The Detroit Hockey Con charge on your credit card statement is a concession purchase made at Little Caesars Arena in downtown Detroit, home of the Detroit Red Wings. The “Con” is short for concessions, meaning food, drinks, or merchandise bought from a vendor stand during a game or event. If you see it and don’t remember buying anything, the most likely explanation is a purchase by someone else with access to your card, a delayed posting from an event you attended weeks earlier, or a pre-authorization hold that’s just now settling.1WhatsThatCharge. Detroit Hockey Con Detroit MI
What the Charge Looks Like on Your Statement
The core descriptor is DETROIT HOCKEY – CON DETROIT MI, but your bank may wrap it in extra text depending on how the transaction was processed. Common formats include:
- CHKCARD DETROIT HOCKEY – CON DETROIT MI or CHECKCARD DETROIT HOCKEY – CON DETROIT MI
- POS Debit, POS PUR, or POS PURCH DETROIT HOCKEY – CON DETROIT MI
- PRE-AUTH DETROIT HOCKEY – CON DETROIT MI or PENDING DETROIT HOCKEY – CON DETROIT MI
- Visa Check Card DETROIT HOCKEY – CON DETROIT MI MC
- POS REFUND DETROIT HOCKEY – CON DETROIT MI
All of these point to the same source: concession vendors operating at Little Caesars Arena under the Red Wings’ payment processing system.1WhatsThatCharge. Detroit Hockey Con Detroit MI A “PRE-AUTH” or “PENDING” entry means the transaction was authorized at the point of sale but hasn’t finalized yet, which is routine when a terminal places a hold before settling the final amount.
Why You Might Not Recognize It
Arena concessions are a frequent source of statement confusion because the billing name rarely matches the experience. Someone who bought a beer and a hot dog at a Red Wings game might expect to see “Little Caesars Arena” or the vendor’s own name. Instead, every concession transaction gets grouped under the generic “Detroit Hockey” descriptor, which looks unfamiliar on its own, especially a few weeks after the purchase.
A few ordinary situations usually explain it. The purchase may have been made by a spouse, family member, or other authorized user on your account who went to a game. The charge may be a delayed posting, since arena concession transactions can take several business days to clear and sometimes land in a later statement cycle. And a pre-authorization hold that settles for a different final amount can briefly show up twice before the pending entry drops off.
Steps to Take Before Disputing
Run through a few quick checks before treating the charge as fraud. Look at your calendar for any trip to Little Caesars Arena around the transaction date. Ask anyone with access to your card whether they attended a Red Wings game or another event at the arena. Searching the exact merchant text from your statement online can also confirm the origin.
If the charge is real but wrong, say a duplicate posting or an incorrect amount, contacting Little Caesars Arena or Red Wings guest services directly is usually the fastest way to a correction or refund.
If no one you know made the purchase, call your card issuer using the number on the back of your card to report it and open a dispute.
How to Dispute an Unauthorized Charge
Federal law gives you strong protections. Under the Fair Credit Billing Act, your liability for unauthorized credit card charges is capped at $50, and most issuers offer zero-liability policies that waive even that.2Investopedia. Fair Credit Billing Act If you report the card lost or stolen before any unauthorized charges post, you owe nothing.3Consumer Financial Protection Bureau. Am I Responsible for Unauthorized Charges if My Credit Cards Are Lost or Stolen
To put the dispute in writing, send a notice to the address your issuer designates for billing inquiries, which is not the same as the payment address. The notice must reach the issuer within 60 days of the date the statement containing the charge was sent to you.4Federal Trade Commission. Using Credit Cards and Disputing Charges Include your name, account number, the amount, the date of the charge, and why you believe it’s an error. Certified mail with a return receipt gives you proof the letter arrived on time.
The issuer must resolve the dispute within two complete billing cycles, and no more than 90 days.5Consumer Financial Protection Bureau. Regulation Z § 1026.13 While the investigation is open, you don’t have to pay the disputed amount, and the issuer can’t report you as delinquent, close your account, or try to collect the disputed sum.4Federal Trade Commission. Using Credit Cards and Disputing Charges If the issuer agrees the charge was an error, it must remove the charge along with any related fees or interest. If it concludes the charge was valid, it has to explain the decision in writing and provide documentation.
Escalating to the CFPB or FTC
If your card issuer won’t resolve the dispute, file a complaint with the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau online at consumerfinance.gov or by phone at (855) 411-2372. The CFPB forwards complaints to the company, which generally responds within 15 days, with a final response in more complex cases within 60.6Consumer Financial Protection Bureau. Submit a Complaint
If you suspect the charge is tied to identity theft, report it to the Federal Trade Commission at IdentityTheft.gov, which provides recovery plans, sample letters, and step-by-step guidance.7Federal Trade Commission. Report Identity Theft