After spotting a duplicate charge for a single purchase she made last Wednesday, she emailed the Macy’s customer service. Macy’s contacted her and requested more details.

“This morning I get a call on my work voice mail,” she writes, “that Federated Stores (the parent company) has had many complaints about double charges on debit cards and they are working to fix the problem and my account should be credited the $42.92 by the end of the week.”

Nice that Macy’s will credit the account, but would they have done so if Phranie hadn’t pointed out the error?

We’re not sure if the problem is just localized to the Macy’s in the Metro Center in Washington DC that Pranie shopped at, but if you’ve already shopped at a Macy’s with a debit card, look over your accounts for any double-billing. If you’re planning on shopping at Macy’s, think about using credit or cash instead.

Want more consumer news? Visit our parent organization, Consumer Reports, for the latest on scams, recalls, and other consumer issues.