When news about the increasing cases of identity theft broke out, more and more people opted to use their credit cards instead of their debit cards because they are much safer to use. But here is some good news for those people who stick to using their debit cards: debit cards can be used like credit cards. Using them as such has proved to be more secure and listed below are the reasons why.
1. Debit cards give you the option to use it as a debit card or a credit card.
A lot of debit cards are issued by Visa. Therefore, if you use it like a credit card, in which you are asked to sign your name instead of inputting your PIN number, your purchases are secure and you are assured that your transaction is safe. Since Visa insures all the purchases made with your card, in the unfortunate event of an identity theft or if your card gets stolen, you will not be held responsible for the transactions made by the thief especially if you are able to report your card as lost or stolen immediately. Of course there are fees involved, but those are what the fees would do for you in return. On the other hand, if you use your card as a debit card and input your PIN number, the transaction is somewhat similar to writing a check or withdrawing money from the ATM which automatically makes you responsible for any problem you might encounter with it. Furthermore, if it gets stolen, you are at risk of losing all the money stored in your account in which no one else would be accountable but you.
2. Using your debit card as a credit card will not charge you above the usual fees.
When you use your debit card like a credit card, some necessary fees would of course apply.
As mentioned earlier, these are the fees paid to Visa for insuring your purchases. However, you might want to talk to your bank representative if you need further clarification regarding this. Years ago, people were being overcharged by banks because of services that they were not aware of. They were not only having a hard time paying their debt, but they were also struggling to pay the huge bank charges and fees. Thanks to the changes made by the government, banks now have to ask for your permission before they sign you up for extra services that might charge you extremely high fees. Keep in mind that some banks will offer you to sign a document which states that you allow them to give you overdraft protection. Although this idea sounds good because you are being protected, banks will normally take advantage and charge you highly for this service. Therefore, when you decide to use your debit card like a credit card, keep in mind that you shouldn’t be charged above the usual fees.
3. Using your debit card as a credit card is simple.
If you do not know, establishments do not actually like their customers paying for purchases via credit because they get charged a fee which funds your transaction insurance. Therefore, when you are asked to slide your card on the card terminals and it is waiting for you to enter your PIN number, just press the cancel button to give way for the signature pad. Although the processes are not the same for all establishments, you can simply inform the clerk. If the clerk asks you credit or debit, just say credit. If a certain establishment does not ask you to sign or enter your PIN number, do not panic. Some just need to have a certain limit before they ask you to sign but your purchases are still insured.
4. The credit card stigma is over.
Some financially-conscious people avoid using their debit cards as credit cards because they do not want other people to think that they do not have money in their accounts to pay for their purchases that is why they are charging them instead. There is definitely no truth to this. A lot of people decide to use their debit cards as credit cards because it makes their lives easier. At the end of the month, they have lesser bills to pay and they have a complete card statement which includes all of their purchases. Not having to worry about more bills and to issue a check for each one of them is an advantage of using your debit card as a credit card.
5. The need to carry checks is eliminated.
These days, you can hardly see anyone writing checks anymore and if you do see someone, you will notice that it holds up the lines; thus the reason why a number of retailers are not accepting them anymore as well. Although, debit cards can make up for checks, it is still okay to have checks especially for situations in which you have to write post-dated ones.
The same as other modes of payments, you should also keep track of your transactions using your debit card. You can check your credit history, your credit reports and even your online banking statements to keep track of them. It would also be helpful to keep the receipts of your purchases so you can create your own spreadsheet which contains all of your debit card-related transactions especially that not all transactions show up easily on your online banking statements. In this way, you can also verify the transactions listed in your credit report and check if they match the receipts that you have. Using your debit card as a credit card is advantageous as it insures your purchases in the same way a credit card does and gives you the ease of paying your bill back in just one click.
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