Yup. That’s the short version of this story. We found a credit card this morning on the beach near Waialae Beach Park. It was a Costco Visa card issued by Citibank. [The original version of this post was hijacked by Ms. Auto Correct and uncorrectly said the card was found near Waianae Beach Park. My Mac seems to prefer Waianae to Waialae, for its own unknown reasons.]

After looking around and failing to see anyone who might have dropped it, we considered taking it to Costco later today, but instead decided to come home and report finding it.

That last part proved to be harder than I expected.

First, we tried searching for the person whose name is on the card. I did find a California phone number and called, but went right to voicemail. I left a message, but there’s no way to figure out if the message would find its way to the right person.

Next I looked at the back of the card for information, and called the “customer service” number provided.

Listen to all the options, the recorded message said, as some menu items have changed.

Okay. I listened carefully. After choosing between English and Spanish, the automated system asked for the credit card number. I entered the number of the missing card. Then, as you would expect, I was asked for additional personal information matching the owner of the card. That brought the phone call to an quick end.

I called back again to see whether there was perhaps a menu option I missed the first time around. Nope.

After another cup of coffee, I did an online search and found a link labeled “Security Center | Identity Theft Protection | Citi.com – Citibank”. That sounded like a winner.

But it quickly led to the same dead end as customer service. The system seems designed to take calls from people who have lost their credit cards, with no thought given to those who find one of those lost cards.

I was about ready to give up and go on with my morning, but luckily I went one more round.

I did an online search for the phrase “how to report finding a Visa credit card”.

And at the top of the list was the one I had been looking for.

Report a lost or stolen card is simple
Cardholders in the U.S and Canada can call Visa Global Customer Care Services at 1-800-847-2911.

At first, it looked like it might lead into that same dead end, but one last menu item offered an opportunity to address “other question”, and that led to a real person who answered and said they could help with the lost/found card.

So I provided the card info, and was told that Visa will now notify the issuing bank and the card holder, and take it from there.

What to do with the card? Should I return it to Costco? Nope. It was suggested that I could give it to a police officer, or shred it.

I’m guessing this will be one of those good news-bad news situations for the person who lost the card. Good news–the card has been found. Bad news–I’m sure Visa immediately cancelled it, and it’s going to be a hassle to get a replacement, especially if the person is a visitor in Honolulu.

Maybe I’m wrong. I hope so.