 TITLE: How Long Does a Credit Card Refund Take? CONTENT: Will a Delayed Refund Hurt Your Credit?\n---------------------------------------\nIf your refund is taking longer than expected, don't despair too much. Even a delayed refund shouldn't hurt your credit, as long as you manage your account wisely while the refund is pending. Remember to pay your bill by the due date and mind your credit limit so you don't overextend yourself.\nA delayed refund can, however, start to affect your credit score if it means you'll maintain a higher credit utilization ratio for a longer period of time while you wait. A large purchase might affect your credit utilization ratio—the amount of available credit you have divided by your total available credit—which, in turn, affects your credit score. If you charged $2,000 to your credit card to buy a mattress, the purchase might represent 20% utilization of your $10,000 credit limit. That's something, but not enough to hurt your scores if it's the only purchase you have on your card. But suppose you decide to use the same card to purchase another mattress before your refund posts. Then you might have a $2,000 + $2,000 = $4,000 balance. That brings your credit utilization to 40%, past the point at which this factor can start to drag down your credit scores.\nSince a pending refund should be temporary, however, it might not cause much of a dip.\nOn the other hand, it's never a bad idea to avoid this risk in the first place by avoiding a new purchase until after your refund posts to your account. An issue with the refund might extend how long it'll take even further, or mean you can't get a refund at all. Once the refunded money is credited to your account, you'll know you have those funds available to spend—or save—for certain. END