the CC companies are on the hook for it The CC companies pass it down to the retailers in terms of transaction fees, who in turn pass it down to the consumers.

the CC companies are on the hook for it The CC companies pass it down to the retailers in terms of transaction fees, who in turn pass it down to the consumers. It doesn't matter whether your card gets stolen or not. It doesn't matter whether you even have a credit card or not. Everyone is paying for the cost of credit card fraud in one way or another. Even people who only pay with cash still bear the burden of credit card fraud, since they're still paying the credit-card-fee-inclusive price (unless they only shop at retailers with cash discounts).