Prepaid Debit Card Reviews, Complaints, Etc

Tag: prepaid debit cards

  • Tips on How to Best Use a Prepaid Reloadable Debit Card

    Tips on How to Best Use a Prepaid Reloadable Debit Card

    Welcome to our site! Our editors have been covering the credit and debit card space for a total of 30+ years and we are proud to have been featured by the Wall Street Journal, CNN, etc. Your input is invaluable and we’d love to have your opinion regarding tips on how to best use a prepaid debit card (see below) – this site is powered by you!

    Chime is a new Visa card that is amazingly free (unless you use the card outside of their large ATM network). This is best alternative to a prepaid card that we’ve seen in 5+ years and offers all of the benefits of traditional bank account.

    It’s a Visa card and has a lot less fees than the typical prepaid debit card. Also, people with poor credit can apply too as there is no credit check. Chime can be managed entirely from your smartphone. No overdraft fees. No minimum balance. No Chex Sytems. No monthly service fees. No transfer fees. Over 38,000 fee-free ATMs, plus 30,000+ cash-back locations.

    And for a limited time, earn a Cash referral bonus of $50 when you tell your friends and family members about Chime and they sign up (and they’ll earn $50 too)- details within the app after you apply! Click for more info.- you can apply online in just 2 mins with no obligation. Start by simply entering your email address and clicking “Get Started”– over 3 million customers couldn’t be wrong. 🙂 (Referral Link)

    Prepaid debit cards are big business in the United States. According to Time magazine, consumers used them for (http://business.time.com/2013/08/01/prepaid-debit-cards-a-few-good-ones-to-consider-and-several-to-avoid) $77 billion worth of transactions in 2012. That’s a lot of swiping.

    We all know about using them to pay for lunch or a pair of shoes. But have you ever thought about a prepaid card for. Following are some tips on creative ways you can use a prepaid debit card (Visa or MasterCard).

    1. A door prize. You want lots of butts in the seats at the community cleanup or the first PTA gathering of the year? Advertise that a $50 prepaid debit card (or a couple of $25 ones) will be given away. Advertise it extensively.

    Sure, it would be nice if people would attend such things without coaxing, but be realistic: If someone’s on the fence about attending (“Do I want to get up that early on a Saturday?/Be out that late on a school night?”) then the chance of winning might tip them over into Do The Right Thing territory.

    2. An employee incentive. Whether it’s for putting (usable) ideas in the suggestion box or for making it through the holiday crush without losing their minds, your workers might appreciate the chance to get a little something extra.

    Do it through a random drawing or as an out-and-out prize for a really smart suggestion. (Note: These are considered taxable income, according to the Internal Revenue Service. But they’re still fun to get.) On a related note, please note that Pex and Bento offer employee prepaid cards for small to medium sized businesses.

    3. Help to a relative/friend in need. Sometimes handing over cash feels weird. Giving a prepaid card lets the person you love get what he needs: medicine, a bag of groceries, a tank of gas. Better yet: Slip it under the person’s door or mail it anonymously.

    4. Moving expenses.  Donna Freedman, who blogs at Surviving and Thriving (http://www.donnafreedman.com), tells us: “When my daughter and son-in-law moved from Seattle to Phoenix, I saw them off with a big bag of snacks and a $300 prepaid gift card for road expenses. I thought the card would be easier to manage than a wad of cash. (It was.)”

    5. Kid travel gift. If your pre adolescent or teen is heading cross-country to visit his grandparents or to spend the summer with the noncustodial parent, a prepaid card will let him buy his own snacks and incidentals.

    6. Blog giveaway. Want to build subscriber loyalty and get the attention of additional readers? Have a monthly giveaway – and every so often, make it a prepaid debit card. “This is something that we definitely plan on doing for our readers of our website and Facebook page. 

    With our website name talking specifically about prepaid cards, it just makes sense,” says Shane Tripcony, co-founder of BestPrepaidDebitCards.com.  Regular gift cards are popular, too, but not everyone drinks coffee or shops at Target, whereas a prepaid card is good just about anywhere. Heck, I wish I could win one.

    7. New grad gift. It can be tough to guess the needs/desires of an 18 or 22-year-old. A prepaid gift card means not just buying power, but choice. It’s up to him whether he spends at a grocery store or at The Gap.

    8. Tax refund. The major tax preparers let you have the option of a refund via prepaid debit card. You’ll want to keep a close eye on the fees, but if you’re unbanked or underbanked, you want the refund a little faster or you just want to really manage how you spend your tax refund, this could be the right option.

    9. Teacher present. Believe me when I tell you that your kid’s teacher has waaaaay too many mugs already. Please don’t add to that problem. Give a prepaid card because it can be spent at any merchant the teacher chooses. However, I predict at least some of it will be rung up at a bookshop or educational supply store. Teachers are just like that.

    This is a short list of potential ways to use a prepaid reloadable debit card.  What are some creative ways you have used your prepaid card?  We welcome your comments below and would love to hear from you.

  • A Prepaid What? A Guide to Prepaid Debit Cards for 2013

    A Prepaid What? A Guide to Prepaid Debit Cards for 2013

    This Page is No Longer Being Updated. Please Click Here to search for our current listings of the best prepaid debit cards.

  • Suze Orman Prepaid Card Discontinued June 30

    Suze Orman Prepaid Card Discontinued June 30

    Celebrity financial advisor, Suze Orman, has urged countless people seeking her money guidance to get a grip and not make a purchase when they could not afford it. It’s the kind of tough love advice that makes for good entertainment, but it’s also not what holders of the Suze Orman prepaid card are being advised to do right now. Instead, customers in possession of the Suze Orman prepaid card are being told to spend, spend, spend.That’s because Orman’s Approved Card, a partnership with Bancorp Bank that was released in early 2012, is suspending operations on July 1. According to a story in The New York Times, holders of the Approved Card recently received a letter from Bancorp Bank urging them to spend whatever money remained in their accounts – anything not spent would be refunded to them.

    The disappearance of the Suze Orman prepaid card, which she reportedly launched with $1 million of her own money, is not an isolated case in the once bustling celebrity prepaid card market. Basketball superstar Magic Johnson’s prepaid card will also suspend operations on June 30. Prepaid debit cards backed by the Kardashian sisters, singer Justin Bieber and comedian George Lopez have either been discontinued or are no longer prominently marketing their celebrity backing.

    The suspension of Orman’s Approved Card is especially illustrative in understanding why the stampede of celebrity prepaid cards seems to be at an end. Unlike the cards offered by the Kardashians – which charged a whopping $100 to just buy the card, along with a host of other big fees – Orman’s Approved Card charged relatively modest fees, including a $3 account maintenance charge. But even with a more consumer-friendly offering, the economics of Orman’s card clearly didn’t pencil out. “You’re dealing with a lot of customers who have a lot of things go wrong, and they need their money to put milk and bread on the table,” industry consultant Rob Rosenblatt told The New York Times. “Three dollars is a really tough baseline from which to serve customers who are going to be calling a lot.”

    Another factor driving celebrity prepaid cards out of the market is competition. Large financial services companies like American Express have unveiled ultra low-fee products like Bluebird and Serve. Bluebird, for instance, charges no activation fee and has no monthly account maintenance charge. Fans of Suze Orman, Justin Bieber and Magic Johnson would have to be unusually devoted to pay unnecessary fees.

  • Should You Put Your Tax Refund On A Prepaid Card?

    Should You Put Your Tax Refund On A Prepaid Card?

    By Curtis Arnold and Lucy Lazarony

    All the major tax preparation companies give you this option, but does it make financial sense?  Here’s a look at the pros and cons of receiving a tax refund via prepaid cards with direct deposit.

    Fast access to your tax refund. Need a faster tax refund?  E-filing your return and requesting a tax refund be sent to a prepaid card with direct deposit or a bank account is the fastest way to go, according to the IRS website. The IRS is issuing refunds to taxpayers in as few as 10 days for those who e-file and opt to receive their tax refund by direct deposit.

    “Direct deposit is typically better,” says David Newville, senior policy analyst at the Center for Financial Services Innovation. “You’re going to get it quicker and it’s going to be more secure than a check.”

    Pocket that tax refund, pronto! (Photo credit: Tax Credits)

    Keep tax refund money separate from other accounts. Have a special project in mind for that tax refund but worried the money will disappear quickly amid your day-to-day spending? Putting a tax refund on a prepaid card will keep the money separate from your other accounts.

    “You might not want to dump it into a bank account because it might get lost in day-to-day charges,” says Ben Jackson, a senior analyst at the Mercator Advisory Group.

    Watch out for fees. The biggest downside to receiving your express tax refund on a prepaid card is the assortment of fees associated with prepaid cards.

    Joe Ridout, a spokesman for Consumer Action, a San Francisco-based consumer advocacy group, sees no advantage to receiving a tax refund on a prepaid card, especially for people with bank accounts who could simply opt to receive a direct deposit of their tax refund into a checking or savings account.

    “If you have a bank account, there’s no advantage whatsoever to getting your tax refund on a prepaid card,” Ridout says. “You needlessly would forfeit some of your tax refund with the fees that come with these cards.”

    Ridout added that prepaid cards may be appealing to consumers without bank accounts but the fees associated with prepaid cards can make them a costly choice. “The best money saving solution for consumers is to open a bank account,” Ridout says. “Because these cards are a solution that will cost you money.”

    Still, opening a bank account may simply not be possible for some people. And while it is certainly true that far too many prepaid cards charge fees that don’t make a speedy refund a wise choice, there are some exceptions. Shane Tripcony, of BestPrepaidDebitCards.com commented, “Typically, bank accounts such as free checking accounts are cheaper to operate, but for some people, the built-in limitations such as no overdraft fees make prepaid debit cards a viable alternative.  As fewer banks are offering free checking accounts, the prepaid card option becomes a good choice, despite differences in fees.  It is all in how you will use the account.”

    In fact, if you are considering a prepaid card for your tax refund, here are some low-fee options that will take the smallest bite out of your money.

    Serve from American Express . There simply aren’t many fees associated with Serve, American Express’s consumer-friendly prepaid debit card. There’s no activation fee, it’s easy to dodge the $1 monthly account charge and, importantly, cash withdrawals from MoneyPass ATMs are also free. It’s easy to get your federal tax refund sent quickly to your Serve account and, yes, there’s no charge.

    U.S. Bank Convenient Cash Card. Another good option, particularly if you live in an area with plenty of U.S. Bank ATMs, is the U.S. Bank Convenient Cash Card. Like most prepaid debit cards, it’s a snap to get your tax refund loaded for free onto a U.S. Bank Cash Card. But what sets it apart from other options is that cash withdrawals from U.S. Bank ATMs are free, as are direct deposit and bill pay.

    Chase Liquid. With 5,500 Chase branches nationwide, it’s easy to withdraw the tax refund you get loaded onto the Chase Liquid prepaid card without incurring an unwanted ATM charge. For a $4.95 monthly account charge, Chase Liquid makes it simple to avoid a long list of other fees as well.  It makes the card a worthy option for receiving a quick, relatively fee-free tax refund.

    But remember, because fees on prepaid cards vary so widely, it’s important to study the terms and conditions on prepaid cards carefully before signing up for one.

  • Prepaid Card Popularity Continues To Rise

    Prepaid Card Popularity Continues To Rise

    The meteoric rise in prepaid card popularity is continuing. According to a recent statement by Fitch Ratings, a Chicago-based rating agency, the use of prepaid cards is also likely to continue well into the future, fueled by changing consumer behaviors and banking industry dynamics that have made debit cards less appealing.

    Fitch says the combined factors of the increasing popularity of gift cards and a desire by consumers to get away from traditional forms of payment – like credit cards and debit cards – in the aftermath of the recession helps explain the booming prepaid card popularity. According to data from the Federal Reserve, between 2009 and 2012 prepaid card transactions grew by 33.5 percent annually. The total number of prepaid transactions reached 3.1 billion in 2012, which was 1.8 billion more than just three years earlier.

    Other factors beyond recession-shocked consumers are at work here, says Fitch. One element driving consumer acceptance of prepaid cards is an overall improvement in the quality of the cards available. Long geared only to people who could not get bank accounts or credit cards, prepaid cards earned a deserved reputation as fee-laden, consumer-unfriendly choices of last resort. But increasing interest on the part of mainstream U.S. consumers has led to large financial companies entering the market offering low-fee, easy-to-use cards.

    As an example, Fitch cites the October 2012 launch of Bluebird, a card launched by American Express and Walmart. Recently, American Express reported that $2 billion has been loaded to Bluebird accounts since the card was first offered. In 2013, fully 39 percent of the money deposited to Bluebird accounts came via direct deposit.

    Another factor in the rise of prepaid cards, says Fitch, are regulations that have made debit cards less appealing. In particular, the ratings agency notes that the Durbin Amendment, restricted the amount of money banks could charge for debit card transactions. With a large chunk of revenue off the table, banks have made changes to checking accounts, including introducing new fees and canceling rewards programs. The result, says Fitch, has been a continuing consumer shift to low-fee prepaid cards.

     

     

     

     

     

     

     

     

     

     

     

     

Prepaid Debit Card Reviews, Complaints, Etc