Credit card use online

notrobinB40

My Mastercard has just been the subject of £900 online fraud which the bank say they will resolve before my next monthly payment is due.
With card spending limits creeping ever upwards, is it possible to get a credit card with a very low limit of say £100 to £150 for all those small online purchases, leaving your regular credit card secure for everyday use?

thenudeone

Yes.
AFAIK Any credit card will always agree to a reduction in your credit limit. It's part of their obligation to be a "responsible lender" and not give you any more credit than you ask for (which could lead to excessive spending in those with little self-restraint).

The only problem is that some cards may automatically do a credit check whenever a change of limit is requested (up or down), so theoretically your account limit could be reduced more than you ask for, or the account closed altogether, if they think you are a higher credit risk based on the new information on the credit check.

agrinnall

Why would you need to? As long as you are vigilant and ensure that you spot any fraudulent transaction before you are required to pay for it then it's the card issuer's responsibility to resolve it.

chattychappy

agrinnall wrote: »

Why would you need to? As long as you are vigilant and ensure that you spot any fraudulent transaction before you are required to pay for it then it's the card issuer's responsibility to resolve it.

I agree.

But the problem is that in the "real world", enforcing your rights can be a hassle. Also, I don't like anyone getting away with fraud - whether I pay or the bank ultimately coughs up. A lower limit might just cause a decline in the case of fraud.

So I tend to agree, if you know you are never going to the extra limit and reducing it isn't going to make you look "distressed" (because you are then right up against the limit of all your facilities), I would reduce it.

thebritishbloke

agrinnall wrote: »

Why would you need to? As long as you are vigilant and ensure that you spot any fraudulent transaction before you are required to pay for it then it's the card issuer's responsibility to resolve it.

I agree with you. I don't see much risk in having a huge credit limit, so long as you check your transactions regularly.

notrobinB40

Thank you the prompt feedback.
I appreciate that being vigilant and checking your credit card statement would throw up any fraudulent transactions but I wondered if anyone knew if any bank or credit card company would issue an additional card with a low limit - for online use.
Considering the scale of online fraud and the consequential cost to the card companies, surely they would feel it is in their best interest. Any fraudulent payment over your low card limit would simply be refused.

thebritishbloke

I think they would require you to have a completely separate credit account to do that.

adindas

The main issue here, you will never know what you need in the future.
Credit card and increasing limti is not the things that you could get it easily, immediately when you need it.

chattychappy wrote: »

So I tend to agree, if you know you are never going to the extra limit and reducing it isn't going to make you look "distressed" (because you are then right up against the limit of all your facilities), I would reduce it.

King_Of_Fools

Also the credit limit is not checked for all transactions so a fraudulent transaction larger than the limit could still occur and then you would have the extra hassle of contesting the over limit charge and may not be able to make any more transactions that month.

notrobinB40

Certainly food for thought - especially the last comment from King of Fools. In my ignorance I thought any transaction taking your spending over your card limit would ring alarm bells and be automatically refused payment. Maybe it should!
I'll make a point of raising the issue informally with the "experts" at the bank. You never know what they might come up with!

Thanks to all who took the time to respond.

chattychappy

Originally CCs worked with manual imprinters and only for certain transactions were they rung through for authorisation. Whilst the system has been updated, it still remains a bunch of banks all over the world in network that doesn't always connect properly. So yes, indeed, transactions can go through that put you over the limit. Sometimes, in an emergency, that's what a cardholder might want anyway.

Another issue for the bank is the risk for them. For customer-not-present transactions, in the event of a dispute it is easier to bounce the transaction back to the merchant, particularly if certain checks weren't done. So they are less worried about letting something through. If the cardholder disputes, they are less exposed.