Does the Billing Address Actually Matter When You Placed an Order?

This address is your credit card-related address. It is used to verify your credit card information. Does the billing address matter when you place an order online? Let’s find out.

Billing Address

If you put the wrong billing address on an online order, the worst thing that can happen is that your order may be canceled.

More often, the retailer will notify you of the error, and you’ll have the chance to update your information.

Your order will process normally once your information is updated or corrected.

What is a Billing Address?

A billing address is an address connected to a specific form of payment, which is typically a credit or debit card.

Companies use the billing address to verify the authorized use of such a card. It is also where companies send paper bills and bank statements.

Billing addresses must match what the card-issuing bank has on file, or the attempted purchase may not go through.

When the cardholder moves, the billing address must change to match the holder’s current address.

This can be accomplished by contacting the card-issuing bank.

The billing address is different than the shipping address, which is the address where packages get delivered to. Billing and shipping addresses may be the same but are sometimes different.

When the billing addresses are different than the shipping address, additional order verification may be necessary to validate the order.

What Happens if You Put the Wrong Billing Address?

You might want to know what happens if you input the wrong billing address? In the most extreme circumstance, if you submit an incorrect billing address, your online order will be canceled.

However, in most cases, you will get an alert to the discrepancy right away — sometimes before you even place the order.

If you’re able to submit your order, the company will probably email you to let you know that it failed to process your order.

You will be asked to log on to your account or contact customer service to update your information. Once your information is corrected, your order should process normally.

If you are notified that your order has been canceled, you will need to create and submit a new order with the correct billing information.

Why Do Companies Need Your Billing Address?

When a company asks for the billing address associated with your credit card, it’s part of a security measure to help reduce credit card fraud.

Your billing name and address should match the name and address that appear on your credit card statements.

Your billing address and identity will be matched to the name and address on file with your card issued in a process called Address Verification Service (AVS).

Retailers can use a variety of methods to check the validity of a billing address, Equifax identity and fraud expert John Marsden said in an interview with Telegraph Money. (Equifax is one of the largest American credit bureaus.)

Additionally, Marsden points out, not all address verification services are created equal.

The most secure checks are also the priciest services, so if a retailer doesn’t want to pay for a safer verification program like AVS, it may not notice the billing address error.

In this case, you’d merely receive the item you ordered.

However, the shipping address you wish to ship to does not need to match your billings or credit card address.

Final Say

Companies use these addresses to verify the authorized use of such a card. It is also where companies send paper bills and bank statements. This can be accomplished by contacting the card-issuing bank.

The address is different than the shipping address, which is the address where packages get delivered to.

Say someone steals your card information and attempts to buy a cell phone and ships it to their residence.

In an ideal situation, the merchant will notice that the stolen card’s billing address and shipping address do not match (not all merchants utilize AVS) and will decline the transaction and alert the card’s issuer.

If you find this article useful, I bet your friends will too, so go ahead and share it on your social media platforms.

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