We just have to disagree. My debit card is disabled after X number of bad attempts. My CC has a $20,000 limit, and if lost, I could face major problems, including hours on the phone disputing the charges.
In comparison, my debit / checking account has just enough to cover my checks. I xfer funds from savings as needed, and I NEVER have overdraft enbabled.
Ok if you manage your checking account that closely, you won’t get into trouble. But wow that’s a lot of work. All of my consumer spend is on no-annual-fee rewards cards and I get 2% cash back, hundreds of Dollars per year. I have had some fraudulent charges over the last fourty years never really had a problem disputing them. I just don’t see the upside for debit cards.
I also get cash back from my CC’s and use them a lot. That’s why the bank keeps upping my limit. I’ve never asked for it. But my CC’s never leave the house. Only my debit card travels in my wallet,
I’m not sure why it would take hours. One call should do it, and in my experience, calls of this nature to my credit card companies take less than 15 minutes (and that’s assuming it can’t be done online). I currently have four cards in my wallet, so that would be an hour max. In the 2-3 days it takes fedex to deliver the replacement cards, I could grab a different card from the sock drawer, or grab my ATM card and get whatever cash I need from the bank.
That is my experience as well. Also to add to this, if somebody got one of my credit cards and started charging willy-nilly, the card company would most likely contact me to ask if the charges are mine, and maybe put a hold on the purchase until I confirmed so. That happened a few times with both legitimate charges and fraudulent ones.
At the end of the day I have never been held responsible for any fraudulent charges made on one of my credit cards. PenFed, however, did allow me to keep the rewards that I received as a result of about $1500 in fraudulent charges in fuel purchases that I did not make.
As I first noted, this debate goes back years. I have LOTS of credit cards and use them all the time. [probably too much] But I never carry them.
I’d rather lose or have stolen my low limit debit card than my high value CC’s.
And one phone call can also disable a debit card.
$1500? That must have been in the last couple of months!
Good one! 
Actually, it was several years ago. And, it was the only experience I had where the credit card company did not flag some purchase as possibly fraudulent when it should have screamed out red-flag! I noticed them when I happened to log-on to my PenFed account to check something else. Two charges for $550 each in Washington State, two for $150 each in Oregon and a few other minor ones. From what I could tell, they were purchases at major fuel depots for commercial drivers. Since all of my purchases were in California and in the ~$30s range and at regular gas stations, this was obviously out of the ordinary. They were fortunate that I saw that and called them.
And, PenFed made me complete an affidavit attesting that I did not make those charges, which I gladly did. They were all disallowed. Later, PenFed posted the 5% cash rebate for those charges. Just to be sure, I called them and asked if I had to pay them back or if they would be clawed back. The representative told me that neither would happen and that I got a windfall from that experience.
I use text message alerts the instant a new charge hits. That way the fraud events don’t get stale
Is that the banks rules? Or is that policy recognized by the feds? I just don’t use my debit card for most purchases. I think the security it’s not the same as a standard credit card, with the protection part.
That’s long been the myth but not true. I challenged a debit charge and bank credited the amount back to me, cancelled the card and mailed a new one.
Yes, but the money was gone from you account for a time. That’s the real problem.
Yeah, about five minutes. I can live with that. Got a txt msg and quickly called.
The debit card I carry is linked to a second checking account that never has more than $500 in it, and can only be used up to $250 per day.
My long time CC has a cap of $18,000.
It was easy to decide which card to carry and risk losing.
In the theft of my bill fold the thief used my debit card with out the pin number.
I have noted at some transactions you can use the debt card as a “credit transaction”.
My guess is that is what happened.
BTW: I have bank app on my phone that alerts every time the debit card us used.
Good safety feature,
So far, the only non-PIN purchase I’ve made is at Kaiser Medical. There are probably more.
Im sure Card Not Present transactions don’t require the PIN…like when you order online.
A number of years ago, I attempted to make 2 semi-large value purchases on a BA credit card a few minutes apart. I guess it triggered an alarm for the BA folks as they put a hold on the second purchase until I confirmed, by phone I think, that both were legit and made by me.
Mentioned this before. I drove from the Cal Bay Area to Seattle and tried to get a motel room. My card was denied and I had to call B/A.
Their system did not show airfare, gas, meals or any purchases that day during my ‘trip’
Their computer did not consider that I might drive and use gas CC’s.
Had the same issue with both BOA and also Citi bank. Made 2 or 3 purchases within a short period of time[purchases were on the small side]. Like you said, triggers some kind of alarm.
Before any longer trip, go into your CC account and set up a “Travel alert”. You tell it what states or countries you will be traveling through. Works for me.