Debbie Dujanovic, a Utah-based former investigative reporter and former FBI Spokesperson, recently took to her Instagram to remind her viewers of the importance of receipts. As an example, she pointed out how a simple trip to a craft store turned into a major billing headache. Her post quickly racked up 438K views, not just because of her story, but also because of her advice. Dujanovic warned in her caption, “Don’t blindly trust that corporate America will charge your credit card the correct amount of your purchase. Once again, I’m back with another edition of GET A RECEIPT!” In the video, she noted, “Always get a printed receipt. When they ask you, ‘Do you want a receipt?’ You say, ‘Why, yes! I do! I don’t care how many miles long it is. I need it for proof later.’” Dujanovic walked her followers through the situation. “On Saturday, July 18th, I visited a craft store. I purchased one item, $9.02 with tax,” she alleged while glancing at her receipt to confirm the exact amount. “Sunday, July 19th, I log into my banking app to reconcile the purchase. Make sure they charged me correctly. Craft store posted not $9.02 to my credit card, but more than $110 to my credit card for the same purchase. That’s an 1100% overcharge.” The proof in your hands Despite that giant increase, Dujanovic was calm and laid out the steps she was going to take to resolve the situation. She claimed that this specific charge was the fifth time she had been overcharged. Of course, all we have is her claims, which can’t be verified. However, her process is solid. View this post on Instagram Dujanovic explained, “Here’s how I go about fixing it. One, I’m going to go back to the craft store tomorrow, but before I do, I’m going to check my banking app to see if they have flagged the error and fix it on their own. Two, if it doesn’t get fixed on its own, I will be back there on Monday with my receipt in hand, explaining to them the overcharge, and I will even show them my bank statement if I need to. My hope is that, at that point, they would fix the problem as I stand there.” She then explained if even that failed, she would dispute the charge. “Three, the craft store tells me I’m wrong. I will calmly walk to my car, drive to my bank, and file a dispute regarding the overcharge to my Visa.” Dujanovic explained that this is why she prefers using a credit card over a debit card for this reason, as it prevents the funds from being pulled directly from her checking account while the bank investigates the claim. Many of her viewers wondered why she wasn’t more strong-handed with the offending store. One user commented, “This sounds like fraud to me. Maybe also alert the BBB? That could help other customers who this might have happened to.” Another was blunt, We need to call it what it is, it wasn’t an overcharge, that is theft and I am sorry that happened to you but so happy you have receipts to back up your claim.” One user agreed with her on the importance of receipts. They wrote, “In Austin I had 3 different restaurants alter my tip amounts. Each was at least 20% but someone altered the tip amt on the ticket to be more. I started taking photos of my tip amount on my signed ticket.” While Dujanovic’s approach is extremely thorough, others thought she was being too forgiving. A user suggested, “I used to work for a credit card company and to be honest with you you’re overdoing it. Just call your credit card company dispute the item and let them deal with it go back to the store they’re only going to tell you to call your bank so you wasted time and probably frustration.” While the user prefers a firm fix, Dujanovic’s process aligns with Live Mint’s advice regarding credit card disputes. They cautioned that disputes can arise from various situations, including billing errors and unauthorized charges. So, their advice is that you should regularly monitor statements to catch anomalies early. If a problem occurs, Live Mint advises reaching out to the merchant first to resolve the issue amicably. If that fails, contacting your financial institution and providing supporting documentation, such as invoices and correspondence, is a standard and necessary step to initiate a formal investigation. Whether you choose to confront the store in person or go straight to your bank, the consensus is clear. Always get a receipt and keep an eye on your banking app. As one Instagram user put it, “They always ask if you want your receipt. I usually say no. Not anymore.”