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The American Express (AmEx) prepaid debit card stands out from its peers in several ways. Other than the media attention it attracted during its launch, there is much more to write about; and you can already guess that most of it is positive. It’s only by looking further at its features that you begin to understand why it generated so much publicity.
American does offer two popular prepaid debit cards, notably the Serve Card and the Bluebird prepaid card.
One of the most attractive features about the debit card is the fees. Fees are one of the most important considerations to make when comparing prepaid debit cards—and the American Express prepaid debit card scored big on this one. Its fee is what most people who deal with financial institutions would call free. The only fee that the card holder pays is the ATM withdrawal charges. They are still offering you an incentive in that you pay absolutely nothing for the first withdrawal.
For any other subsequent withdrawals you pay $2 dollars, of course to this, you will have to add the charges levied by the ATM owner. Unlike most other prepaid debit cards, there will be no charges levied on you when you are activating or reloading the card. Better still, there are no fees charged when you use the card.
The American Express prepaid debit card has several benefits over the other such cards in the market. For instance, one is allowed to have up to three cards as long as you are above 18 years of age. You can choose to have all the three cards in the name of the children or you can have one of the cards. Very few prepaid debit card providers will allow you such a privilege. This means that a parent with teenage children can acquire the prepaid debit cards for them so that they don’t have to keep asking for cash to refuel or other routine expenses.
Since the prepaid card is being shared with teenagers, you might feel that the kids might overspend which can have very adverse effects in these hard economic times. American Express thought of that too and put measures in place so that a parent can monitor the spending that goes on using the card. It’s possible to view the transaction history so as to keep track of how the cash is being used and detect misuse if any. You are also able to suspend the card if you feel it is being misused and you can reactivate the card again when you’re ready.
Most people will tell you that a card that allows you to track every transaction carried out on it is good enough, but American Express prepaid debit card has gone a step further. You receive an email alerting of every transaction made on the card. This makes it very conducive for parents with teenagers since you can track their every purchase from home. The card even allows you to load it from your bank account.
Overall, the American Express prepaid debit card is one of the best prepaid debit cards you can use. It has very low fees and is accepted wherever American Express credit cards are accepted.
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