rewards

Are credit card rewards worth the interest we pay on our credit card purchases? I think they might be if I only spend the amount of the coupon in the sponsor store. It also will depend on the amount of interest and balance that I am carrying on the card. It's clear the deals are designed to encourage us to shop. Can I resist the temptation to spend more than my shopping reward bonus? It could be a special challenge during the Holidays. With the emphasis on shopping at this time of year I thought it would be good to reinvestigate my finances along with my bank and credit card accounts. After a free credit check was offered by my bank I was relieved to see my credit was still excellent. They wanted me to continue the service with a monthly fee which i declined. I'm sure the time will come again soon when someone wants to check it for me. This usually includes a fee when performed by a leasing office regardless of whether I have the credit monitoring service or not. I'm wondering if other people pay to have there credit and identity safeguarded by these programs. I would also like to know what are the best deals being offered on credit cards. There are websites that you can use to make free comparisons of card providers. If this is the month that retailers make 25% to 40% of their annual sales then does that mean that's when consumers acquire 1/4 to 1/2 of their debts. Not me! This year i'm just looking to spend my credit card rewards.

security

We shouldn't have to pay to have our identities protected. The companies and banks offering customers i.d. theft protection should stop wasting everyone's money and focus on real changes in i.d. security. It's time for banks to insert microchips into our brains or some place they can't be taken out easily. At least the machine reading my information might have a better chance of know it's really me keying in my PIN.

Is this a trend in privatization of security in general? I have seen more men in uniforms riding scooters lately and sometimes they're in cars with flashing lights on them. What are the penalties for i.d. theft or other personal information? Who are the criminals involved in this kind of activity? My punishment for people found guilty of these crimes is simple. Pay back the money they stole. Then they should be forced to always show up in person to prove their identities and pay for everything in cash until they are so inconvenienced  that they have paid their debt to society.

credit cards

 5% cash back on a credit card for my regular purchases sound like a good idea. Is it really cash back or is it a service fee being charged to a merchant? If it is a fee then the banks are actually increasing the cost of doing business and most likely causing prices in general to go up. This could be good for an individual but bad for the economy overall. Since credit card companies want us to spend more money on higher priced items and carry a balance I doubt they are very concerned about using these practices. They even will give you 100$ to start. Coincidentally that is the amount that was taken from my account in the debit card swindle.

My other concern if I switch from credit to debit for regular purchases is that I will receive 100% theft protection. From looking at some card advertisements I’ve gotten it looks like it's either one feature or the other on most cards. Being guaranteed that I won't be held responsible for criminal use of my card is the priority. If I get cash back in the process I guess that's great for me too. I plan on paying   the balance every month before interest occurs anyway. They tempt us with zero interest for one year to get us in the habit of carrying a balance.

Are many people changing from debit card to credit card use on a regular basis? Is debit card fraud a trend? I'm looking forward to more comments and content. I sure everyone has great suggestions for managing money during a recession. Thanks for signing up to follow my blog. As I continue to learn I will post any relevant links or data that I find and my goal is for others to do the same.

customer service

I received a letter from the claims assistance department of my bank. I spoke to a representative from my bank five days ago to report the wrong charges. When I placed the claim the bank associate mentioned all the charges that were posted and going to post to my account equaling close to 100$. Apparently in her system she could see what was going to post before it posted to my online banking account. Even though we discussed that all of the charges were not mine only the 1$ fee that thief had to pay with my debit card for his stolen gas purchase was on the claim form. A $3 dollar parking fee that I had not charged was also included. There are lines on the claim form for me to write in additional charges.

I called again to let them know the claim form was incorrect. They reassured me that there was a space provided for the additional charges. I then mentioned filing a complaint about the service I received regarding the misinformation on the form from the first call. The complaint did get made and I also took the employees information to help reference this call later. Only time can tell what will happen with this claim.

 I knew this could happen to me but I didn’t think it would. If I thought these new high tech thieves were after someone like me I might have used my debit card differently. It makes me wonder if this is happening to other consumers and what kind of impact it will have on the way we all spend. I’ll be writing about free electronics and options for credit cards in my next post.

debit card fraud

Debit card fraud is a major financial concern. The security of my debit card was something that I was taking for granted. A gas purchase and a parking fee paid in Chicago totaling just under 100$ posted to my online banking record. I had fueled up the night before on my way home in Las Vegas. Two things that made me realize I was the victim of a crime.  My car has a 16.9 gallon tank and with rising gas prices it still doesn’t cost that much to fill my tank. The last time I was in Chicago was ten years ago.  

I called the banks twenty four hour customer assistance line from the website. I alerted them I had not made the purchases. They inquired if I had filed a police report, and if I would be willing to press charges if the thieves were caught. I said I had not taken any other action but I would if necessary. They also verified that I had not knowingly compromised my PIN number...etc. All this was shocking on an otherwise quiet night at home.

This continued the next day spending an hour at the bank having my purchases questioned. I also received a temporary limited use debit card. The bank also created an additional account for me. Now a thief will only get a hundred dollars instead of my whole account. I feel anxious even thinking about a movie rental or card swipe anywhere. Paper work and my multiple debit cards are on the way. I’m left wondering what I will be responsible for.  Maybe credit cards would be a better, safer spending method.

I want to protect my money. After an online search for debit card fraud, I learned about the ways your card information can be stolen. It all feels very cloak and dagger. I would like to share ideas and posts. This blog can also be used for networking. It will help consumers. In an unsure economy it can provide a better understanding about banking and the security of everyone’s bank accounts.