Debit Card

[youbet]

We generally use cash at restaurants, especially when we're with a group where couples/individuals are each getting a separate check. No CC 3% upcharge. Faster. Convenient.

We just never used CC records to track restaurant expenses and don't find having cash around to be unsafe or inconvenient. And we found the process where the server leaves with several CC's, is gone for several minutes ringing them all up, and then returns with them all to be sorted out back to the owners to be off-putting. When the server begins the process of collecting the cards, we just hand him/her cash (including tip) and say "we're good, thanks for the great service" and leave.

 

[grasshopper]

I am an outer here. I went to buy a nice used SUV just like the one I totaled. 4 years newer and half the 60K I had on my 2019 Santa Fe. We were signing the deal when the finance guy says how are you going to pay. I said a check OK come back in 10 days and you can take the car home.
Home 3 hours away and I had just dropped off the rental car. So I say how about a debit card CapOne same as the check I was going to write. Guy says OK but they will never let you use more than a couple of grand. So I call CapOne and they give me a $25K OK.
I still had to put some more on a credit card to make up a difference, but I drove home in my new ride.

 

[sengsational]

Where I need an ATM card is only when traveling overseas and with their ATM networks you need a Visa or Mastercard logo debit card.

Yes, even though the ATM only card had the ATM network logos, it didn't work overseas for me unless I had the card with the Visa logo.

 

[rk911]

I am an outer here. I went to buy a nice used SUV just like the one I totaled. 4 years newer and half the 60K I had on my 2019 Santa Fe. We were signing the deal when the finance guy says how are you going to pay. I said a check OK come back in 10 days and you can take the car home.
Home 3 hours away and I had just dropped off the rental car. So I say how about a debit card CapOne same as the check I was going to write. Guy says OK but they will never let you use more than a couple of grand. So I call CapOne and they give me a $25K OK.
I still had to put some more on a credit card to make up a difference, but I drove home in my new ride.

Interesting. We bought a new Wrangler in 2023 and a 2023 Grand Cherokee in 2025 both from the same dealer/saleman. The dealer took our personal check for both. They likely did not, could not run a credit check on us since they didn't have any personal info other than our first names on the first purchase. Thinking back most of our new car purchases were made with personal checks.

 

[Aerides]

I said a check OK come back in 10 days and you can take the car home.

Wow. I paid by check for my last car as they would only take $5k on the credit card. I think I might have left if they'd pulled that nonsense.

 

[grasshopper]

Interesting. We bought a new Wrangler in 2023 and a 2023 Grand Cherokee in 2025 both from the same dealer/saleman. The dealer took our personal check for both. They likely did not, could not run a credit check on us since they didn't have any personal info other than our first names on the first purchase. Thinking back most of our new car purchases were made with personal checks.

The 2019 Santa Fe I bought in 2019 was paid by a check. Ms G was " what you didn't call ahead to see if a check was OK". Well no.

 

[grasshopper]

Wow. I paid by check for my last car as they would only take $5k on the credit card. I think I might have left if they'd pulled that nonsense.

Except I was 3 hours from the ponderosa and no wheels.

 

[Koolau]

Wow. I paid by check for my last car as they would only take $5k on the credit card. I think I might have left if they'd pulled that nonsense.

Last used car deal would only allow $5K on CC. Paid the rest with a check. Drove it off the lot. Of course, where was I gonna drive it if the check bounced? 23 miles in any direction and you're in the ocean (small island).

 

[FIYes]

I paid for my last car with a personal check. If I recall correctly the dealer before that let me put a couple of thousand on a credit card and the rest by personal check. Before that the dealer required a cashiers check. It has been over seven years since I bought my last car. Who knows…my next my car the dealer may expect Venmo!

 

[Sue J]

When I wrote a check for a car the used car dealership had me log into my bank website and show them that I had the money in the account. It all went smoothly.

 

[RetiredAndLovingIt]

My Discover ATM card is also a debit card but you can set limits in your account and get texts for every single transaction. I don't use mine much but I get a text instantly at Winco (who doesn't accept credit cards) the instant I pay for my groceries, and the same happens for any other store transactions. Keep in mind you're also using a pin code when using a debit card. You can also lock the card using your phone app if you've either mislaid it or see a transaction that doesn't look right and I'm sure that's available with any banking institution. I've locked mine down a few times when out and about and can't find the card, every single time it slipped down the side of my front seat in the car and once found I can unlock it again just as easily.

 

[Koolau]

When I wrote a check for a car the used car dealership had me log into my bank website and show them that I had the money in the account. It all went smoothly.

I had an uncle, an old farmer (yes, in bib overalls) who would peel off hundred dollar bills when he purchased his new Fords (he always said there was no other car).

 

[RetiredHappy]

The Cadillac dealership insisted on a cashier's check. It was a pain in the axxx but we got it done.

 

[jazz4cash]

Do retailers and banks let you get cashback when you use a debit card? I never use it except at the ATM and I keep forgetting there is a way to get cash from a retailer.

 

[PaunchyPirate]

Do retailers and banks let you get cashback when you use a debit card? I never use it except at the ATM and I keep forgetting there is a way to get cash from a retailer.

I think most grocery stores will give you added cash back. You much purchase something and pay for it… say it costs $19…. You can ask them for $20 cash back too and they will charge your debit card $39 total. At least my local grocery store chain will do that. I don’t think Walmart does, but maybe.

 

[RetiredAndLovingIt]

Do retailers and banks let you get cashback when you use a debit card? I never use it except at the ATM and I keep forgetting there is a way to get cash from a rocery stores do as well

I get cashback at Winco and Stater Bros grocery stores with no fee, I think they allow up to $200. I'm pretty sure I've done it at Walmart as well but I've also seen signs on other store card machines saying no cashback.

 

[RetiredAndLovingIt]

I just came back from Walmart and I could only get a max of $100 cashback. Far more convenient and safer than messing with bank ATM's though.

 

[Original Wally]

DW Molly and I are firmly in the ATM/Debit Card line. We use it EXTENSIVELY. Never had a problem, but then I watch our accounts like a hawk. Will be looking for a Nissan Leaf soon (Molly has her BMW i4 electric) and it will be INTERESTING to see what the payment options are. I am NOT opposed to standing up, shaking hands and saying, No Thanks if the merchant, ANY merchant expects me to pay a fee. Nope.

 

[COcheesehead]

I like the security of a credit card vs a debit card. If my number is hacked, they have access to my credit card which I can shut down in minutes and deal with in hours. With a debit card they have access to my account, while I will be reimbursed, it could take months.
I like the float too, even though I pay it off every month.

 

[jazz4cash]

I like the security of a credit card vs a debit card. If my number is hacked, they have access to my credit card which I can shut down in minutes and deal with in hours. With a debit card they have access to my account, while I will be reimbursed, it could take months.
I like the float too, even though I pay it off every month.

I agree 100% and even though some have commented that legally you have the same protection, I am not so sure. Even if it is true a credit card could give a thief access to the banks money but a debit card gives them access to my money. I remember the days when ppl had debit card for a checking account with a HELOC for overdraft coverage. Yikes.

 

[COcheesehead]

I agree 100% and even though some have commented that legally you have the same protection, I am not so sure. Even if it is true a credit card could give a thief access to the banks money but a debit card gives them access to my money. I remember the days when ppl had debit card for a checking account with a HELOC for overdraft coverage. Yikes.

I think Fidelity came out with cash management accounts to partially deal with the security issue. A debit card tied to a CMA compartmentalizes a breach to the cash in just the CMA. They used to, maybe still do, issue debit cards on brokerage accounts giving a hacker access to your cash, margin, etc of your entire taxable account. Yikes.

 

[FIYes]

I prefer the security of a credit card. I’m not happy about the prevalence of added fees these days, but I continue to use credit cards for many of my purchases.

 

[audreyh1]

I think Fidelity came out with cash management accounts to partially deal with the security issue. A debit card tied to a CMA compartmentalizes a breach to the cash in just the CMA. They used to, maybe still do, issue debit cards on brokerage accounts giving a hacker access to your cash, margin, etc of your entire taxable account. Yikes.

At Fidelity the CMA is not automatically linked to other accounts, but is an option. I made sure it wasn’t. At Schwab I had to explicitly turn off an overdraft link from investor checking and my brokerage account. I think it involved a phone call. If you have no core cash in your Schwab brokerage account it wouldn’t matter anyway.

As mentioned above, I use logo debit/ATM cards for international ATM cash withdrawals, otherwise I keep them locked.

 

[sengsational]

Reading this thread causes me to realize that answer to my concern is to set up a small separate account with a debit card attached to that small account. It would limit the risk and still give me a debit card if needed. Of course, this goes against my recent efforts to simplify my finances since it would be one more account to track.

A lot of good info on this up thread. My experience with my credit union was "interesting". I added the side account and specifically put no overdraft and no auto transfer on the form when I opened the account. Then a few weeks later they sent a letter saying they added overdraft! Thanks (he says sarcastically). So after some back and forth, I got it removed.

 

[Koolau]

I prefer the security of a credit card. I’m not happy about the prevalence of added fees these days, but I continue to use credit cards for many of my purchases.

I play the situation by ear. If (for instance) my dentist gives a discount of 3% for using a check, I'll take it. That's much better than the 1% (on all purchases) that my credit card gives back to me. I'm not particularly happy about the "game" but I'll play it to my advantage (and, I guess, to the dentist's advantage as well). Only loser? Heh, heh, maybe the CC company??