My mother's debit card was used fraudulently and I reported the fraudulent charge. Can the bank reimburse my mother for any of these charges? What happens to the person who made these charges?
In most cases, the charges and any fees that were imposed as a result of the transactions would be subject to reimbursement. There are many factors that impact this.
When the charges were discovered, how long did it take to report them? They should be reported immediately. If more than two business days passed, your mothers liability goes from $50 to $500.
Were these charges so old that they showed on prior statements? Charges made after 60 days after the first statement was sent reflecting the first charge may be completely on your mother.
Was her debit card actually used? If it was not an authorized debit card, it could be that your mother would have no liability. In some cases a Visa or MasterCard branded debit card will also allow for zero liability on the your mother.
Once the claim is made, the bank will have up to ten business days to resolve it. If they can't, they can pay what is known as a provisional credit. This means they total up the charges, deduct your mother's liability amount and give her full use of the money. The bank can then take 45 days to investigate the claim.
This can be a very confusing process and what I explained above has the basic requirements. There are exceptions for new accounts and again, Visa or MasterCard branded cards, but these are the normal steps. You can ask the bank to explain everything they did and how they calculated who had what liability. If you have further questions, ask here or in the Banking Question Discussion forum.
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In most cases, the charges and any 