Amex F31 — EMV Lost/Stolen/NRI Card Fraud: What It Is and How to Respond

What is an Amex F31 chargeback?

Amex F31 is filed when a chip card that was lost, stolen, or never received by the cardholder was used at a merchant terminal that was not EMV-enabled. Because the terminal could not read the chip and require PIN or biometric verification, the fraud was easier to complete. Under EMV liability shift rules, the merchant whose terminal was not chip-capable bears the fraud loss. F31 is the Amex equivalent of Visa 10.2.

How is F31 different from F30?

F30 is about counterfeit cards — a fraudster created a copy of a real chip card (typically through skimming the magnetic stripe) and used the copy at your terminal. F31 is about the actual physical card: the cardholder's real card was lost, stolen, or intercepted before delivery, and someone else used it. Both result in the same merchant EMV liability when the terminal isn't chip-capable, but the underlying fraud mechanism is different.

How does the EMV liability shift apply to F31?

EMV liability shift means: if a chip card is used at a chip-capable terminal, the chip must be read — and if chip verification succeeds, fraud liability rests with the card issuer. If the terminal isn't chip-capable and processes the card via magnetic stripe, liability shifts to the merchant. For F31 specifically, a chip-capable terminal would have required PIN or biometric verification, making it much harder for someone who stole the physical card to complete the transaction.

How can I prevent F31 disputes?

Upgrade to EMV chip terminals. This is the only meaningful prevention. A chip-enabled terminal that reads the chip and requires PIN verification makes it significantly harder for someone with a stolen card to complete a transaction — and if they do, liability stays with Amex's issuing side, not with you. For merchants who have already upgraded, F31 should be rare.