5 ms·
Debit card
by jiggy2011 12y ago
Debit card
- chc 12y agoCan't debit cards generally be used as credit cards?
- jiggy2011 12y agoYes, but without the credit part.
- chc 12y agoBut I mean, in the context of accepting payments online, debit cards aren't really an alternative to credit cards, are they? The two go hand-in-hand. Merchants that accept credit generally accept debit, so you're fine in that situation if you prefer debit.
- yen223 12y agoDebit cards are the same as credit cards, but without the credit, the protections, or the reward points. As long as you can maintain financial discipline, there's really no reason to be using a debit card.
- chc 12y agoA small niggle, because I see a lot of people say this: At least in the US, many banks do extend the same protections to both credit and debit cards. My wife and I both had our debit card info stolen in separate hacks over the past few years, and both times our respective banks just asked us a few questions, credited the money back to our accounts and sent a new card that automatically replaced the old card upon activation.
- kijin 12y agoHow long did it take for your bank to return the stolen funds? I heard it takes at least a couple of days in most cases. The scary thing about debit cards is that when someone steals money with it, they're stealing your money. So if your account is drained and your rent is due tomorrow, you're in trouble. With credit cards, on the other hand, the thief steals the bank's money. Your money is safe the whole time.
- chc 12y agoFor me at least, it was credited immediately, with the caveat that they would remove the same amount if an investigation showed that the funds had not actually been stolen.
- jiggy2011 12y agoCredit cards can cost more for merchants to process, sometimes they pass this cost onto the consumer with a credit card surcharge. It's also easier to track your spending on a debit card as you can check the remaining balance at any ATM rather than waiting for the bill or going online.
- coev 12y agoEvery place I've been to that surcharges credit cards also tries to do it to debit (see gas stations) so your line of reasoning there is suspect.
- AjithAntony 12y agoI don't have a source to cite, but I think in general, Debit cards swiped as credit cost the merchant the same or maybe more. There are some recent court decisions that may have capped these. High fees for this stuff is the reason by so many banks changed their retail business model to things like Totally free checking(when you make 12 debit card purchases each month).