Last week, on the day before Thanksgiving, ManvilleToday began to receive multiple inquiries from Manville residents about fraudulent $500 charges appearing on their credit and debit cards from Frank's Pizza and Italian Restaurant.

ManvilleToday spoke briefly to the owner of Frank's Pizza, Rodolfo Morales, on Friday November 28th. Mr. Morales confirmed when asked that their payment system was compromised, but all affected customers would be receiving their refunds for these unauthorized charges.

Residents are continuing to reach out to us this week, stating they submitted disputes to their banks and credit card issuers, but the disputes were closed without further comment.

From research on credit/debit card disputes, merchants must submit evidence to any dispute claimed by a customer. It would appear that Frank's Pizza possibly provided evidence of a refund issued, causing dispute cases to be closed, but this information is unconfirmed.

ManvilleToday contacted Frank's Pizza on Wednesday December 3rd. Mr. Morales was not available, but manager Shannon was able to answer our questions.

According to the information provided to us from Frank's Pizza, affected customers would be those who utilized the online ordering platform to place orders.

However, some inquiries we received and followed-up on were from customers who physically visited the restaurant and did not place their orders via the website.

There was no date range available for those who might have been affected. The earliest date given was the month of October.

There were "many" people affected by the unauthorized charges, upwards of 100 customers, per Shannon.

Shannon stated that refunds were issued to 99% of those affected. The owner stayed until midnight on Thanksgiving Eve working with the payment vendor to rectify the issue. Frank's Pizza was never funded the money from these unauthorized transactions, per Shannon's answer to our questions.

For those customers who are not yet showing a refund, the refund can take up to 7 business days to post. This is typical bank and debit/credit card policy on refunds, and it varies based on the bank and its policy. It's possible some will not see a refund post to their accounts until December 8th. You may wish to contact your bank for questions regarding their policy.

If you were affected by this unauthorized charge issue, and still have not received a refund by next week, affected customers should contact Jen Rousseau at (973)906-0647.

Recommended Actions

With everyone moving toward paying for products and services using credit and debit cards, it's never a good experience when an unauthorized charge posts to your account.

The best recommendation for those who visited Frank's Pizza in Manville dating back to at least October should contact their bank or credit card issuer, and report that a merchant they made a purchase at was compromised.

Request your bank or credit card company to issue a new card, with a new number. That way, this can prevent your card information from being used without your permission.

In conclusion, Frank's Pizza was cooperative and responsive to our requests for comment, and they apologize to their customers for this issue.

Shannon also stated that they had to change everything in regards to their IT systems at both the local restaurant, as well as with their payment vendor.