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Posted by D Sherman [72.47.153.24] on Sunday, January 29, 2012 at 23:18:15 :
In Reply to: Re: credit card fraud ot posted by Todd Wilson [67.66.111.146] on Sunday, January 29, 2012 at 20:37:37 :
Use cash, especially for restaurants. Credit cards have decent protection, but debit cards don't. That's why the banks keep pushing debit cards on the customers -- everything is stacked in the bank's favor. Also, with a credit card you get a percent or so back in "rewards".
People complain about the bank fees, about debit cards not working, about getting ripped off and having a hard time getting their money back, and yet it seems like the younger generation doesn't even know what cash is. With cash, you know exactly how much you have, you won't be tempted to spend too much, you can sometimes get a better deal, it always works, and there are no fees. Being robbed is not really a big risk these days, and if you're worried it's easy enough to keep most of it hidden.
It's always seemed to me that debit cards are the worst of both worlds (cash and credit cards). The only thing they're really good for is getting cash out of the bank machine after hours, and even there, how hard is it to keep some cash stashed around the house someplace? Other than that, I suppose they're good for people who can't get a credit card, but that's about it.
One of the best things about going shopping with a wad of cash in your pocket is you can see right away how much you're spending, and you're not likely to spend too much. It's amazing how far a picture of Ben doesn't go these days.
Anything you need a debit card for you can do with a credit card, with a lot more security. I bought some car parts last year from a big ebay dealer that didn't use paypal. They never shipped the parts, and after a month of BS and excuses started the ebay dispute process. They lied and BSed their way as far as they could with that too, but all I had to do was call the credit card company and tell them I had not received the parts, and they immediately put in a charge-back, with the onus on the seller to prove that they'd shipped them. Of course then the seller got mad at me, threatened to have me charged with fraud, and replied to my negative feedback about them by totally lying some more. I didn't care. I had my money. Next time I won't even give them that much of a chance.
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