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Frequently Asked Questions on prepaid
Credit Cards
What is a prepaid credit card?
A prepaid card looks like a credit card, but works differently. You can use it
everywhere MasterCard is accepted, but you can only spend up to the available
balance on your card. With a prepaid card, you load funds onto your Card and
use that money to make purchases and get cash - you are not borrowing money
from a bank or other financial institution.
How does a prepaid card work?
Your prepaid credit card can be used anywhere MasterCard is accepted, including
ATM's. The cardholder signs for purchases and gets a receipt. Unlike a credit
card, though, each purchase is deducted from the pre-paid balance on the card.
Where can I use my prepaid credit card?
You may use your prepaid card to make purchases at over 21 million locations
worldwide, get cash back at ATMs nationwide, make online purchases, buy tickets,
make hotel or rental car reservations, pay for petrol and more!
How is a prepaid credit card different from
a credit card?
The prepaid credit card looks like a credit card - it has the Visa or
MasterCard logo and hologram -and allows the convenience of cashless purchases
like a signature-based credit card, with no PIN input required at the
point-of-sale. However, your card accesses pre-loaded money from an account you
fund with your funding source(s).
As a prepaid
card, there is no "line of credit" extended. This means that your
spending limit is determined by the amount of money that you have loaded to the
card. Best of all, because it's not a credit card, there are no finance
charges, no late fees, and no accumulation of debt.
What are the advantages of the prepaid card
over cash?
The safety of carrying a piece of plastic with access to your cash, versus
carrying a fold of bills in your pocket, is pretty straightforward. If you lose
the cash, leave it somewhere or it is stolen, it is gone forever. If you lose
your card or leave it somewhere, unless you put your PIN code on your Card
(which you should NEVER do), your money is still safe.
How is a prepaid credit card different from
a debit card?
It is actually a pre-paid, reloadable card and completely separate from the bank
or savings account that you use to load money to the card. Spending ability is
limited to the amount of money that you separately load onto the card and store
in the card account. When you purchase an item with your card, the purchase
amount is withdrawn from your card spending balance, and never directly drawn
from a funding source account that you use to load money onto the card.
With a debit card, overdraft protection may
mask the actual account balance, resulting in over-spending. You won't be able
to use a debit card for making a reservation on hotels and rental cars.
Can the prepaid credit card be used at
ATMs?
Yes, your card will work at ATMs. You can receive cash with your card and a PIN
(Personal Identification Number). There is usually some withdrawal fee at most
ATMs.
Are there spending limits?
The beauty of the pre-paid credit card is that you set your own limits. Your
spending power is limited only by how much money is loaded onto the card, up to
the card issuer assigned value. When the money is gone, you just need to load
more money to it.
Will my prepaid credit card have interest
or finance charges?
Because you are not borrowing money, you will not be required to pay interest
or finance charges on your Card.
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