A store credit card is not a credit card when it is a debit card. This case is becoming increasingly common in the recent times.
According to Candice Choi, Associated Press, the two largest retail stores are quietly solving the customer’s anger over debit.
Target and Nordstrom have offered branded debit cards in place of the traditional ones. These latest debit cards offer different types of bonuses to the customers than they were used to receive.
Target debit card users receive 5 percent off from all the purchases which is definitely a huge plus in using this card. Nordstrom has not left behind in introducing benefits. Its debit card users win reward points which can be used as store vouchers for shopping discounts.
Although, this idea is very successful but there are a few hitches which can lead to some problems. The first problem is that these debit cards can only be used in their own stores and websites. Another major hitch is that card purchases are limited to user’s account balance.
According to the AP coverage on the issue, the funds are debited like online payment which brings two to three days of difference between the purchase made by customer and the bank’s receiving time. This slow action can lead to overdraft if the cardholders don’t consider the amount of balance in their accounts and can lead to trouble if there are some payments to be made.
Also the overdraft fees are extremely higher than normal banks. Usually a bank takes about $5 for overdraft but Target and Nordstrom charges are around $20-$40. These detail debt cards also don’t offer the facility of opting out of overdraft programs, hence leading to insecurity. But the lost or stolen cards are treated the same way as normal banks do. If the store is notified of the theft or loss within 3 days, $50 will be charged. In the case of informing the store about loss or theft after 60 or more days, the charges will be $500.
The use of debit card has been rising at top speed. This new trend can be accounted through the Visa report which shows that $1.137 trillion was charged to debit cards in the whole year whereas the contrasting value of credit card charges was only $867 million. This shows the growing trends of people towards the use of debit cards rather than credit cards.
Similar Credit Card News:
- [November 30, 2011] AMEX Launch Prepaid Card With Target
- [April 25, 2011] Target Discount Credit Card Proves Huge Success
- [July 28, 2010] 5% Discount with Target REDcard
- [April 29, 2011] Consumers Still Confused Over Debit Card Overdrafts
- [February 9, 2011] Cap Debit Card Fee Threatens Rewards
- [March 1, 2011] Bank of Hawaii Targeted by Debit Card Fee Lawsuit
- [December 20, 2011] Stolen Gifts May Be Covered By Credit Cards
