Debit card fraud....
 

There is another thread on card skimmers where the pros & cons are discussed, and skimmers & scammers get plenty of news. No need to go into that here. If you have ever actually LOST money (not reinstated later), please post your experience. I think the fear mongering might be a bit overdone...

My business account has been taken for hundreds of dollars, multiple times!! MONEY WAS ALWAYS CREDITED BACK TO MY ACCOUNT. I agree kc, a few people making everyone fear using a debit card.
Steve

The whole deal with credit card fraud is that is why we have them rather than cash is so that we have some protection.

I had my debit card info heisted a few years back; think it was at the haircut place as the first thing they tried to buy was hair products, then they paid for credit searches and finally ordered all sorts of stuff and sent it to my address- colon cleanse, get rich seminar stuff and sex toys! Interesting day that was, coincidencetly I had the day off, so got it before they could. Wasn't thinking at the time and should have left it on the porch and watched for them to retrieve.

Anyways, it was a bit of a pain and took up a bunch of time to fix. In the end I probably was out $15 total?

I stopped using a debit card as I realized that all my money could have been drained if I hadn't caught it. Yes I would have got it back, but until that happened I would have been almost broke; with a cc it would just be money on paper and I would not have to be without while everything was corrected.

Wife just got hit last night. Associated with data hack against K mart a few months ago - her bank called her (gotta love small town credit unions) but there were no unusual charges at that time. This is a secondary account that she puts small amounts (usually under $200...) spending money in, they hit her for $85 at an Applebees down south, which actually took her to negative, which then caused a couple of scheduled payments (her netflix bill, some monthly make up thing) to bounce and ... It will be all fixed up Monday.

I work in a secure office that doesn't allow phones on the floor. If the bank tried to text or call me to verify a purchase I may not see that they called until the end of the day. In the meantime, my hacked bank account has been drained and other charges have bounced. Even if the bank makes it right, I've got a lot of explaining to do to those who had debits rejected. No thanks. I use credit cards as a debit card in that I only spend what I KNOW I have in the bank to pay when the bill comes in.

You have "bought" the banker's version of reality I see :(. Keep adding 4% (bank profit) to every one of your purchases but your fantasy version doesn't match what I've found to be true in the real world. My Visa debit card has been compromised a couple of times and was detected by their fraud unit....nary a cent left my checking acct., nor was I contacted "real time". I bet you don't know of a single person who's had their acct. drained either :). Fear mongering....I despise bankers....but I'm biased....spent too many years inside of two megabanks in my youth....YMMV.

When debit cards came out there was ZERO fraud protection and that sold me on steering clear. Maybe things have changed but I don't care.

Does your debit card improve your credit rating? My credit card does.
Does your debit card pay you 2% cash back rebate on every purchase? I'll let the big bad bankers pay me and I haven't paid one cent in interest in 25 years or more. No fees. I keep my money an extra month. I feel so abused by those big bad bankers and their lies. :rolleyes:

My credit rating would be hard to improve....I've only checked it once, out of curiosity a few years ago....825. You do your thing, I'll do mine....my debit card is my bestest buddy....I don't leave home without it :)

Oh yeah....things have certainly changed from when debit cards first appeared btw.

But I do NOT pay bankers 2-4% of my purchases either...by using a CC :(.

I don't pay the bankers. They pay me 2% and my fico is north of 800 as well.

So let's be specific: HOW MUCH CASH BACK have you received from your debit card in the last 10 years?

You don't get it....I give up :)

Somebody is paying 4%...and they give you 2% back...drives up the cost of everything. Do you REALLY think the bankers like you that much?

Oh....probably well north of 100k easy....right out of my checking acct. It's my ATM machine and mighty convenient :)

How much cash have you paid bankers over the past 10 years by using a CC :(?

People use debit cards?
Shakes head in amazement.

I'm far happier letting Amex dispute a funny charge than I am trying to get money back into my checking account. YMMV and that's fine, whatever works for you.

Not quite.

When I had a retail/service business, it was worth a few % to keep cash out of employees hands.

.

It works great for me....I've never disputed a charge either, never had too :). If you like paying Amex up to 4% of your purchases then do so....

Shakes head in amazement also :(

Suckers....Amex is NOT your friend.

But I'm not paying.
Apparently, the angry debit card users are paying my 2% cash back but not getting any for themselves.
So why not use the system to my advantage? I didn't make the rules. I just play within the rules to my best advantage. You aren't getting it (2% cash back). How much did you say you've gotten back in the last 10 years? Aw, never mind.

That's an interesting perspective...but has nothing to do with consumers :). Did you actually give a % back for using a card... CC or debit? Why as a merchant, would you have not preferred a debit over a CC? I do not understand your post....'splain it to me.

Do you think the merchant is eating the cost or passing it on to you with higher prices?

You truly don't get it....I'm done here :)

I don't think you are too stupid to understand my question so I have to assume are avoiding giving an answer.
That said, to be clear:
You bank is only giving you money YOU gave to them. Net income is ZERO.
My credit card is paying me a profit for using the card with zero cost to me. I feel so used and abused.

The merchant doesn't charge me a surcharge and there is no cash discount so MY cost is ZERO.

Seems like the only losers here are people angry at the bank. Here's an idea: lets really stick it to the bank. Put all you money in the mattress!

I'm not running a business and I pay cash when it gets me a discount, so I'm not paying the 4% you are so hung up on. I'm also not looking to be friends with a service that I pay for.

Or are you saying that all your debit transactions are discounted and there's no crime wherever you live? That sounds like a great place, but NY isn't quite as utopian.

I'll ask again.
Does the merchant discount your purchase to reflect the use of your debit card over my credit card? Or do you pay the same as I do?

You guys are clueless :). Honestly....if you don't think you're paying through the nose (indirectly) for using CC verses a debit then do so and be happy...bankers love you....and so does my bank stock.

If all of us debit users switched to CC, how much fo you reckon prices would rise across the board...or business profits diminished?

There is NO free lunch boyz :(

Sounds like you're saying debit card users and credit card users pay different prices.
Why are you so defensive about this?

Angry because he was declined for one maybe?

You drive up the costs 4% for everyone (for the most part)...going to the bankers. I prefer the merchants avoid the overhead and keep prices down. We both pay the same price...true dat. You pay the banks, I pay the merchants I use :).
The cash back that Porsha loves is a "kick back"...

I'll get by without playing that....YMMV.

If, in fact, merchants add 4% to their costs to cover CC use (I doubt it), do you think they're going to remove that 4% if magically everyone started using a debit card?

No, they won't. They'll just keep charging debit card users like YOU the higher cost, and pocket the rest.

On a related note... I was shocked to see that Arco AM/PM has carried their $.35 fee into purchases made inside the store. If you buy a $.50 stick of gum and use your debit card, they tack on a $.35 fee. Kind of tells me something about the average IQ of the typical AM/PM shopper.

That's the beauty of the system. All the debit users are not switching so they are paying my 2% profit.

You should also boycott all stocks because the company has to pay the stock holder a profit and that means they increase the cost of their product or service! God forbid you use a stock broker and they make a profit.

Ever been to the horse track or casino? The losers pay for the winners profits and the track or casino takes a cut. The difference is there is no losing on my credit card. I win every time. I feel so used and abused by the big bad bank.

I'm not defensive and no I'm not saying that...CC users drive up the costs of products and services for EVERYONE with the CC fees paid to banks/Amex, etc.

The reason for this thread is the oft repeated mantra that bankers repeat over and over. Follow the money guys....

I'm done here...I hijacked my own thread :)

If you've ever lost money using a debit card, please post your experience...thanks!

Ok so let's just recap here.

People that use credit cards are - in your words:

1. Clueless.
2. Suckers.

People that use debit cards:

1. Pay the same as people that use credit cards.
2. Lose the purchase protection associated with credit cards.

I'm not sure sucker means the same to you as it does to me, but I'm glad you are happy.

You know there are vendor processing fees for Debit cards, right?

You seem to be under the (incorrect) impression that merchants don't pay fees on debit card transactions.

They do.

And I don't know how you are getting to 4%.

Anyone can open a low volume retail business and get 1.5% rates all day long.

Big box or chain retailers who process **** tons of transactions are maybe paying 1%

Hell, get yourself a Square and you are only paying 2.75% per swipe.

Last post...I want to hear about fraud losses. Yep, I'm a dinosaur...the 4% is obviously lower now than it used to be. Yes, I know a merchant pays a flat fee for each debit transaction (used to be .18 (as I recall) per debit verses 4% per CC. The card industry is a cash cow...

Sorry for getting off track...I stated in my original post I didn't want that :)

Please post your debit card losses and let the other debate pro/con go....I truly don't care what folks do ...but they should be aware of what goes on behind the curtain. Different strokes....

In the end, I did not lose money, but I had a debit card skimmed while I was on a trip and they emptied the bank account. I found out on the weekend, when the bank was mostly closed. Created a giant mess.

All worked out in the end...

Thanks James...was this fairly recent or years ago? It's probably been ten years back, but once I went to use my debit, and the card had been frozen due to someone in Indiana using it for gas or something...sent me a new card. A couple of years ago, someone in San Fran atempted a couple of $600 purchases over a weekend...I had an automated phone call on Monday where when prompted, I flagged them as unauthorized.....in both cases, my account was never touched. I saw your other thread...the fraud detection units are getting pretty good it seems...both debit and CC at detecting and rejecting them at the fraud attempt....a good thing :).

2008. Ever since, we do not use our debit cards for anything except bank transactions. And only at major institutions.

In December 3 UPS transactions showed up on on my statement, 2 charges totaling about $160 and a credit back for about $40. I called UPS to figure out what they were and they said they didn't recognize the charges and to report it as fraud. I called Chase to report all 3 but they repeatedly didn't want to do anything about the $40 credit. So yeah, I'm up $40.

I've never used a debit card so I can't say from personal experience but I have had friends that had a debit card hacked and it drained their account. The time lost getting it squared away with the bank and the folks who got bounced checks was more costly than the money taken.

Now your turn. Please post how much money you have made in cash back bonus or rewards from a debit card.

Respectfully Porsha, I'm done with that portion of this thread hijack. I'm not destitute, and don't give a damn about chump change...I don't clip coupons either :).

You have no clue how I use my debit and the convenience it provides me....that a CC can't/doesn't...let it go man.

Please continue with fraud experiences guys....the purpose of this thread :)

I'd love to know how it's more convenient.

I know you've already told me I'm clueless and stupid for cleaving to my plastic of choice, so why not show me the error of my ways and lead me to the one true path.

Everywhere I use my Debit Card it is treated just like a credit card, except for ATM cash out. Sometimes there is an option to charge it like a debit card and enter my PIN, but never do that.

Have had a couple of problems and were taken care of same as a credit card. The only difference is the debit card account is a checking account and not a credit account. Both have limits. My checking has overdraft protection, but that does not include debit card charges. They are rejected just like a credit card when there is no money in the account. Maintain the balance of my checking with only what is budgeted to spend that month. I have a separate checking account that my bills are paid with as well. Never use that account to pay anything except bills and budget it the same as my cash expenses/debit card account.