Wiped out

[Buckrub]

Debit card wipeout.

I spent years debating on whether to get a debit card. I had an ATM card that did nothing else. But the bank discontinued those, and gave us one option for an ATM card........a Visa Debit card (credit not allowed). I don't like carrying cash, so I use it here and there. And I mean rarely.......usually 2-4 restaurants a month.

Yesterday morning, I checked my account before I went to lunch with the ROMEO club, I saw a huge transaction that I didn't make. Took my account down to $53, and I had end of month auto bills about to hit.

I call bank, and get an idiot. She was no help. I got mad, and got a supervisor, who WAS a big help. The bottom line is that if it is fraud and I sign an affidavit saying so, I get money back. I have auto $700 overdraft protection, so most bills would be paid, and the overdraft fee will be reimbursed once it all clears.

But that sucks. Worse, there is not one thing that they say they can do UNTIL the transaction clears. It's to some high falutin' upscale young folks online clothes store. Trouble is, it is still sitting in 'pending' after 2 days. That MIGHT be good she said, because it might mean that the merchant themselves is looking hard at it and might reject it themselves. But if they accept it, and take days, I'm stuck not being able to officially use the card, because they canceled the card 10 seconds into the first conversation! Takes 10 days to get a new one.

So, I'm going to have to reprogram myself and not use this card for small things and carry cash again.

What a mess.

[Thumper]

Ouch! That sucks. Seems to be getting more and more common lately. I think it's the Democrats fault. ;)

[Buckrub]

I'm sure Bush.

Clearly, crooks are smarter than honest folks.

I just checked. I used this twice in the last month...........once at Schlotzky's and once at local Chinese restaurant, where I know the owner and is a highly respected lady and staff, very popular in this town. I watch them and their process hardly lends itself to stealing numbers. Card is never out of my sight or more than an arms length from me while paying at the counter. Dunno about Schlotzky's. It's in Little Rock and I rarely go there. I do remember ODDLY that I got two tickets for an $11.04 cent tab. Guy smiled and said "I have to give you two tickets" and one was for odd amount $9.42 and the other for the difference of 1.52 or whatever it was. I didn't give that much thought, but now it seems doubly odd.

[Thumper]

I've only had it happen once. I use AmEx for EVERYTHING ... but occasionally use my Visa if an establishment doesn't accept AmEx. I went to Dollar General (very rarely go there) and they didn't take AmEx, so I used my Visa. That was the ONLY place I used it and I was right there at the cashier the whole time. Shortly after that (within a week or two at most), I got a call from Visa asking if I used my card in Puerto Rico for a prepaid phone card ... TWICE. (I think that may have thrown up a red flag ... "test" it for a $20 purchase, then use it again for a $350 purchase.) I told them I'm at home in Florida. I checked with Lynn, she had her card in her purse and mine was in my wallet. No clue where, when, who or how they got my number, but I suspected it happened somehow at DG.

[Buckrub]

Yeah it's a mess. Europe supposedly uses some kinda chip in cards and have less problem. But it introduces something else, I forget, I read an article on it a few months ago.

Credit cards are different.......I've has several of those compromised. Never incurred a debt, just a loss of time till they shipped me a new card. This is different. I have to let this transaction go through, even though I've alerted them that it's bogus, and THEN dispute it and get money back after some process. That's the difference in Debit and Credit cards.

I should have known better.

[Thumper]

Yeah, I have a debit card that the bank automatically gives me with my checking account, but I never use it. I get frequent flyer miles on my AmEx and my "back-up" Visa, so those are the only two cards I use other than a Walmart card which is ONLY used for gas because of their discount.

[DeputyDog]

The European cards use RFI chips instead of the magnetic strips. Some card companies are going to that here. The concern about the chips are that the companies will gather too much info on you and your personal habits and can track you with them.

Disney uses them now in their "magic band" wrist bands that you have when you stay there. It is your room key, admittance ticket, fast pass, and they use it for your photo plan, and you can attach a credit card to it so that you can use it to make any purchases while you are there.

[BarryBobPosthole]

We have a debit/credit attached to our checking and we use it as a credit ard 99% of thetime we'd normally use cash before. It has the fraud protection you get with credit (you pay nothing over fifty bucks) and to be honest I'm not sure why a person would ever use it as a debit card, unless its etting cash at an atm which we do less and less. I probbly carry ten bucks in my wallet (not counting my emergency 'mad' money). Not sure if your bank carries that product but it works for us.

BKB

[Buckrub]

I don't know if they do. But this card isn't that. I've seen those. I guess I need to ask.

[Thumper]

Actually, that's what we have also P-hole and is the "debit" card I mentioned above. It came with our checking account (Visa debit/credit). I couldn't tell you the last time I used an ATM as I only live two blocks from our bank IF I need cash. I also carry VERY little cash ... we use credit cards for EVERYTHING. I'd bet the most cash I've had in my wallet in many years would be about $50 or so. Same with Lynn ... cash is strictly for emergencies. As for using a debit card ... what's the purpose? Use a credit card and float the bank's money for a month! ;)

[Buckrub]

Well..........um........WTFO?

The bogus debit sat in the 'pending' registry of my account for 3 days. Never would clear. They said they couldn't fix it till it cleared. That status remained when I went to bed last night and checked it online.

This morning? It's gone. As if it never was there. Balance reflects it never even having shown up.

I ASSUME (?) that the merchant themselves somehow questioned the transaction, and never let it clear. I don't know. I guess there is no way to know.

But my debit card is gone, canceled, and a new one on the way. I guess I need to rob banks and just carry cash from now on, or find the credit/debit type card that Posty and Thump have. I need an ATM card at least.

[DeputyDog]

Mine is a debit/credit also, attached to my checking account. Like Barry, I rarely carry much cash.

[Thumper]

I'd sure think your bank would have them Bucky. When Chase took over Great Western ... at least I think that was the last change (we've banked at the same "building" since 1989, but it's been 37 different banks since then!) ... they sent us a Visa Card, tied to our checking account, that can be used as a Credit/Debit/ATM Card all rolled into one. I've never used it except once at an estate sale that only took cash and I spent more than I'd planned. They held the item for me while I drove over to a local ATM for some cash. As stated previously, Lynn uses the debit feature at Aldi because they don't take credit cards. We've never used it as a credit card because we use a different CC to get the flyer miles.

[Buckrub]

I sure don't see it as an option on their website. I have their Visa card and a Visa ATM/Debit card, but they ain't the same animal.

Hmmm.

[BarryBobPosthole]

So when you buy gas, for example, does it not ask you if you want to run it as debit or credit? That's the way mine works anyway. My understanding is if you run those as credit it still debits your account directly for the amount, but you get the consumer fraud protection of a credit card. I'm not aware of any additional credit card fees either.

I may be all wet on this, but that's the way mine works I'm pretty sure.

BKB

[Thumper]

You know sumpin' Bucky ... I "may" be wrong. I've had it for a bazillion years and have never once used it as a "credit" card. I do know they always ask if it's debit or credit. P-hole has me thinkin' ... It's possible it's just a debit/atm card, I truly don't remember. I know when Lynn uses it at Aldi, they ask her for a PIN and she says it's a "signature debit". I have no clue what that means, but they run it through as a debit (since they don't accept credit cards), but she uses no pin. I've simply never used the card except that one time I mentioned above at an atm, so my memory may be fubar.

[Buckrub]

Well..........maybe so for yours.

But Posty is right, some banks DO offer those type cards. He clearly has one.

I just researched........I got two bank accounts (one little one for the farm), and a debit card/bill pay option with Fidelity where I also have my IRA. NONE of the three of those banks offer this service!!! Dang.

[Buckrub]

So when you buy gas, for example, does it not ask you if you want to run it as debit or credit? That's the way mine works anyway. My understanding is if you run those as credit it still debits your account directly for the amount, but you get the consumer fraud protection of a credit card. I'm not aware of any additional credit card fees either.

I may be all wet on this, but that's the way mine works I'm pretty sure.

BKB

No. It doesn't. Wait..........yeah, maybe it does ask. But I cannot select "credit", cause it'll run it as a debit no matter what I say.

The only time I get asked if I physically hand it to a clerk, and they will ask "is this debit or credit"? But it's NOT credit, and they won't be able to run it that way. And as I said above, none of my stinking banks offer this. What bank/card do you have?

[Thumper]

Ok, I just called my bank (Chase) and got a clarification. Mine is just as P-hole said. It's a debit/atm card, but can be used as a "credit card" per se. It's called a "credit transaction", but still gets debited from your checking account. She gave an example, I may go to a restaurant that has no pin pad. They simply run it through as a "credit card", but it debits the total from your checking account like a regular debit card and is called a "credit transaction". So, it's a debit card, an atm card and a "kinda-sorta half-assed credit card". How's that?

I guess that's what Lynn does at Aldi ... they ask her to type in her pin, but she says it's a signature credit (debit? Can't remember) and they run it without the pin (which she can never remember anyway because we use it so seldom). It does say Visa on the face of the card btw.

[Hombre]

I've had mine compromised 2Xs and each time got all the money back. My biggest issue is nobody really seems to care when a card is compromised, they just want a singed affidavit and then you get the money back. Do these people ever get prosecuted or investigated even. Seems like the motivation is pretty high to commit this crime if there is not threat of prosecution. The first time my card was actually stolen. The person went into a Walmart and bought a $900 TV went to their car and then came back in and bought the exact same TV so now we're up to $1800. Went back to the vehicle and came back in and bought another so we're now at $2,700. Came back in and tried for a forth but the account didn't have enough. So they bought a $250 Xbox total now $2950....then tried another Xbox but again too low so they systematically bought games and other crap until there was $3 left. I called the PD after the report was made and they told me flat out "this isn't a high priority for us"

[Thumper]

Yep, when I was called about mine, the credit card company simply cancelled my card and sent me a new one, plus refunded the money that had been charged on it. I asked what they'd be doing about the old card charges and they simply said, "They'll investigate". I never heard another word and not even sure if they did anything at all.

Seems like they'd at least look at the video from the stores. Heck Hombre, you know Wally World has cameras all over the place including all cashier's stands, the entrance and even the parking lot (where you can sometimes get license plate numbers).

[Hombre]

I'm sure they had video as you said. Plus the other thing that really bothered me is I have a hard time believing that the cashier wasn't in on it. I mean who lets someone buy 3 TVs then try to purchase several other items to get a card down to $3

[Thumper]

Heck, for all you know, they'd load 'em up in a cart one at a time and go to a different cashier up front each time. Our Wally World has elebenty-bazillion cashiers plus self check-out. Who knows?

[Hombre]

That could be but it doesn't make for a very good story now does it :D

[Thumper]

Good point! :D

[DeputyDog]

They are investigated, but hard to catch a lot of times. Getting video of the suspects is easy, getting a name of the person that's on the video is something completely different. The bad thing is that these people move around usually from state to state doing this so who knows where they are by the time the fraud is actually detected on the card.

On top of that, a lot of it is done online and like Thump mentioned, in another country.

[Hombre]

^^ That all makes sense and I'm not frustrated with law enforcement or their handling of the situation more just wish these people in principal would be caught. I remember thinking with the TV thing that I would have felt a lot better if it they money would have gone to diapers, food, and essentials but this was just someone being an a-hole buying stuff they didn't need.

[johnboy]

Wife had her credit card hacked last year. Where? Fort Myers, Florida.

[BarryBobPosthole]

When my guns got stolen a few years back, the local PD detective told me the same thing: it wasn't a priority. This after, mindyou I found the guy who was selling my stuff on ebay (the scopes, not the guns) and gave them his name and address. He even went so far as to say I had insurance and would get my money back. Don't take it personally if I say that cop is the typical lazy teenager chasing bastard we have for cops in my hometown.

Another happy citizen....


BKB

[DeputyDog]

I try to remember every day that what ever the reason that you called for me is really important to you at that time. I just wish that some of the people would realize that you are not the only person that I've talked to today, in fact, you are probably one of at least a half a dozen for that day, and one of a couple dozen for my work week.

I not trying to defend anyone, because I know full well that there are lazy cops out there just as there are lazy people in every job who spend more energy getting out of work than they would if they just did what they were expected to do.

[Buckrub]

Well.............that's why I never complain, and actually LOVE doctors that keep me waiting.......for hours sometimes.

Because the reason is.........they spend whatever time it takes with the guys before me, to fix things. They're not filling out paperwork. Some of them do.....but I avoid them.

[BarryBobPosthole]

The cops I know personally are stand up guys that I'd never hesitate to trust with anything I have. That's why I said don't take it personally. But we don't just have a few bad cops in my town, they are rotten to the core. Probably not in any criminal way, but just in the way they carry themselves, the priorities they have that any kind of noticer will see as a problem, and every single one I've met is a friggin pompous asshole. That doesn't happen by accident. It starts at the top and goes all the way down. Thegood guys in that department, and I'm sure thereare good guys there, won't get ahead.

BKB