Debit card fraud

[audreyh1]

Since there is NO security advantage to a debit card over a credit card, there seems to be no reason to have one.

Except for the cases when debit cards are accepted but credit cards not. And you can't use cash.

 

[aja8888]

Except for the cases when debit cards are accepted but credit cards not. And you can't use cash.

I don't believe I have ever been at a retail establishment where it was "only debit cards"! Where are these places?

 

[Lsbcal]

I get about $16/month interest on my debit account.

I get some interest too, but I have to have 12 debits/mo and 1 ACH. Am thinking maybe I'll just drop the sum in the account and go with less cash available. At least until rates rise more to make this worthwhile.

 

[rodi]

I don't believe I have ever been at a retail establishment where it was "only debit cards"! Where are these places?

There is an independent gas station near me that lets you use debit cards but not credit cards. I suspect it's because the merchant fees are much higher for credit cards. You can also go inside and pay cash... which adds time and hassle to filling up.

(I don't use that station much - but it's my backup if I can't get to costco.)

 

[aja8888]

There is an independent gas station near me that lets you use debit cards but not credit cards. I suspect it's because the merchant fees are much higher for credit cards. You can also go inside and pay cash... which adds time and hassle to filling up.

(I don't use that station much - but it's my backup if I can't get to costco.)

audreyh1 mentioned no cash or CC's, only debit cards. That would put me out as I don't have a debit card.

 

[audreyh1]

I don't believe I have ever been at a retail establishment where it was "only debit cards"! Where are these places?

Automatic ticket machines in Europe.

Not an issue if you don't travel overseas.

And these machine accept European credit cards but not US issued ones. And some accept no cash at all, others only coins, no bills.

Makes it tough to buy short haul train tickets or metro tickets unless you have a debit card with chip or can wait in line for a hour high is not uncommon at certain stations.

 

[homestead]

Winco grocery stores only accept debit or cash

 

[Sunset]

There is an independent gas station near me that lets you use debit cards but not credit cards. I suspect it's because the merchant fees are much higher for credit cards. You can also go inside and pay cash... which adds time and hassle to filling up.

(I don't use that station much - but it's my backup if I can't get to costco.)

And you get a discount I would hope.
There is one near me that gives 4 cents off per gallon for cash, which works out to 1.6% currently. Better than some card rewards.

 

[youbet]

I get about $16/month interest on my debit account.

I get interest on my acct without having a debit card associated with it. Plus CC rewards.

 

[youbet]

audreyh1 mentioned no cash or CC's, only debit cards. That would put me out as I don't have a debit card.

Me too. Never experienced a situation where a purchase couldn't be made without a debit card. Live and learn..........

 

[Totoro]

Audreyh1 qualifies as a parttime European citizen

Northern Europe has plenty of situations that are card only, although often credit cards (with PIN) are accepted as well and there most often is a less easy way to pay cash anyway. Unless you are talking unmanned and outside regular business hours.

 

[aja8888]

Automatic ticket machines in Europe.

Not an issue if you don't travel overseas.

And these machine accept European credit cards but not US issued ones. And some accept no cash at all, others only coins, no bills.

Makes it tough to buy short haul train tickets or metro tickets unless you have a debit card with chip or can wait in line for a hour high is not uncommon at certain stations.

Thanks! Good information for the travelers here.

No issue for me as my international travel days are over. Now it's just North America travel, mostly by car (worn out by airlines).

 

[EastWest Gal]

DW went online Tuesday to look at her USAA checking account balance and discovered several fraudulent transactions. Apparently someone had copied her debit card and on Monday withdrew $400 from two separate ATM locations, used it to buy gas, pay for lunch and purchase a couple of items. The total damages were just over $1,000. All the transactions took place in a city 200 miles away - she hasn't been there for more than a year.



A quick call to USAA's fraud department resulted in issuing her a new debit card and an assurance the fraudulent transactions would be reversed. As of this morning all of them had been credited back to her account.



I've told her for years she shouldn't use her debit card for anything other than withdrawing cash from an ATM but she continued to use it at retail merchants, even while we were traveling. I think that will stop now - she even admitted I had told her so without me having to say it. In a phone conversation with DD#1 she said, "Your father told me not to do it. You know how much I hate it when he's right!"

A couple of months ago, friend of mine and her husband had their checking at USAA account cleaned out WHILE her husband was on the phone reporting alerts he had gotten about attempted withdrawals. They're not sure how their information got hacked. Sounds like USAA has had some problems this year.

Yes, it happens.


Sent from my iPhone using Early Retirement Forum

 

[Alan]

I don't believe I have ever been at a retail establishment where it was "only debit cards"! Where are these places?

The pay station at a car park at Liege railway station was like that a few weeks ago when we were there. Our local Specs liquor store in Texas gives a discount for cash or debit card, and we found many places in our Australian travels that charged 1 or 2% for credit over debit cards.

 

[scrabbler1]

Except for the cases when debit cards are accepted but credit cards not. And you can't use cash.

OSCAR, my health insurance company, accepts debit card # but not credit card for online payment of premiums. But they also accept paper check and checking account # for electronic ACH payments, the latter of which I do use.

I haven't used my debit card for anything other than ATM cash withdrawal in at least 4 years, and even then I used my debit card for such things maybe 5 times in my life. For me, it serves as a backup in case I can't use my CC, and that has never happened.

 

[Just_Steve]

I use my debit card all the time but never use the pin, I'm not suer I even know it.

 

[Rustic23]

I have a pre-paid debit/credit card. No fees. I use it for gas purchases. It gives me one card with limited liability to use at any gas station. What I like about it is I get an email and text when card is used. I know immediately when the card is used.

 

[UpAnchor]

I have a pre-paid debit/credit card. No fees. I use it for gas purchases. It gives me one card with limited liability to use at any gas station. What I like about it is I get an email and text when card is used. I know immediately when the card is used.

We do the same at any questionable location or anywhere the card must leave our presence. (Assuming they accept Amex.)

 

[bubba]

Haven't read all responses to the OP, but wanted to share that we had two credit cards hacked in one day. There must have been a reader on a gas pump where the first card wouldn't work so instead of driving away, we used our spare credit card. It worked, but both had random $60+ purchases made within minutes. Literally 4 or 5 charges each within one time. The CC companies told us the charges were originating in Boca Raton; we were at least 1000 miles away from there. So how many cc's should one carrying when traveling to be safe?

 

[audreyh1]

Audreyh1 qualifies as a parttime European citizen

Northern Europe has plenty of situations that are card only, although often credit cards (with PIN) are accepted as well and there most often is a less easy way to pay cash anyway. Unless you are talking unmanned and outside regular business hours.

I had a number waiting for service at a French train ticket boutique, and I realized that it was going so very slow that it might be 45mins or more before they got to me, and I would miss a river boat ride. So I decided to try their card-only machine, hoping my debit VISA card with chip would be accepted - it was, and I was out of there with my tickets - yeah! These machines are notorious for not taking US issued credit cards, so I didn't try.

I'd already had a US credit card rejected at a machine in NL, but it accepted my chipped debit card and PIN.

Very unpredictable, but in Europe I travel with an army of chipped credit and debit cards because you never know what's going to work. Avoiding lines (the cash option) is a good thing - sometimes they are short, but often they are very long.

I still ran into a "no VISA" section of NL in Friesland. Fortunately we carried plenty of cash. These were retailers/restaurants. They have a very low transaction cost Maestro system - debit only so that's the only thing businesses would accept other than cash. I don't think you can get such a card in the US. Only hotels accepted credit cards in that popular vacation area we visited.

 

[audreyh1]

I have a pre-paid debit/credit card. No fees. I use it for gas purchases. It gives me one card with limited liability to use at any gas station. What I like about it is I get an email and text when card is used. I know immediately when the card is used.

Provider?

I've been interested in something like this depending on foreign transaction fees.

 

[Sarah in SC]

Bubba, that's really unlucky!
I try to travel with at least 3-4 debit and credit cards, including the Schwab debit card that refunds ATM fees. It's helpful to try for cards that don't use the same network, as in more remote places, it isn't unheard of for the entire system to be down.

We once went to 6 different banks in Ulan Baatar to find one where our Schwab debit card would work for a cash withdrawal. If it hadn't, we'd have gone with our local credit union debit card that doesn't waive fees.

 

[UpAnchor]

I have a pre-paid debit/credit card. No fees. I use it for gas purchases. It gives me one card with limited liability to use at any gas station. What I like about it is I get an email and text when card is used. I know immediately when the card is used.

Provider?



I've been interested in something like this depending on foreign transaction fees.

Also curious what Rustic23 uses. We went with the Amex Bluebird after looking into any number of prepaid cards and finding most to be fee-laden. Bluebird is the only one I'm aware of the has no fees. Have been using it for 6 months or so and totally satisfied. DW and I each carry one and keep them preloaded with around $100 to $150 for just those instances mentioned earlier.

 

[audreyh1]

I know about the Bluebird, but was wondering about VISA network solutions.

 

[REWahoo]

A couple of months ago, friend of mine and her husband had their checking at USAA account cleaned out WHILE her husband was on the phone reporting alerts he had gotten about attempted withdrawals. They're not sure how their information got hacked. Sounds like USAA has had some problems this year.

According to this article, ATM theft problems go far beyond USAA:

Theft of debit card information from ATMs is on a major rise, according to FICO. From the beginning of the year until April 9th, debit card information theft rose 174% over the same period in 2014 through ATMs located on bank properties and a staggering 317% in ATMs on non-bank properties. The surge represents the highest level of debit card ATM attacks in at least twenty years.

ATM Safety 101 | www.statesman.com