An evasion affidavit is a sworn statement you sign to formally deny responsibility for specific charges or transfers on your bank or credit card account, and signing it is what obligates your bank to open a formal investigation under federal law. Most banks call the same document a fraud affidavit, an unauthorized transaction affidavit, or an identity theft affidavit. Whatever the label, you are declaring under penalty of perjury that you did not authorize the transactions you are listing, and that oath is what moves the dispute from a complaint into a legal process with deadlines the bank has to meet.
What the Document Actually Is
“Evasion affidavit” is banking shorthand rather than a formal legal term. At your bank, you are more likely to see it titled a fraud affidavit or unauthorized transaction affidavit. The Federal Trade Commission developed a standardized ID Theft Affidavit in coordination with banks, credit issuers, and consumer advocates, and participating financial institutions across the country accept it.1Federal Trade Commission. Federal Trade Commission Announces ID Theft Affidavit
The oath is the point. Signing a false affidavit is perjury, and under federal law perjury carries a fine and up to five years in prison.2Office of the Law Revision Counsel. 18 U.S. Code 1621 – Perjury Generally Because you are putting your own liberty on the line to sign it, the bank is required to treat the document as a formal notice of error rather than an informal complaint.
Two federal statutes give the affidavit its teeth. For credit cards, the Fair Credit Billing Act caps your personal liability for unauthorized use at $50.3Office of the Law Revision Counsel. 15 U.S. Code 1643 – Liability of Holder of Credit Card For debit cards and other electronic transfers out of a bank account, the Electronic Fund Transfer Act and Regulation E govern the process.4eCFR. 12 CFR Part 1005 – Electronic Fund Transfers (Regulation E) The affidavit is how you trigger the protections in both.
Why How Fast You Report Changes Everything
With debit card and electronic transfer fraud, the money is already gone from your account, and your maximum liability depends almost entirely on when you notify the bank:
- Within 2 business days of learning about the loss or theft, your liability is capped at $50 or the amount of unauthorized transfers before you notified the bank, whichever is less.5Consumer Financial Protection Bureau. Regulation E – Section 1005.6 Liability of Consumer for Unauthorized Transfers
- After 2 business days but within 60 days of your statement, liability jumps to $500 for transfers that occurred after that two-day window.5Consumer Financial Protection Bureau. Regulation E – Section 1005.6 Liability of Consumer for Unauthorized Transfers
- After 60 days from the statement date, you can be liable for the full amount of any unauthorized transfers that happen after the 60-day period ends, with no cap.6Office of the Law Revision Counsel. 15 USC 1693g – Consumer Liability
Day two to day three can be hundreds of dollars. Day 60 to day 61 can be your entire balance. For credit card charges, you need to dispute the billing error in writing within 60 days of the statement date showing the fraudulent charge.7Federal Trade Commission. What To Do if You’re Billed for Things You Never Got, or You Get Unordered Products Call the bank the day you notice something wrong; file the affidavit as soon as it hands you the form.
What to Gather Before You Fill It Out
Banks process these affidavits transaction by transaction, so vague descriptions do not move things along. Pull your statements and write down the exact date, dollar amount, and merchant name for every charge you are contesting. Have your account numbers in front of you.
If your identity was stolen rather than just a single card number skimmed, file a police report. Many creditors require a copy of the police report to process your dispute, and credit reporting agencies require an identity theft report to block fraudulent accounts from your credit file.8Office for Victims of Crime. Steps for Victims of Identity Theft or Fraud You should also file at IdentityTheft.gov, the FTC’s central resource for identity theft victims; the site generates a personalized recovery plan and produces an FTC Identity Theft Report, which many creditors accept alongside or in place of a police report.9IdentityTheft.gov. IdentityTheft.gov
Supporting evidence helps. Travel records showing you were in another city when an in-person charge posted, screenshots of fraud alerts, and any correspondence from the bank about suspicious activity all strengthen the file.
Filling Out and Notarizing the Form
You can usually get the affidavit by calling your bank’s fraud department, downloading it through your online banking portal, or using the FTC’s standardized ID Theft Affidavit. Each bank’s version is laid out a little differently, but every one asks for your identifying details, the disputed transactions, and your sworn statement that you did not authorize them.
Fill in every field. A blank line gives the bank a reason to send the form back, which restarts your clock. Where the form asks what happened, keep it specific and short. Something like “my wallet was stolen on June 4 and I noticed unauthorized charges on June 6” works better than a long narrative.
Most banks require notarization. A notary public checks your government-issued photo ID, watches you sign, and applies an official seal. You can find notaries at most bank branches, shipping stores, and law offices. Fees vary by state, running from a few dollars up to about $25 per signature. Some banks now accept electronically signed and remotely notarized affidavits through a secure upload portal; many states have authorized remote online notarization, which lets you complete the process on a video call. Ask the fraud department what it accepts before you drive anywhere.
Submitting the Affidavit With Proof You Sent It
Send the signed, notarized affidavit using a method that creates a dated record of delivery. Certified mail with return receipt requested is the standard.10Federal Trade Commission. Sample Letter to Credit Bureaus Disputing Errors on Credit Reports If the bank offers a secure online portal, it will usually generate a confirmation number when you upload. Save that number.
Copy everything before you send it: the completed affidavit, the police report or FTC Identity Theft Report, your supporting documents, and any cover letter. Packets go missing. You do not want to rebuild the file from scratch if yours does.
What the Bank Has to Do Next
Once the bank receives your affidavit, Regulation E gives it 10 business days to complete its investigation and decide whether an error occurred. The bank can extend the investigation to 45 days, but only if it provisionally credits your account for the disputed amount within the initial 10-business-day window.4eCFR. 12 CFR Part 1005 – Electronic Fund Transfers (Regulation E) That provisional credit puts the money back in your account while the bank finishes working through the dispute with the merchants involved.
If the investigation confirms the fraud, the provisional credit becomes permanent and the charges come off your balance. The bank notifies you of the outcome by mail or secure message.
If the Bank Denies Your Claim
A denial does not end the process. When a bank finds that no error occurred, or that the error was different from what you described, it must send you a written explanation and tell you that you can request the documents it relied on.4eCFR. 12 CFR Part 1005 – Electronic Fund Transfers (Regulation E) Request them. The records sometimes show exactly where the investigation missed something.
If you believe the bank got it wrong, you can escalate by filing a complaint with the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau. The CFPB forwards your complaint to the company, which generally has 15 days to respond, or up to 60 days if it notifies you the review is ongoing.11Consumer Financial Protection Bureau. Learn How the Complaint Process Works You can submit a complaint online at consumerfinance.gov or by calling (855) 411-2372. If the bank violated its obligations under the Electronic Fund Transfer Act or the Fair Credit Billing Act, you may also have grounds for a private lawsuit, and that is when consulting an attorney becomes worthwhile.
Business Accounts Are Not Covered the Same Way
Everything above applies to personal accounts. Regulation E covers only accounts established for personal, family, or household purposes and defines a “consumer” as a natural person, so business accounts fall outside it.4eCFR. 12 CFR Part 1005 – Electronic Fund Transfers (Regulation E) Commercial electronic transfers are generally governed by Article 4A of the Uniform Commercial Code. If your bank accepted the fraudulent transfer after following a commercially reasonable security procedure in good faith, it may not be required to refund the money even though the transfer was unauthorized, and business owners have a 90-day window to review activity and report unauthorized transfers before forfeiting the right to a refund.12Legal Information Institute. U.C.C. Article 4A – Funds Transfer For a business account, your fraud affidavit process is largely governed by your account agreement rather than federal consumer protection law. Read that agreement before you need it.