National Debit Card : The Best Choices

By: EconomyWatch Content Team   Date: 2 February 2010

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Consumers who wish to have the convenience of a credit card but eliminate the interest rates and fees associated with it, then a debit card could be the right pick for you. Debit cards are just as easy to use as other forms of payment and can give you access to your funds at an ATM. Many consumers offer even more benefits than a credit card since they take the funds directly from your bank account rather than just creating a larger bill for you to pay later. But when you pick a national debit card, you need to be sure that if has the right features for your needs.

The most convenient places to begin looking for the right debit card is with your current bank. Their debit card may not be the right one for what you need but it is the best place to start since this would eliminate the need to open a new checking account with a different bank. The first thing to learn about any national debit card that you’re considering is to find out if there are any transaction or monthly fees. Not all debit cards will charge these fees, so it is best to find one that eliminates them if you can. If you are a frequent visitor of the ATM, then you should also ask about ATM fees. Often there will only be an ATM fee if you use an ATM that is not associated with your bank, but that is not always the case so it’s better to ask.

Next you need to consider what kind of national debit card you want. There are online debit cards and offline debit cards. The online credit card is what people usually think of when you think of a debit card since they require that you enter your PIN number for all transactions. An offline debit card behaves more like a credit card and requires only your signature for your purchases.

A majority of banks now offer debit cards that perform both functions so that whatever method the merchants prefer will be used. Also consider if you need a debit card that is issued by an internationally accepted company like Visa or MasterCard or whether one issued by a smaller company will be suitable.

One of the most important things to inquire about if is there is some measure of protections against fraudulent charges made to your account. Of course everyone hopes that they will never need to worry about this but the possibility is real so you need to be sure that you are protected just in case. A study by the National Consumers League says that a majority of debit card issuers allow consumers to dispute any unauthorized charges for 60 days after they occur.


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