debit card users are similarly unaware of the liability connected with using a debit card. Fraudulent debit card purchases can cost the consumer up to $500 or more if the activity is not reported in a certain allotted time period.