Is there such a thing as a plain ATM card anymore?

[Phentex]

or are all of them debit/credit/atm combos?

We used to have a plain ATM card. You put in a pin and got your cash. That was it.

Now the bank wants these cards to be debit/mastercard/atm combos. I just don't like the idea of it working like a debit/credit card. What do WE gain from that?

Am I just old and cranky?

[wtmusic]

1. You're old and cranky - take it from someone who knows old and cranky

:D

You don't have to use the credit function, but in rare instances it can come in handy.

[Phentex]

11. LOL! The lady on the phone said if it's not activated...

it will only function as an ATM card so I said fine.

But then I got a letter telling me I needed to activate or they would disable the card altogether.

I'm just trying to figure out how they will use this to their advantage.

It's almost useless anyway since most people accept credit or debit, how often would I need to get cash?

[TBF]

2. It's handy to have the VISA feature when you need it,

but we do have an old-fashioned ATM with our Credit Union savings account. We actually bank in 3 banks. Not that we have piles of money, I just like splitting it up because I don't trust the bastards.

[Phentex]

10. I have other credit cards so I have no need for another.

So they are basically giving me something I don't want.

[dkf]

3. I have one and they are charging me for it.

But I know the potential pitfalls of a debit card and I am not trusting my bank account to thieves.

How long will it take to put back funds if someone figures out how to use your debit card? That is not something I would like to figure out.

[NeedleCast]

4. About 24 hours, generally

Is the answer to your question.

My debit card was cloned about two years ago and someone in Singapore spent a few 1000 dollars on it. I discovered it about 48 hours later and had the money back in the account the day after I reported it.

[KatyMan]

7. More or less the same here

Mine was cloned, and Bank of America called me to ask if I just spent $600 at a Home Depot a couple of hundred miles from where we live. I told them no, they immediately cancelled my card, and said as soon as the merchant auth went through (or something like that) they would put the money back in my account. Took about 48hrs, iirc, although it did happen on a Friday afternoon.

[pitohui]

5. your plain ATM card was a debit card

i'm not saying you're old and cranky but maybe just a little clueless

you haven't lost anything, it's exactly the same

it just sounds like you didn't understand that your debit card could have been stolen and used all over the place, not just ATM machines, because YOU didn't know that...but it was ever thus actually

[Phentex]

8. That could be but it didn't have mastercard on it...

so it's not exactly the same.

[Phentex]

13. also lady at the bank said it would not work as a debit if I did not activate it.

That's what she said.

[uncommon]

15. This is not true. An old style ATM card could only be used at an ATM, not at a point of sale.

Debit cards can be used at the point of sale.

Mine does not function as a credit card - it can be run as "credit" but still declines if there is not money in the account to cover the purchase, same as a debit.

[Toucano]

20. Early ATM cards were not accepted "wherever Visa is accepted".

The interbank network connectivity was limited to actual ATM vault type machines.

You had to go to that ATM "vault" machine, withdraw cash (which debited your account) and pay for your purchase in cash.

The merchant incurred no additional expense - only you and the bank paid for you to have 24 hour access to your money.

Now we all pay since the merchant has to recover the fee Visa and Mastercard charge to accept your payment. The higher prices get passed on to all of us since Visa and Mastercard prohibit the merchant from charging a fee for using the cards.

[Phentex]

22. I was wondering if anyone remembered a time...

when atm machines did not exist! :)

When they came out, the bank made a big deal of telling you which ones worked at their bank plus other banks in the network. Remember the logos on the back?

[TBF]

28. It wasn't that long ago -

I was in my teens when my small town got a bank with a "tyme" card. I just needed a basic bank account to cash my checks from my after-school job, and my parents decided the "tyme" card would be good for taking with me to college. That had to be roughly 25 years ago.

[Shandris]

6. Phentex, some banks, when you sign up for a checking account...

...will hand you an ATM 'temp' card until they send you your 'real' card. However, the temp card doesn't get deactivated (or at least it didn't when I got mine) so, in essence, it functions as a pure ATM card. You might check out your local banks and see if they issue such a 'temp' card for a new account. :)

[Phentex]

9. This is a really old account...

from a time when ATM cards did not exist. Then they gave us atm cards. Once, many years ago, they tried to give us a credit card combo and we said no. I'm not sure when people began using debit cards, but I thought you had to ask for one. Now, they seem to all be combo cards. I have one of those from another bank and have had an unauthorized usage on it in another state (an error in numbers I think since I have only one card and it never left my possession.)

Just wondering if the cards are all combos now.

[tomm2thumbs]

25. great idea

[MurrayDelph]

12. I still have one

my latest bank tried sending me both, but I chopped up the Mastercard one.

Our previous bank kept trying to switch us over, and we would have to ask for a plain ATM card, and then we would get one. This is a contributing factor to why they are our previous bank.

Each time they tried to sell me on one, I pointed out the difference:
A fraudulent charge on a credit card is withheld until cleared
A fraudulent use of a debit card, and you have to fight to get your money back.

[Phentex]

14. and that happened on another account...

and it was not a quick fix AND even though they returned my money, they did NOT try to find out what happened. It was a small amount of money but what a nightmare had it been for more!

[mwooldri]

16. Believe it or not, Wachovia does an ATM/debit card w/o Visa.

And my Credit Union does a plain ATM/debit card too, also without the Visa part.

This means that it generally can't be just swiped and signed for - a PIN number is required.

[wtmusic]

17. Try using that card to withdraw money from another bank's ATM

and you're probably out of luck. I learned the hard way.

[mwooldri]

26. I personally had no problems with the Wachovia card...

even when the card was in the UK. Just as long as I saw the logos on the back (Interlink, NYCE, Plus) I could use the card there.

Of course, at a nice cost to both the ATM operator and the bank.

[wtmusic]

29. Got it, probably just my lame account at BofA. nt

[Phentex]

21. Interesting...

I was wondering if such a thing still existed!

:hi:

[Not Me]

18. I have an atm only card

from a savings and loan based in Rochester, NY. I got it when they first started with atm's and the laws regarding fraudulent use had not yet been extended to atm abuses. At the time, it was an alternative (it lacks a VISA or Mastercard logo). Not sure if they still will give you one, but they keep sending me a replacement atm-only card when it expires every couple years.

[Phentex]

19. That's cool.

There wasn't anything wrong with our old card. I wonder how much money they spend sending out new/updated cards to people who don't want them, lol.

[proud2BlibKansan]

23. I have one

[Phentex]

30. I love that

picture! :)

[gvstn]

24. The bank

The bank gets about 30 cents from the merchant every time you use it as a Visa/Mastercard. So they want you to use it as often as possible. That is why they send out one with the credit card logo automatically, so you can use it in more places.

I see people using their debit card for $1.50 cups of coffee at my convenience store. Those are the type of customers the bank wants. They get paid 30 cents for processing the transaction with zero risk.

[Phentex]

31. I figured as much...

it's more trickery.

I'm not likely to use it though.

[Flubadubya]

27. Funny you should ask...

I recently got notice from my bank that starting in March 2011 some changes would be made, one of which was that they would be charging $2.00 per month for an "ATM card".

I have a debit card that I use for purchases AND for ATM withdrawals. I was just sure they were going to start charging me for using my card. Instead, I learned that this charge was going to be just for ATM cards only, and not for a debit/ATM card. Go figure. I didn't know there was such a thing as a "stand-alone" ATM card. Of course I'm glad I won't be charged.

[Phentex]

32. I guess they will find a way to make more money...

fees fees fees!

[Codeine]

33. Old and cranky, but we still love you.

I can't remember the last time I carried cash.

[MineralMan]

34. I still carry some cash. They don't take debit cards at

garage sales.