Visa Debit, Visa Credit card

benmose

Hi there,
I'm trying to find out whether i can finally live without a credit card! Can someone tell me, does a visa debit card afford the same protection, spending power etc as a visa credit card? Obviously, i need money in my account to spend, but is that the only difference?
Many Thanks.

chattychappy

No it isn't.

Credit cards offer "s75" protection. If used for all (or part) of a transaction over £100 in value then the CC company is jointly liable to perform the contract. In other words, if the supplier goes bust or disappears without delivering the goods/service then you can claim from the CC company.

As for spending power, in theory with a credit card you are limited by your credit limit. With a debit card you are limited by your current account balance. However, operationally if you had a very large current account balance you might have trouble spending all of it in a single transaction on a debit card. On the other hand a debit card transaction may be allowed even though the money isn't in the account - making you overdrawn, be it authorised or not. And credit cards too - they may allow you to spend above your credit limit, or simply decline transactions whilst you are still below your limit (usually on security grounds - but they can lower your limit with very little warning).

Also relevant is acceptability. Generally wherever a visa credit card is accepted, you can use a visa debit card. Not true the other way around - eg post offices only seem to accept debit cards, not credit cards. Also credit cards might be accepted on inferior terms - eg on payment of a surcharge. This is particularly the case for "cash" type transactions - eg purchase of travellers cheques, gambling etc.

I think the reference to "spending power" is a little odd - what do you mean? Capacity to go on a binge? Ie are you worried about having too much "spending power" or worried about losing it by abandoning credit cards?

It sounds as if the best solution in your case is to get a credit card and pay off in full each month. You might even get a card that offers airmiles, cash back, Tesco vouchers etc. Using a credit card can also improve your rating - something that can be useful for getting a mortgage, mobile phone contract etc.

I would only avoid them if you really can't trust yourself with them.

YorkshireBoy

http://www.moneysavingexpert.com/shopping/section75-protect-your-purchases

Debit card 'protection' is covered towards the bottom of the article.

benmose

Hi, thanks for replys - with ref to the 1st one - i'm actually worried about losing my 'spending power' - basically i have just cancelled my only credit card and i was thinking 'do i really need one'? If i have my visa debit with me, will i lose any protection for online shopping, going abroad etc....?

YorkshireBoy

benmose wrote: »

If i have my visa debit with me, will i lose any protection for online shopping, going abroad etc....?

What do you mean by "protection"...specifically?

Have you read the article I linked to?

benmose

Yes, I've read it - it only mentions a refund for purchases under £100 (then goto section 75 - which i thought only applied to credit cards!)

YorkshireBoy

Read it again, this time pausing at the commas and paying attention to the brackets.

Visa chargeback applies to:

Visa Debit purchases (no min/max), and
Visa Electron purchases (no min/max), and
Visa credit card purchases under £100

Clear?

benmose

Aha, those damn commas:-) thanks for your patience.....

hopefulfooluk

I've also heard that you'll also find it very difficult to rent a car in Europe (especially France) without a credit card.