Strategies for Spare Credit Card

[Sunset]

Re paranoia about debit cards IMO it is overblown. While it is true that there are little or no legal protections, my guess is that most financial institutions have had to provide protections for competitive reasons.

Grabbed after a quick Google search:

Bank of America: "$0 Liability Guarantee will credit fraudulent transactions made with your debit card back to your account as soon as the next business day if your card is lost or stolen."

Wells Fargo: "Your Wells Fargo Debit Card comes with Zero Liability protection at no extra cost. You will be reimbursed for promptly reported unauthorized card transactions."

Schwab: "Schwab will cover 100% of any losses in any of your Schwab accounts due to unauthorized activity."

​

I would simply not deal with an issuer that did not indemnify me.

Sure the debit card bank will replace the money, but I have heard it can take days to weeks to happen.
In the meantime your bank account could be sitting empty.... because someone took out all the money... so auto payments bounce, etc.

 

[braumeister]

How does it work with the three different reporting agencies? Do I find out which one a CC company uses and unfreeze that? Unfreeze them all?

Whenever I've had to do that, either they proactively tell me which one they use, or they say they can't do anything because it's frozen, and I call and ask them which one to unfreeze. Never had a problem. I just do a temporary unfreeze for a day, they check me out, and it freezes back up the next day.

 

[OldShooter]

Sure the debit card bank will replace the money, but I have heard it can take days to weeks to happen.
In the meantime your bank account could be sitting empty.... because someone took out all the money... so auto payments bounce, etc.

That seems a bit paranoid. Maybe you should check with your card issuer instead of going with "I have heard ... "

 

[MichaelB]

Bank debit card fraud is covered under the EFTA. Regardless of bank policy, you have 60 days after the statement date to file a claim with the bank. After that date the bank has no legal liability. Some may offer longer coverage or have specific requirements to report fraudulent transactions, so it’s important to read their written policy.

 

[swakyaby]

I usually bring the credit card I made the hotel reservation with, usually Costco Citi Visa because of their 3% reward on travel and gas. I also usually bring Fidelity Visa as a backup in case my first card is compromised; it has 2% cash back on everything. I leave a 3rd credit card at home for all automatic charges in case my wallet gets stolen, and that one is my bank Visa.

 

[COcheesehead]

How does it work with the three different reporting agencies? Do I find out which one a CC company uses and unfreeze that? Unfreeze them all?

I didn’t unfreeze any of them until I found out they used Trans Union. I got a notice from Trans Union of the hard inquiry within minutes and then I refrozen it. The freeze/unfreeze took minutes.

 

[COcheesehead]

That seems a bit paranoid. Maybe you should check with your card issuer instead of going with "I have heard ... "

I’ve read online accounts on other forums from people who said the same thing when it happened to them. It can take time to get your cash back.

 

[Sunset]

That seems a bit paranoid. Maybe you should check with your card issuer instead of going with "I have heard ... "

Oh, yeah here is where I heard it (amongst other places) :

When your debit card is used to steal money from your bank account, enjoy the wait.

Here is an example of it taking days:

https://www.forbes.com/sites/nextav...-husbands-debit-card-was-stolen/#36dcb3bf2321
"The bank made the adjustments to our account three days later by re-depositing the funds that had been withdrawn for each charge."

Here is a card issuer that can take a week (5 business days) OR longer:

"ANZ, for example, outlines that credit for fraud on a Visa debit card should be in your account “within five business days”."
UNLESS:
"“If you notify ANZ of an unauthorised transaction(s), within 5 business days we will provide provisional credit to you to the value of the unauthorised transaction unless your prior account history is unsatisfactory or if the nature of transactions justifies a delay in crediting your account,” the bank’s Visa debit product disclosure statement says.

 

[FANOFJESUS]

I'd like to have a spare credit card in case we are on a trip and our credit card is stolen or, more likely, the card company cancels it because it was compromised.

BofA won't let you have two cards with different numbers.

If I get one from a different company, I'll have to unfreeze my credit reports.

First question: I have a debit card from our bank. Can I just rely on that, or are there situations in which a credit card is required?

Second question: What would be a good card to get if I decide I need a second card? Note that I will probably never use it.

Thanks.

I think you are ok with the two credit cards. I would not use the debit cards. I am guessing you and your wife only use two to keep it simple. I hear you.

 

[Sunny]

• Debit card protection is better than it used to be, and banks may have policies indicated you have 0 risk. However, my understanding is it takes longer to recover funds you lost through fraudulent activity, not to mention these would be actual funds whereas a card it is just forgiving debt you didn’t actually incur.
• NerdWallet has a section on the current best cards, and there are other sites as well. Most gear it towards the rewards you will earn, but for an emergency card / 2nd card I’d think all you’d be concerned with is no annual fee and what limit it gives you.
• Emergency cash on your person in a separate pocket/location than your other cash/wallet is a requirement at home and abroad imo. We actually have some with the registrations in our vehicle and a few other places. Along with conveniences of having it in case the card network is down or some other quirky thing like a business doesn’t take cards, there are stories where people were able to get out of disaster zones (hurricanes, etc.) by offering cash for rides out vs getting stuck. You just never know.

 

[gwraigty]

Well, your implicit premise is that the people were traveling with only the one now-dead card. It's hard for me to believe that anyone would put themselves in that position.

Actually, no, that wasn't my premise. It appears to be the OP's premise though. I always have more than one credit card to rely on.

 

[TromboneAl]

Actually, no, that wasn't my premise. It appears to be the OP's premise though.

It was indeed. The mishap is described in Chapter 32 of Drive, Ride, Repeat: The Mostly-True Account of a Cross-Country Car and Bicycle Adventure.

Now to the mishap. I received an automated email alert from our credit
card company saying that there was some unusual activity going on.
Indeed, it turned out that someone had gotten our credit card number and
was testing it to see if it was valid. So, we had to cancel the card and get
a new one. Normally this involves a new card being sent out and arriving
in a week or so, but that wouldn't work so well on our trip.​

 

[ERD50]

I'd like to have a spare credit card in case we are on a trip and our credit card is stolen or, more likely, the card company cancels it because it was compromised. ....

T-Al, this is sounding like your spare tire thread for your Tesla.

Same advice, stop fiddling around, just get a spare!

We each have his/her cards from multiple issuers. So when away from home, DW and I each carry separate cards from separate companies. That way, if one loses their wallet and has to shut the card down, the other is unaffected. If we both carried each other's 'pair', we'd both be shut down.

I also keep a 3rd used only for my repetitive, automatic charges. By not using it "out in the wild", seems to be less chance of fraud and having to update those auto-payments.

-ERD50

 

[kgtest]

Discover - 2% Cash Back w/rotating 5% categories
Freedom - 1% Cash back w/rotating 5% categories
Delta Platinum - Debating cancelling but allows free checked bags, lounge and annual companion cert. They recently raised the fee from 200 to 250 though.

Amazon - Don't actually carry this one but use it online.

 

[TromboneAl]

T-Al, this is sounding like your spare tire thread for your Tesla.

Same advice, stop fiddling around, just get a spare!

Yes, but buying a spare tire involved pushing a button on the internet. Getting a spare card involves dealing with three credit-reporting sites, possibly waiting on hold, etc.

We each have his/her cards from multiple issuers. So when away from home, DW and I each carry separate cards from separate companies. That way, if one loses their wallet and has to shut the card down, the other is unaffected. If we both carried each other's 'pair', we'd both be shut down.

-ERD50

Good advice. I'm currently waiting a callback for BofA to see if we can set that up easily.

 

[Harrald]

In addition to keeping a few credit cards with us (2 Visas and an AMEX) I have a Mastercard from Citi that I've had since I was 17. When we travel my wife carries one of the Visa cards and I carry the other. We both carry the AMEX.

The MC sits in our safe and has a reoccurring Netflix charge and is set to auto-pay. It never leaves the house and is the backup if anything happens to our other cards. It doesn't have any yearly charge, it's got a 5K limit and you don't get points for using it. But it's sure nice knowing that we will always have a card available just in case.

 

[Red Badger]

Like many here, our go to CC is Chase Sapphire Reserve for its numerous perks. But our back up card just got an upgrade. We have an Amex co-branded Hilton Aspire. We stay at Hilton hotels with rare exception. This card comes with Diamond status (which is awesome internationally - pretty good in USA). The other good annual perks are:
Free stay - was weekend only, now anytime
$250 airline credit with one airline (we buy gift cards and use them for tickets)
$250 Hilton resort credit - just got changed to $250 restaurant credit
It has several other bennies, but these are the "money shot" for us. I also suspect that the free stay and $250 restaurant credit will be reversed next year, assuming the pandemic winds down. But that's okay - - card was good'nuff before the changes.