Credit card tip

kimrn87

Member
Original Poster
Just returned from a cruise and received a message our credit card was declined. Found out they mailed us a new card with the chip feature while we were gone and deactivated our other card we we're using. First make sure you call the credit card company before your leave on vacation and second make sure you have a back up card or other payment source. Thank goodness we did.
 

Phonedave

Well-Known Member
Always good advice. Sometimes credit card companies will suspend service when they see charges from foreign countries that are not normally on your card.

If you haven't left the US in 10 years, and then suddenly your card company sees charges originating from the Bahamas, they may think something is up, and put a hold on the card.

-dave
 

JaxFLBear

Well-Known Member
Found out they mailed us a new card with the chip feature while we were gone and deactivated our other card we we're using.
Unless the card was reported stolen, the card issuer should never deactivate a replacement card until the cardholder confirms receipt of the new card by calling to activate it.
 

CAPTAIN HOOK

Well-Known Member
Additionally, the cc provider has no authority to deactivate a card without first speaking to the holder - saves them being sued for causing embarrassment when the card is declined infront of other shoppers etc
 

ToTBellHop

Well-Known Member
Additionally, the cc provider has no authority to deactivate a card without first speaking to the holder - saves them being sued for causing embarrassment when the card is declined infront of other shoppers etc
This has not been true with the new chip cards. Companies have sent out new chip cards and been very clear than the old cards would be deactivated by XX/201X date, regardless of the account holder's response. Something about liabilities with the old cards that the credit card companies obviously don't want.
 

Nubs70

Well-Known Member
Additionally, the cc provider has no authority to deactivate a card without first speaking to the holder - saves them being sued for causing embarrassment when the card is declined infront of other shoppers etc
This is not true. If you are travelling out of country and a charge comes in that is from foreign country or even across the US. The cc company will deactivate the card without notification. This happened to one travel companion in Berlin.

He then had to spend hours on an overseas collect call to get resolved.

If you travel out of country, begin calling cc company with travel dates and locations once a week beginning 3 weeks prior to travel. It often takes 3 tries for the cc company to get it right.
 

CAPTAIN HOOK

Well-Known Member
This is not true. If you are travelling out of country and a charge comes in that is from foreign country or even across the US. The cc company will deactivate the card without notification.
I have countless overseas trips behind me - I will use my cc at least once while overseas. My cc company has NEVER cancelled my card. I therefore speak from experience
 

Phonedave

Well-Known Member
This is not true. If you are travelling out of country and a charge comes in that is from foreign country or even across the US. The cc company will deactivate the card without notification. This happened to one travel companion in Berlin.

He then had to spend hours on an overseas collect call to get resolved.

If you travel out of country, begin calling cc company with travel dates and locations once a week beginning 3 weeks prior to travel. It often takes 3 tries for the cc company to get it right.

I have countless overseas trips behind me - I will use my cc at least once while overseas. My cc company has NEVER cancelled my card. I therefore speak from experience


It is a balancing act between customer experience and security. The credit card companies use a variety of methods to determine when to deactivate a card as a security measure. A lot of it depends on your past usage history - and yes, they track that usage, its worth an awful lot to marketing companies.

If you have a history of traveling out of the country and making large purchases, if a charge comes in from Paris for a $500 purchase, the credit card company says "OK, that's normal for this person" and lets it go. However, if you have had your card for 15 years, made a total of 10 purchases, and all of them were at the gas station down the road, a $500 Paris purchase is going to raise red flags.

They also look at the timing of purchases as compared to the location. I once had a credit card company call me because I bought something in NJ, when apparently I bought something in Texas 3 hours prior. Now I *could* have done that if the purchases were at an airport, but they were not. It was fraud, I was not in Texas 3 hours prior.
 

ChuckElias

Well-Known Member
My cc company has NEVER cancelled my card. I therefore speak from experience

With all due respect, your personal experience does not define credit card law. The fact that your card has never been suspended does NOT entail that the credit card company is not allowed to do so.

This statement that you made on November 25:

the cc provider has no authority to deactivate a card without first speaking to the holder

is simply false. Anyone reading this thread in the future should not take that statement as actual policy of any credit card company.
 

Nastory4

Active Member
We had the same issue with the new card and the chip. Not sure why or how an account becomes declined with the same numbers. Apparently ours was mailed to us and I put it in a desk drawer as the original wasn't expired yet.
 

JaxFLBear

Well-Known Member
We had the same issue with the new card and the chip. Not sure why or how an account becomes declined with the same numbers. Apparently ours was mailed to us and I put it in a desk drawer as the original wasn't expired yet.
If the card issuer assigned a new security code for the chip card, they can deactivate the other card even if the account number is the same. The security code for Amex cards is 4 digits on the front of the card, for others it's a 3 digit code on the back.
 

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