HDFC Bank Debit / ATM Card Terms and Conditions - Last Modified On 13/02/2024

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DEFINITIONS 

In this document the following words and phrases have the meaning opposite them unless the context indicates below: 

Bank refers to HDFC Bank Limited, a banking company incorporated in India under the Companies Act 1956 and having its registered office at HDFC Bank House, Senapati Bapat Marg, Lower Parel, Mumbai - 400 013, India and includes its successors and assigns Debit Card Issued to the customer by HDFC Bank in association with VISA/MasterCard and RuPay. 

Card: A Card refers to a Debit / ATM Card issued by the Bank. 

Debit Card: A Debit card is a payment card that can be used in place of cash to make purchases. It consists of the bank's name, a card number, the cardholder's name, and an expiration date, on either the front or the back.  

ATM Card: An ATM card is a payment card used to withdraw cash from ATM. 

Cardholder refers to a customer of the Bank authorised to use the card.  

EDC terminal shall mean point of sale electronic data capture capable of handling card transactions i.e., electronic data capture (EDC) terminal, printers, other peripherals and accessories, including PIN (defined hereunder) pads and necessary software to run the devices and which processes the transaction at the Merchant Establishment in India & abroad (except Nepal & Bhutan).  

International Transactions refer to the transactions entered into by the cardholder on his card abroad (except Nepal and Bhutan).  

Merchant means any person who owns or manages or operates a service establishment (physical/online) wherever located which honours the card and includes amongst others stores, shops, restaurants, hotels, airline organisations, ATMs advertised by the Bank, VISA/MasterCard/RuPay or the Merchant.  

Merchant Establishments shall mean establishments(physical/online) wherever located which honours a VISA/MasterCard/RuPay and shall include among others, stores, shops, restaurants, hotels, airline organisations advertised as honouring the VISA/MasterCard/RuPay.  

Terms refer to Terms and Conditions for use of the card as specified in this document.  

Transactions mean any instructions given by a cardholder using a card directly or indirectly to the Bank to affect a transaction.  

VISA/MasterCard/RuPay shall mean mark owned by VISA/MasterCard International/NPCI.  

VISA/MasterCard/RuPay/PLUS ATM Network shall mean ATMs wherever located which honour the VISA/MasterCard and displaying the VISA/MasterCard/RuPay/PLUS symbols.  

In the document, all reference to the cardholder being referred in masculine gender will also include the feminine and other genders.  

Transaction: Transaction includes cash withdrawals, payment for purchases made / services availed at Merchant Establishments, availing other services by utilising the card at ATMs and / or Merchant Establishments.  

Personal Identification Number (PIN / IPIN): The Bank will allot to the cardholder a PIN / IPIN to be used for cash withdrawals and balance inquiry at ATMs and permitted transactions on NetBanking & Mobile Banking. The cardholder shall be responsible to maintain the confidentiality of the PIN / IPIN and not to record the same in any form that would be intelligible or otherwise accessible to any third party if access is gained to such a record either honestly or dishonestly. The Bank bears no liability for unauthorised use of the card.  

Alert: “Alerts” or “Facility” mean the customised messages based on Triggers, sent as Short Messaging Service “(SMS)” over mobile phone to the cardholder; “CSP” means the cellular service provider through whom the cardholder or the Bank receives the mobile services;  

“Triggers” means the trigger set or placed by the Bank with its systems with respect to specific events/transactions relating to the cardholder’s Card, to enable the Bank to send the corresponding Alerts to the cardholder. 

APPLICABILITY OF RULES AND REGULATIONS 

Bank is responsible for direct losses incurred by a cardholder due to a system malfunction directly within the bank’s control. However, the bank shall not be held liable for any loss caused by a technical breakdown of the payment system if the breakdown of the system was recognizable for the cardholder by a message on the display of the device or otherwise known. The responsibility of the bank for the non-execution or defective execution of the transaction is limited to the principal sum and the loss of interest subject to the provisions of the law governing the terms.  

The issue and use of the card shall be subject to the RBI’s regulations in force from time to time. 

The Bank shall exercise care while issuing PIN/IPIN/Green PIN and shall be under an obligation not to disclose cardholder's PIN/IPIN/Green PIN to anyone except the cardholder.   

Utilisation of the card shall be in strict accordance with the Exchange Control Regulations of the Reserve Bank of India (RBI). In the event of non-compliance by the cardholder with the same, the cardholder shall be liable for action under the Foreign Exchange Management Act, 1999 and any other Law and / or regulation in force from time to time relating to Foreign Exchange. The cardholder may be debarred from holding the card, either at the instance of the Bank or the RBI. The card cannot be used for making payment towards foreign currency transactions in India, Nepal and Bhutan i.e., while using the card in Nepal and Bhutan, the currency of the transactions should be the local currency of those countries or in Indian rupees. In case the card is cancelled, whether on account of non-compliance with Exchange Control Regulations or otherwise, the Bank will not be responsible for any attempted usage of the card, whether in India or abroad, resulting in the card being dishonoured. 

The card may be used, within the foreign entitlements as stipulated by RBI from time to time, by cardholders going abroad for all bonafide personal expenses for personal use provided, the total exchange drawn during the trip abroad does not exceed the entitlement. Import of goods so purchased abroad into India, would be governed by the baggage rules / EXIM policy in force. The entitlement of exchange should be ascertained (prior to the trip) from the authorised dealer branches of the Bank. The card cannot be used for effecting remittances for which the release of exchange is not permissible under the regulations. 

VALIDITY 

The card is valid for usage in India and abroad* except transactions in Nepal and Bhutan. The card is valid up to the last working day of the month indicated on the card facia. The card is acceptable at any of the following: 

• Any ATM of any Banks that are members of VISA/MasterCard/RuPay/PLUS (ATM network abroad) 
• Any merchant establishment within India and abroad. 

The Debit card will be auto-renewed by the Bank on expiry. The renewed Card will be sent to the customer’s registered mailing address. The existing Debit Card will be hotlisted within 90 days of receipt of the new card or upon first successful transaction using the new card, whichever is earlier. Customer can opt out from availing the Debit card services at any point of time by visiting the branch or other banking platforms or by contacting Relationship manager. 

*NRO cards are valid for domestic use only 

CARDHOLDER OBLIGATIONS 

The cardholder shall at all times ensure that the card is kept at a safe place. The cardholder shall under no circumstance whatsoever allow the card to be used by any other individual. The cardholder will sign the card immediately upon receipt.  

The cardholder will be responsible for all facilities granted by the Bank in respect to the card and for all related charges for use of the card.  

In case the cardholder has any dispute with respect to any charge indicated in the statement, the cardholder shall advise details to the Bank within 30 days of the statement date failing which, it will be construed that all charges are acceptable and in order. 

LOST OR STOLEN CARDS 

If a card is lost or stolen, the cardholder will be liable for all the charges incurred on the card until the card is hotlisted. The cardholder may report a card loss (lost/stolen/damaged) through any of the multiple channels such as MobileBanking App, NetBanking, Progressive Web Application (MyCards), Whatsapp Banking, EVA Chatbot, SMS Banking, Phonebanking & Branch banking following which the Bank will hotlist / block the card. To know more, click here. 

The Bank upon adequate verification will suspend the card and will not be liable for any inconvenience caused to the cardholder on this account. The Bank will hotlist / cancel the card following the receipt of such intimation. This facility is available 24*7.  

If the cardholder loses his card overseas, he may either follow the above procedure or may report the loss through the VISA/MasterCard Global Emergency Assistance helplines. In case the cardholder uses the VISA/MasterCard Global Emergency Assistance services, then the charges for usage of such services shall be borne by the cardholder.  

The cardholder shall take cognizance of the fact that once a card is reported lost, stolen or damaged and is subsequently found, the same shall be promptly cut in half and adequate care would be taken to prevent its misuse.  

The cardholder is responsible for the security of the card and shall take all steps towards ensuring the safe keeping thereof. In the event the Bank determines that the aforementioned steps are questionable, financial liability on the lost or stolen card would rest with cardholder. 

Replacement card may be issued by the Bank provided that the cardholder has in all respects complied with the Terms and Conditions pertaining to the same.  

UNSUCCESSFUL/FAILED TRANSACTIONS 

Any failed/unsuccessful transaction will be auto reversed within T+5 days. Compensation of ₹100/- per day would be paid to the customer by the acquiring bank in case of any delay beyond the mentioned TAT. 

ATM USAGE 

The card is operable with the help of a confidential PIN at ATM locations. The cardholder’s PIN is given to him at the time of purchase of the card and the cardholder shall ensure that the same is received in a sealed envelope. The PIN should never be disclosed to any person or written down where any other person may discover it. Any such disclosure or inadequate protection of the confidentiality of the PIN is entirely at the cardholder’s risk. All transactions conducted with use of the PIN will be the cardholder’s responsibility and he will abide by the record of the transaction as generated.  

The card is acceptable at any VISA/MasterCard / PLUS ATM network belonging to institutions abroad. The Bank will not accept responsibility for any dealings the cardholder may have with the other institutions including but not limited to such services. The Bank is not responsible for the charges levied by the ATM network for such services. Should the cardholder have any complaints concerning any PLUS ATM network establishment, the matter should be resolved by the cardholder with the establishment and failure to do so will not relieve him from any obligations to the Bank. However, the cardholder should notify the Bank of this complaint immediately.  

There will be separate service charges levied for facilities that will be announced by the Bank from time to time and deducted from the card account. In the situation that the card account does not have sufficient funds to deduct such service charges, the Bank reserves the right to deny such transactions and the decision of the Bank shall be binding on the cardholder. The Bank shall not be liable for any consequences arising out of denial of transactions. The Bank shall have the right to set-off and lien, irrespective of any other lien or charge, at present or in future on deposits held in the cardholder's accounts whether in single name or joint name(s), to the extent of all outstanding dues, whatsoever, arising as a result of the services extended by the Bank. 

There are countries where the ATM service provider charges for its ATM usage. These charges are not controlled by HDFC Bank Ltd. and hence if a message pops-up on an international ATM screen, specifying a service charge, please check the details of charges before proceeding with the transaction, as these charges cannot be recovered. 

For all Debit Card variants, the daily ATM cash withdrawal limit is capped at INR 2 Lakhs and the monthly limit at INR 10 Lakhs. Further, for new accounts, the ATM cash withdrawal limit has been capped at INR 50,000 per day for the initial 6 months from date of opening account and after 6 months, the restriction of INR 2 Lakhs per day would be applicable. Monthly limit of INR 10 Lakhs would be applicable irrespective of the vintage of the account. 

MERCHANT LOCATION USAGE 

The card is acceptable at all electronic Merchant Establishments abroad which display the VISA/MasterCard/RuPay logo.  

The card is for electronic use only and will be acceptable only at Merchant Establishments, which have an EDC terminal. Electronic usage is construed as the chargeslip / transaction slip is printed electronically from the EDC terminal.  

The card is operable with the help of the cardholder’s signature at EDC terminals installed at Merchant Establishments.  

Transactions are deemed authorised and completed once the EDC terminal generates a sales slip. The amount of the transaction is debited from the primary account linked to the card immediately. The sales slip will be printed each time the card is used and the cardholder should ensure that there is no multiple usage of card at the Merchant’s location at the time of purchase.  

The Bank will not accept responsibility for any dealings the cardholder may have with the Merchant Establishment including but not limited to the supply of goods and services. Should the cardholder have any complaints concerning any VISA/MasterCard/RuPay Merchant Establishment, the matter should be resolved by the cardholder with the Merchant Establishment and failure to do so will not relieve him from any obligations to the Bank. However, the cardholder should notify the Bank of this complaint immediately.  

The Bank accepts no responsibility for any surcharge levied by any Merchant Establishment / ATM and debited to the card account with the transaction amount.  

The Bank at an additional charge may furnish copies of the sales slip. Any sales slip not personally signed by the cardholder, but which can be proved, as being authorised by the cardholder, will be binding on the cardholder. Any charge or other payment requisition received from a Merchant Establishment by the Bank for payment shall be conclusive proof that the charge recorded on such requisition, was properly incurred at the Merchant Establishment in the amount and by the cardholder referred to in that charge or other requisition, as the case may be, by the use of the card except where the card has been lost, stolen or fraudulently misused, the burden of proof for which shall be on the cardholder. 

In case, a merchant wishes to cancel a completed transaction due to an error or on account of merchandise return, the earlier sales receipt must be cancelled by the merchant and a copy of the cancelled receipt must be retained in his possession. Reveal / refunds of debits due to such a transaction will be processed manually and the cancelled sales slip needs to be produced, if called for.  

All refunds and adjustments due to any merchant / device error or communication link will be processed manually and the account will be credited after due verification and in accordance with VISA/MasterCard/RuPay rules and regulations as applicable. The cardholder agrees that any debits received during this time will be honoured only based on the available balance in the account(s) without considering this refund. The cardholder also indemnifies the Bank from such acts of dishonouring the payment instructions.  

The card is not to be used at the hotels during check-in (Pre-Authorization transactions) and also at other locations where paying arrangement is done before completion of the purchase transaction or service. The usage of the card for any mail order / phone order will be made available when the service is launched by the Bank.  

Quality of goods and services: The Bank shall not be in any way responsible for merchandise, warranty or services purchased or availed by cardholder from Merchant Establishments including on account of delay in delivery, non-delivery, non-receipt of goods or receipt of defective goods from the order placed by the cardholder. It must be distinctly understood that the card facility is purely a facility to the cardholder to purchase goods or avail of services and the Bank holds out no warranty or makes no representation about quality, delivery or otherwise howsoever regarding the goods or services, and any dispute must be resolved by the cardholder with the Merchant Establishment. 

CARD USAGE 

The Bank will debit the card account for the value of all purchases of goods or services, cash withdrawal, fees/charges and payments effected by the use of the card (‘Transaction’). All transactions will be reflected in the account statement linked to the card. 

The card should not be used for any Mail Order/Phone Order and any such usage will be considered as unauthorised and the Cardholder will be solely responsible. Notwithstanding the responsibility of the Cardholder, the Bank shall be entitled to reject such transaction.  

The cardholder agrees the Bank’s record of transaction relating to his card(s) is authentic and conclusive.  

The cardholder is advised to retain a record of transactions generated by the ATM / EDC terminal at Merchant Establishments with him.  

The cardholder agrees not to attempt to withdraw / purchase using the card unless sufficient funds are available in the account. The onus of ensuring adequate card balances is entirely on him.  

In the event of an account being overdrawn due to card transactions, the Bank reserves the right to set off this amount against any credit lying in any of the cardholder’s other accounts held jointly or singly with reasonable notice to the cardholder.  

Nothing in these Terms and Conditions shall affect the Bank’s right to set-off transfer and application for monies at law or pursuant to another agreement from time to time subsisting between the Bank and cardholder. 

For more details on Fees and Charges, click here. 

RESIDENTS 

The use of the card is allowed for the purposes as per the Exchange Control Regulations of RBI.  

As per RBI guidelines, in case the amount on account of use of the card during visits abroad exceed the cardholder’s foreign exchange entitlements, the cardholder should provide documentary evidence for the usage of foreign exchange utilised. The Bank is authorised to report the matter to the regional office of the Exchange Control department giving full details. 

DISPUTES  

The Bank shall make bonafide and reasonable efforts to resolve an aggrieved cardholder’s disagreement with applicable charge indicated in the statement within timelines stipulated as per VISA/MasterCard/RuPay guidelines. If after such effort, the Bank determines that the charge indicated is correct then it shall communicate the same to the cardholder along with details including a copy of the sales slip or payment requisition.  

The Bank accepts no responsibility for refusal by any establishment to honour the card. For any queries or grievances redressal, customer can contact the bank through various channels. Click here for details. 

EXCLUSION OF LIABILITY 

Without prejudice to the foregoing, the Bank shall be under no liability whatsoever to the applicant in respect to any loss or damage arising, directly or indirectly out of: 

• Any defect in goods or services supplied. 
• The refusal of any person to honour or accept a card. 
• The malfunction of any computer terminal. 
• Effecting transaction instruction other than by a cardholder. 
• Any statement made by any person requesting the return of the card or any act performed by any person in conjunction. 
• Handing over of the card by the cardholder to anybody other than 

the designated employees of the Bank at the Bank’s premises. 

• The exercise by the Bank of its rights to demand and procure the surrender of the card prior to the expiry date exposed on its face, whether such demand and surrender made and / or procured by the Bank or by any person or computer terminal. 
• The exercise by the Bank of its right to terminate any card. 
• Any injury to the credit character and reputation of the applicant alleged to have been caused by the re-possession of the card and / or, any request for its return or the refusal of any Merchant Establishment to honour or accept the card. 
• Any mis-statement, mis-representation, error or omission in any details disclosed by the Bank. 
• Decline of a charge because of excess foreign exchange entitlements as prescribed by RBI guidelines issued from time to time, or the bank becoming aware of the cardholder exceeding his entitlements. 
• Decline of transaction due to any reason at a merchant location/ATM. 

INSURANCE BENEFITS 

Bank provides complimentary insurance cover on select Debit Card variants subject to Terms and Conditions. For more details, click here.  

Please note that the Bank will not be liable in any manner whatsoever by virtue of any insurance cover provided, and that the insurance company will be solely liable for compensation if any, in case of loss of carry-on baggage and / or loss of passport and shall not hold the Bank responsible for any matter arising out of or in connection with such insurance cover, whether for or in respect to any deficiency or defect in such insurance cover, recovery or payment of compensation, processing or settlement of claims or otherwise howsoever, and all such matters shall be addressed to and sorted out directly with the Insurance company. 

Registered nominee in the Current Account / Savings Account will be considered as the default nominee in the Debit Card linked Insurance Cover. 

The cardholder acknowledges that the insurance cover so provided will be available to the cardholder only as per the terms of the relevant insurance policy in force, and only so long as the cardholder is and remains a cardholder of the Bank with his card being active. On the card / account being cancelled or withdrawn temporarily or permanently for whatever reason, the benefit of such insurance cover shall automatically and ipso facto cease to be available from such date of cessation of card / account. Further the cardholder also agrees that even during continuation of his card / account, the Bank may at any time at its sole discretion and with reasonable notice thereof to the cardholder or assigning any reason thereof suspend, withdraw or cancel the benefit of such insurance cover and there will be no binding obligation on the bank to continue this benefit. 

For any queries or claims related to Insurance on Debit cards, customer can contact the nearest HDFC Bank Branch or any of the various other Banking channels. For details, please click here. 

TERMINATION 

The cardholder may discontinue this facility any time by getting the card hotlisted. However, for the transactions done during the card active period, but posted of the card after the surrender, the cardholder shall be entirely liable. In case of a dispute on any transaction, cardholder can notify the Bank and the Bank can raise a chargeback as per regulations of VISA/MasterCard/RuPay Card.  

The Bank shall be entitled to discontinue this facility at any time by cancelling the card by giving 30 days’ prior notice and shall be deemed to have received by the cardholder within 30 days of posting to the cardholders’ address in India last notified in writing to the Bank. The Bank reserves the right to disclose customer information to any court of competent jurisdiction, quasi-judicial authorities, law enforcement agencies and any other wing of Central Government or State Government.  

The Bank may also restrict, terminate or suspend the use of the card at any time without prior notice if the Bank reasonably believes it necessary for business or security reasons.  

INDEMNITY 

The cardholder agrees to indemnify the Bank against all liabilities, losses, damages and expenses which the Bank may sustain or incur either directly or indirectly as a result of: 

• Negligence / mistake or misconduct of the cardholder. 
• Breach or non-compliance of the rules / Terms and Conditions relating to the card and the account. 
• Fraud or dishonesty relating to any transaction by the cardholder or his employees / agents. 
• ATMs / EDC terminals are machines and errors could occur while in operation. You agree to indemnify the Bank for any such machine / mechanical errors / failures. 
• The cardholder shall indemnify and hold harmless the Bank from any and all consequences arising from the cardholder not complying with the Exchange Control Regulations of the RBI. 

TERMS 

The cardholder shall be deemed to have unconditionally agreed to and accepted the terms of these Terms and Conditions by signing the card application form acknowledging the receipt of the card in writing, by signing the reverse of the card or by performing a transaction with the card.  

The Bank reserves the right to revise features / eligibility criteria / services / fees /policies / program benefits offered on the card and alter these Terms and Conditions from time to time and may notify the cardholder of any such alteration in any manner. The Bank may introduce new services from time to time. The existence and availability of the new functions will be notified to the cardholder as and when they become available. The changed Terms and Conditions applicable to the new services shall be communicated to the cardholder. By using these 
new services, the cardholder agrees to be bound by the Terms and Conditions applicable. These terms form the contract between the cardholder and the Bank. By applying for the card and accessing the service the cardholder acknowledges and accepts these terms and conditions. These Terms and Conditions will be in addition to and not in derogation of the terms and conditions relating to any account of the customer. 

GOVERNING LAW 

These Terms and Conditions and / or the operations in the accounts of the customer maintained by the Bank and / or the use of the services provided through the card shall be governed by laws of the Republic of India and no other nation. The Customer and the Bank agree to submit to the exclusive jurisdiction of the Courts located in Mumbai, India as regards to any claim or matters arising under these terms and conditions. The Banks accepts no liability whatsoever, direct or indirect, for non-compliance with the laws of any country other than the Republic of India. The mere fact that the card can be accessed by a Customer in a country other than India shall not be interpreted to imply that the laws of the said country govern these terms and conditions and / or the operations in the card account of the Customer and / or the use of the card. 

DISCLAIMER  
The bank shall be under no liability whatsoever to the cardholder in respect of any loss or damage arising directly or indirectly out of: (a) Any unauthorized use of the cardholder’s mobile phone number: (b) Error default delay or inability of the Bank to act all or any of the alert., (c) Less of any information/ instructions/alerts in transmission. (d) Unauthorized access by any other person to any information given by the cardholder or breach of confidentially. 

The Bank shall not be concerned with any dispute that may arise between the cardholder and the CSP and makes no representation or gives no warranty with respect to quality of service provided by the CSP or guarantee of timely delivery or accuracy of the contents of each alert. 

GRIEVANCE CELL     

In the rare event of not being satisfied with the response from any of the recent contacts with the Bank, you can write to - The Manager, Grievance Redressal Cell, HDFC Bank Limited, 1st Floor, Empire Plaza - 1, Lal Bahadur Shastri Marg, Chandan Nagar, Vikhroli West, Mumbai - 400083, or reach us on phone 1800 266 4060 between 09.30 am to 05.30 pm Monday to Friday.  

DISCLOSURE  
The cardholder accepts that all Alerts will be transmitted to/or stored at various locations and be accessed by personnel of the bank (and its affiliates/agents). The bank is authorized to provide any information or details relating to the cardholder or his card to the CSPs or any service providers so far as is necessary to give effect to the alert. 

Most Important Terms and Conditions in Regional Languages  

Please visit https://www.hdfcbank.com/personal/pay/cards/debit-cards/personal-mitc for T&C in regional languages - Bengali, Gujarati, Hindi, Kannada, Malayalam, Marathi, Punjabi, Sindhi, Tamil, Telugu, Urdu