So I was helping my parents the other day do their first churn ever of credit cards, and after the 6th application or so I guess I started to lose focus. I was using my computer and so when filling out the application, the autofill put in my name instead of my mom's for the application. I didn't realize this till today when she got an email to her inbox that addressed the email to me, and also when the card arrived in the mail today it was with my name. Now I'm pretty sure everything was all her info, including birthdate, social and what not (I'd have to be a real dummy to miss-fill all those boxes), so I guess my question is, how do I find out for sure? And what is the best way to go about changing the name on the card? I did check all of my own credit reports and no inquiries from that bank showed up for me. Has anyone ever messed up their name before on an application?

Embarrassingly,
MM

It's slightly OT, but I remember refinancing my house once, and they make you pay all these ridiculous fees, including a "survey" - presumably to make sure the house hasn't moved over the property line since the last survey - and when I saw the file, it showed that I didn't own my house. The survey said my house was lot 28, but I was getting a mortgage on lot 27. Thus proving to me that no one had actually LOOKED at the document.

I'd just call the bank. No idea if this will be a major issue or not - probably it'll be easier if your last names are the same.

I hope it works out for you, hopefully an easy remedy but never heard of this happening before. Since it's a "name change," they may require you to fax in her SS card or DL to verify. Another point is after the name is corrected, wait until the next reporting cycle (so your name is no longer attached to a specific acct) and then check all three reports. Your name will appear on her report and you can easily dispute it to have it deleted. The key is to wait until after the name is corrected and reported by the lender, otherwise I know Experian doesn't remove info that is currently attached to a specific tradeline.

It could be a real paperwork hassle to change it. Hopefully this is just a card you're churning for a bonus. Do the minimum spend and cancel the card instead of trying to resolve the name issue.

Not entirely related but its a huge pain for my wife to change her last name on her rapid rewards account.