Prepaid Debit Card Reviews, Complaints, Etc

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  • Google Launches Prepaid Card

    Google Launches Prepaid Card

    Google Inc. decided that the run-up to the holiday shopping season was the right time to announce its entrance into the prepaid debit card industry. On November 20 the search engine company declared – via blog post, of course, and with typical irreverence – the availability of its Google Wallet Card.

    “Your roommate finally paid you back for dinner through Google Wallet, and you want to use that money right away to pay for groceries this week. Now, you can use the new Google Wallet Card to spend the money instantly, either by purchasing in stores or by withdrawing cash at ATMs,” reads the blog. As the company’s announcement indicates, the new prepaid debit card offering from Google is both similar and somewhat different from other cards already on the market, which are now available from financial heavyweights like American Express and Chase as well as groups like the Occupy Wall Street Movement.

    Like so many other prepaid debit cards, the Google Wallet Card allows users to make purchases anywhere MasterCard is accepted. In addition, the card also makes it possible for cardholders to withdraw cash from ATMs. But there are also significant differences with the Google Wallet Card. As its name indicates, the Google prepaid debit card is linked to Google Wallet accounts. Google Wallet is a smartphone app linked to a consumer’s credit card or bank account that allows users to pay for items using their phone (if a retailer accepts Google Wallet, that is).

    The new Google Wallet Card, which is available for use only in the U.S., can be loaded with money either from a Google Wallet account or from bank and credit card accounts. There are other differences that make the Google prepaid debit card stand out. Importantly, there is a notable lack of fees. Google does not charge anything to people for obtaining the card initially nor does it levy fees annually or monthly. The Google card also provides instant notifications delivered straight to a cardholder’s phone whenever a purchase is made.

    Perhaps more controversially, information about purchases made using the Google Wallet Card will be tracked. According to an article in Reuters, the company will collect information on goods purchased with the card, the amount paid and the name and address of the seller. That information will then be included in profiles Google creates for advertisers interested in better targeting their pitches.

  • Prepaid Card Fraud Controllable

    Prepaid Card Fraud Controllable

    A recent report by Mercator Advisory Group examines the vulnerability of prepaid debit cards to criminals.

    by Chris Warren

    Prepaid debit cards make it into the news a lot these days. A lot of the time stories are focused on the maneuvering of large financial services companies like Chase and American Express and the various strategies they’re implementing to grab a larger chunk of this ever-growing market.

    But there has also been a steady stream of news recently about fraud involving prepaid debit cards. For instance, in mid-November six Yonkers, New York residents were arrested and charged with hacking into bank financial systems and swiping prepaid debit card information that enabled them to steal $45 million. There have also been frequent reports of criminals posing as utility workers, who threaten victims with shutting off their power unless they put money on a prepaid debit card.

    While the use of prepaid debit cards by criminals is gaining notoriety, the scope of the overall problem may not be so dire. Indeed, according to a recent report by Mercator Advisory Group, a consulting company, fraud involving prepaid debit cards is much smaller than what takes place with debit cards. The report, “Prepaid Card Fraud and Risk Controls in the United States,” notes that criminals target credit, debit and prepaid cards alike simply because they all have some level of weakness that can be exploited.

    Prepaid Card Fraud Controllable

    In addition, Ben Jackson, the report’s co-author and a senior analyst at Mercator’s Prepaid Advisory Service, insists that further regulation of the industry isn’t necessary. “Prepaid fraud is a serious, but manageable problem, as long as the members of the prepaid value chain work together. There is nothing inherent to prepaid that makes it more or less risky than other financial products,” he says.

    Furthermore, Jackson outlines a variety of best practices that can be implemented to thwart criminals. For instance, the report says that card issuers and retailers should not be hesitant to say “no” to customers who raise red flags. In addition, the report encourages companies and banks to ask for additional documentation in situations when they feel it’s warranted and also to create a list of problematic names, addresses and phone numbers.

  • Top Five Prepaid Debit Cards

    Top Five Prepaid Debit Cards

    Looking for the best of the best prepaid debit cards? Look no further.

    BestPrepaidDebitCards.com evaluated 70 prepaid card programs before arriving at its five best.

    “We did exhaustive research to compile this list and we boiled it down to the best cards for today’s consumers,” says Shane Tripcony, co-founder of BestPrepaidDebitCards.com. “We used a standard scoring system to calculate average annual fees.”

    The survey compared the costs of making: four ATM withdrawals per month, four ATM balance inquiries per month, five signature transactions per month, five PIN transactions per month, two cash reloads per month, one customer service call per year and two bank teller cash withdrawals per year.

    Although the Bluebird Card from American Express is not technically a prepaid debit card, it is mentioned in this slideshow because it functions in much the same way and has low annual costs and fees, Tripcony says.

     

    Here are the five best prepaid debit card deals for consumers, according to BestPrepaidDebitCards.com.

     

    Serve from American Express – Average Annual Fees: $0

    Topping the list as the most affordable prepaid debit card for consumers is Serve from American Express.

    This card brands itself as a digital prepaid account and it lives up to its name.  You can send money by email, text and Facebook. And you can set up sub-accounts to pay a teen’s allowance or your family’s babysitter.

    There is no credit check, no minimum balance and no activation fee.  And with $0 average annual fee according to our survey, the cost of using Serve from American Express is tough to beat.

    The cost of the card will be going up after December 3rd, when a $1 monthly fee begins. (This fee is a waived for customers who load at least $500 per month and it is not charged to customers who are residents of New York, Texas or Vermont).

     

    U.S. Bank Convenient Cash Card – Average Annual Fees: $47

    Coming in second is the U.S. Bank Convenient Cash Card.

    This Visa-branded card boasts free ATM withdrawals, free ATM declines and free ATM balance inquiries at all U.S. Bank locations.  Direct deposit and bill pay are free and can be set up online with ease.  The monthly fee is just $3. And there is a one-time activation fee of $3 upon opening the account.

    You are allowed two free calls per month to customer service and any funds you load on the card are FDIC-insured.  PIN and signature transactions made with the U.S. Bank Convenient Cash Card are all free and so are mobile text alerts.

     

    Chase Liquid – Average Annual Fees: $59.40

    This Visa-branded card from Chase can be reloaded at 5,500 Chase branches nationwide.  There is no fee to open the card, reload the value on the card, request an additional card or withdraw cash from a Chase ATM.

    You can open the card with an initial load of just $25. Its monthly fee is $4.95.

    Funds loaded on Chase Liquid are FDIC-insured and there may be zero liability for unauthorized use of the card.  Bill payment and direct deposit are both free.

    Mobile apps and free text alerts make checking your balance easy. And you can sign up for cash back offers on Facebook.

     

    PNC SmartAccess Prepaid – Average Annual Fees: $60

    With the PNC SmartAccess Prepaid Visa card, bill pay, direct deposit and mobile text alerts are all free.  ATM balance inquiries and all ATM withdrawals are also free when you use PNC Bank ATMs.

    There are no reload fees, except for those imposed by ReadyLink.  And you can make free cash deposits at more than 2,900 PNC Branch locations. The PNC SmartAccess Prepaid card charges a $5 monthly fee.

    All funds loaded on the PNC SmartAccess Prepaid card are FDIC-insured.  There are no maintenance or inactivity fees associated with the account and you can request an additional card for free.

     

    BB&T Money Account – Average Annual Fees:  $62.95

    The BB&T Money Account Visa card has a monthly fee of $5 per month that can be reduced to $3 if you deposit at least $1,000 onto the card in a month. And you can share joint accounts with a spouse, teen, relative or friend. Additional cards are free.

    There are unlimited fund transfers between BB&T accounts and all

    ATM balance inquiries and cash withdrawals are free at more than 2,400 BB&T ATMs.

    You can deposit cash and checks onto the card at more than 1,800 financial BB&T financial centers.  There is no separate bank account or minimum balance required to open the account.

    The funds loaded on a BB&T Money Account card are FDIC-insured. Bill pay and mobile text alerts are both free.

  • Best Prepaid Debit Cards.com Launches New Prepaid Debit Card Listing

    Best Prepaid Debit Cards.com Launches New Prepaid Debit Card Listing

    We just recently launched our new prepaid debit card listing. We are ranking the cards in order of lowest fees based on our standard average annual cost of ownership. If you are looking for a great, low-fee card, check out our list.

    Please bear with us as we work to improve the pages. We were in a rush to get the information out to you, our wonderful website visitors, but we still have work to do. There are reviews to write and ratings to establish for a number of the cards. It’s coming, so don’t worry!

    Anyway, check out the new section and find a card that best fits your needs!

  • Prepaid Card Fraud Controllable

    Prepaid Card Fraud Controllable

    A recent report by Mercator Advisory Group examines the vulnerability of prepaid debit cards to criminals,

    by Chris Warren

    Prepaid debit cards make it into the news a lot these days. A lot of the time stories are focused on the maneuvering of large financial services companies like Chase and American Express and the various strategies they’re implementing to grab a larger chunk of this ever-growing market.

    But there has also been a steady stream of news recently about fraud involving prepaid debit cards. For instance, in mid-November six Yonkers, New York residents were arrested and charged with hacking into bank financial systems and swiping prepaid debit card information that enabled them to steal $45 million. There have also been frequent reports of criminals posing as utility workers, who threaten victims with shutting off their power unless they put money on a prepaid debit card.

    While the use of prepaid debit cards by criminals is gaining notoriety, the scope of the overall problem may not be so dire. Indeed, according to a recent report by Mercator Advisory Group, a consulting company, fraud involving prepaid debit cards is much smaller than what takes place with debit cards. The report, “Prepaid Card Fraud and Risk Controls in the United States,” notes that criminals target credit, debit and prepaid cards alike simply because they all have some level of weakness that can be exploited.

    In addition, Ben Jackson, the report’s co-author and a senior analyst at Mercator’s Prepaid Advisory Service, insists that further regulation of the industry isn’t necessary. “Prepaid fraud is a serious, but manageable problem, as long as the members of the prepaid value chain work together. There is nothing inherent to prepaid that makes it more or less risky than other financial products,” he says.

    Furthermore, Jackson outlines a variety of best practices that can be implemented to thwart criminals. For instance, the report says that card issuers and retailers should not be hesitant to say “no” to customers who raise red flags. In addition, the report encourages companies and banks to ask for additional documentation in situations when they feel it’s warranted and also to create a list of problematic names, addresses and phone numbers.

  • Prepaid Debit Card Fees Lower Than Checking Account Charges

    Prepaid Debit Card Fees Lower Than Checking Account Charges

    A recent report by Bretton Woods, Inc. shows that most consumers using prepaid debit cards to manage finances do so for less than $7.50 per month.

    by Chris Warren

    It has long been an assumption that users of prepaid debit cards turn to them as something of a last resort. But a recent report entitled, “Analysis of General Purpose Reloadable Cards,” found that the majority of consumers using prepaid debit cards are actually faring better when it comes to fees than if they were utilizing more traditional checking accounts. In fact, the report produced by Bretton Woods, Inc. reveals that the majority of people using prepaid debit cards to manage their finances were able to do so for monthly fees totaling less than $7.50, a cost advantage over basic checking accounts.

    The report, which used data gathered from prepaid debit card issuers and program managers, underscores two trends driving the explosive growth of prepaid cards. An important force behind lower prepaid debit card fees is increased industry competition. As large financial services companies like Chase and American Express have introduced products with low fees, competitors have had to follow suit. At the same time, fees associated with checking accounts have been on the rise.

    “The three-year trend shows that the costs of basic checking accounts are increasing while the costs to use general purpose reloadable cards, also known as prepaid debit cards, are decreasing. The 2013 analysis is able to pinpoint with more accuracy what it costs the majority of consumers to use their cards and revealed the high fees incurred by consumers are from outlier cards only and are completely avoidable,” says the report’s author, Michael Flores, who is president of Bretton Woods, Inc.

    The report found that consumers using basic checking accounts pay between $263 and $473 each year in fees. By contrast, those who utilize reloadable prepaid cards with direct deposit pay between $58 and $263.95 each year. Prepaid debit card owners who don’t take advantage of direct deposit, which is typically a free way to load accounts with money, spend between $58 and $333.75 annually. Additionally, the report says that direct deposit checking accounts cost on average more than twice that of prepaid debit cards with direct deposit.

    Another finding of the study underlines the growing popularity of prepaid debit cards with banks. Indeed, almost 60 percent of all banks now offer them. Given the embrace of prepaid debit cards by younger consumers, it’s likely that even more banks will begin offering their own cards. “The trends are unmistakable. General purpose reloadable prepaid cards are serving the needs of Gen Y and the underbanked, and also gaining a foothold with traditionally banked customers,” says Kirsten Trusko, President and Executive Director of the Network Branded Prepaid Card Association.

Prepaid Debit Card Reviews, Complaints, Etc