I another thread, Wonko the Sane mentioned that his cat recieved a credit card in the mail. While I’m sure that using such a credit card would constitute fraud, let’s just say someone did. I assume that after some months of non-payment, the credit card company would turn the cat over to a collection agency. Would these people realize they were harrassing a cat? At what point do you think someone would figure it out?
And what if, by some fluke of the mail, your cat’s credit card got delivered to the wrong address and the unethical slack jaws there decided to use it. Of course, they don’t pay the bill, and let’s just say you ignore subsequent bills which are delivered to your house (for the cat, of course). Are you liable for the charges since you failed to report the card stolen, or is that the sole responsibility of the cat?
Assuming your cat, like the vast majority, cannot write, then one would assume that you completed the application for your cat. In this case the fraud would be exactly analagous to using a fellow human’s name and information to obtain credit.
If your cat can read, write, and establish competency in a court of law, then he’s on his own.
I once talked to a guy who was a writer, and wrote under different names. He said that once, just to see what would happen, he sent in a credit application to his current credit supplier (correct term?) with his SSN and one of his pen names. They issued him a credit card. He wrote back and told them what he did, and told them off for not checking the SSN…scary thought!
Doctor Jackson, that’s assuming that anybody (other than the credit card company) filled out an application for the card. Been to a college recently? Students are rather bombarded with unsolicited credit cards, many of which include the card in the original, no-application mailing. Maybe Wonko signed his cat up for a school club as a joke, and the member list ended up getting sold to some less scrupulous company.
My vet sends reminder cards for checkups addressed to our cats. I imagine that someday they might give our address to a pet magazine, and then they give it to some other magazine, etc. At some point it’ll get on a direct mailing list, I’m sure.
I think this is why all credit card apps now are “pre-approved”. If they get one back that was addressed to your pet signed, then it’s a case of fraud on your part. Gone are the days when they sent out cards first and asked questions later.
Maybe, but still fails one one point: unless your cat personally presents the card for payment and gives the proper authorization via signature, PIN, or voice data (for telephone orders) then the assumption would be someone did it for the cat. That someone would be guilty of fraud. As AWB stated, most CC companies will not send an unsolicited card anymore. The risk is too high. Most now use the “pre-approved” applications.
I forgot to tackle Lucky’s last question:
Assuming the card was truly unsolicited and issued in the cat’s name, the credit card company would be on the hook for any charges unless they could find the “unethical slackjaws” and collect. That’s one reason that unsolicited cards are rare nowadays. It’s also part of teh reason that you have to call an 800 number to authorize your new card before it can be used.
I have my phone listed under my cat’s name, and I assume that’s why I have gotten sweepstakes entries and credit card offers in his name. Because Jack has no checking or savings accounts (no ss# either) he could not get a card. I spoke for him, because “he could not get to the phone”. The woman on the phone did not find his felinosity very amusing at all. I thought it was funny as hell though.