Prepaid Travel Cards guide

NiftyDigits

Salimali12 wrote: »

Thanks for the reply NiftyDigits - what if he wanted to use it to pay for something in a shop or for a meal though?

Depends on whether they ask for a xtra ID of not. Don't think that they do in restaurants. Though they might do in shops. The alternatives are relatively poor value and less covenient.

eDicky

Salimali12 wrote: »

Hi My 17 yr old is off to USA on a History trip later this month. I want to get him a prepaid travel card but the majority recommended are for over 18yrs old. Any advice?

There's something called Soldo that I've never heard of before, looks like decent value for overseas and you can have a supplementary card for a child as young as 8 yrs, administered by the main cardholder.
https://www.soldo.com/en-uk/

Salimali12

Thank you eDicky. Soldo looks on the face of it like a good option. However like you I'd never heard of it before. Not sure that's a good thing........ I'm conflicted! But keen to sort something out asap! Revolut seems best but ID issues worry me 😳

Anthorn

Salimali12 wrote: »

Thank you eDicky. Soldo looks on the face of it like a good option. However like you I'd never heard of it before. Not sure that's a good thing........ I'm conflicted! But keen to sort something out asap! Revolut seems best but ID issues worry me 😳

What swung it for me was that the Soldo card is issued by Paysafe because I'm already acquainted with Paysafecard and Neteller Net+ also issued by Paysafe. Been using Soldo for a while now.

Salimali12

Thank you Anthorn. I'm not familiar with paysafecard or neteller net either I'm afraid. Are Paysafe well respected then?

Anthorn

Salimali12 wrote: »

Thank you Anthorn. I'm not familiar with paysafecard or neteller net either I'm afraid. Are Paysafe well respected then?

Formed through a series of mergers, a PLC listed on the LSE since last year and worth billions last I saw and active in Europe, Asia and North America. Probably better known in UK for Neteller Net+, Paysafecard and Skrill. If a track record is important that's what they have. Probably the only blot for the suspicious amongst us is that they are registered in the Isle Of Man. As I stated I know them for their Paysafecard and Neteller and in fact I still have my Neteller account. I like to stay with what I know.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Paysafe_Group

NiftyDigits

PaySafe also issued the Revolut card.

wulliewonka

Cannot recommend WeSwap at all, due to atrocious customer service. On holiday in Sitges, went to an ATM to withdraw €400. Machine gave a message "transaction cancelled due to technical issue", returned the card and no cash. So, I went to another bank, tried the same withdrawal, but this time got the message "transaction denied, contact card issuer". Checked on the app, and found that €400 had been deducted at the first transaction, despite no cash being issued. This explained the second attempt being denied. So, went into first bank and they said I should contact WeSwap. Thus began a long series of phonecalls and emails to WeSwap which only achieved a refund of the €400 on the day after I returned from holiday. Don't touch this card with a bargepole, it should be removed from MSE recommendations. Thank goodness I also had a Revolut card which works flawlessly

bedpotato_2

Hello. I want to get a prepaid travel card to give to somebody as a gift to use abroad in Eastern Europe.

I have a question. Do these cards all come with the name of the buyer printed on them?

If so, do you have to provide proof of ID when using the card?

It's important for me to know this because, as stated, I plan on buying a travel card to give to somebody as a gift. If the card is issued to me with my name on and then I give it to somebody else, I'm thinking they might be accused of theft or fraud when trying to use it (because their name will not match the name on the card).

So ideally I want a prepaid travel card (that can be used abroad) that doesn't require your name to be printed on it.

A lot of the pages I've been looking at online (Visa, Mastercard, Post Office etc) all show pictures of example cards that have names on them.

Martin's article here

http://www.moneysavingexpert.com/credit-cards/prepaid-travel-cards

also has pictures of cards with names on them.

So, is it possible to get a prepaid travel card that doesn't have a name printed on it?

Please let me know. Thank you.

Edit: some more questions.

Do these types of cards have chips, and do they have PIN numbers?

Can they be used in ATM machines and card payment machines to pay at checkouts, etc?

eDicky

bedpotato wrote: »

Hello. I want to get a prepaid travel card to give to somebody as a gift to use abroad in Eastern Europe.

No issuer allows the card to be 'gifted' to another person within their T&Cs, so you would be risking problems for both of you.

You could ask that person to sign up for Revolut on the smartphone app (any European resident is eligible), and do the same yourself, both ordering the cards. Then load some funds, and at any opportune moment (even before card delivery) you can instantly transfer an amount from your account to theirs and they will see it appear on their phone app.

All modern cards have have a chip and a PIN. Prepaid cards can be used for purchases and withdrawals as is normal for any card, with possible exceptions such highway tolls, 'pay at pump' fuel.

Giving them cash would be simplest, of course.