The reason a credit card offers higher protection is that the money never actually leaves your possession. Once you have contested a charge, you can short the b

The reason a credit card offers higher protection is that the money never actually leaves your possession. Once you have contested a charge, you can short the bill by the amount of the charge and you won't be responsible for interest unless you "lose" the chargeback. Whereas with a debit card, the money has effectively disappeared from your checking account until the chargeback process completes.