The Breakdown of Prepaid Debit Cards
How They Work and How Much Will It Cost Me?
prepaid debit cards can provide a great solution
for anyone with bad credit wishing to help improve their credit rating, have access to balance their funds online,
and make purchases virtually anywhere in the world.
Prepaid debit cards have all the advantages of a traditional check card, without any of the fees and require no credit
check to be approved. Prepaid debit cards usually charge a small fee (approximately $10) to activate your account or
debit card. Then once the card is activated, customers can load funds onto their debit card as often as they would like
for a surcharge fee of (under $5) or for free, at various retail locations. The amount uploaded then acts like a line of
credit, allowing you to make transactions anywhere your debit card company (usually Visa
or MasterCard) is accepted.
To avoid money uploading fees, prepaid debit cards allow employers
to directly deposit funds onto your card without a fee. And as a bonus for linking your direct deposit with your prepaid debit
card, your debit card company will usually reward you with a cash sign-on bonus and will never charge "uploading" fees when your
funds come directly from your employer. This can save an individual hundreds of dollars in check cashing fees or money uploading
fees annually.
Unlike traditional debit cards, which draws funds from a banking account and lets you charge over the amount available and then
slaps you with a non sufficient funds (NSF)
or overdraft protection fees, prepaid debt cards let you spend your money without worrying about overdraft or NSF fees. This
is because prepaid debit cards are designed to automatically cap your spending when your pre-loaded cash has been used up.
Other bonuses to consider, when shopping for a prepaid debit card include; the use of free bill pay online, no minimum monthly
balances or transactions required, no monthly fees if you actively use your card, no ATM fees charged by your debit card company,
no or low balance inquiry fees (at an ATM or through an 800 number) or free online funds management, no convenience fees, lost or
stolen protection coverage, and convenient retail locations where you can upload more cash onto your card, if needed.
The biggest perk to most prepaid debit cards is that while you are loading money and making purchases with your debit card, your
debit card company is reporting positive credit history to the three main credit bureaus. Therefore, building or rebuilding your
credit without any extra effort on your part.