Abbey Zero - pre-loaded and worked like a charm

sparkzilla

Hi everyone,

I often read these forums but have never posted, so I thought I should let people know how I recently used the advice on these forums.

I got an Abbey Zero credit card to use whilst in Italy last week. I did this because I wanted to use the card to pay for petrol but also draw cash from machines. The 0% rates are great but you will all be aware of the huge interest charges on withdrawing cash.

So a week before I went away I transferred £800 on the card. I had never used the card before and the balance was showing £800. By the way I transferred from a HSBC account and the money was available on the abbey card almost straight away. Anyway I then rang abbey and told them I was travelling to Italy two days before I left. I also informed the guy that I had put money on the card and asked if this was OK as I have not used the card before. He spoke to the
supervisor and came back and informed me that he had made a note on my account, as being in that much credit would possibly trigger their fraud protection team. He also informed me that I would not be covered for any fraudulent transactions whilst I was still credit; however it is perfectly acceptable to be in credit on the card as long as Abbey are informed in advance, before leaving for the holiday.

So I used the card every day to pay for stuff and draw money out without a problem. I think the card was simple and easy to use and far better than carrying cash etc. I will keep this card just for my holidays and do the same next time.

Hope this helps anyone wondering what would happen if they do the same, I still took a backup card just in case!

Mark