Prepaid travel card

2stixoftwixes

My daughter is going on a gap year next month and I want to give her a prepaid travel card

I understand it has to be her who purchases it, but I want to link it to my debit card so I can top it up in emergencies

Is there a card that I can gift her, or do they have to be in her name, and the debit card (or bank account) linked to her account

flaneurs_lobster

Is she over 18? Might be easier if she were able to get a conventional current account with a no-charge debit card - Chase might work. You could easily top this up with bank transfers, credit would normally be instant.

QrizB

And if 11-to-17, the Nationwide FlexOne account comes with a debit card and no overseas transaction charges.

I doubt very many under-11s go travelling for a gap year, so between that and Chase you've probably got enough options!

la531983

Gap year suggests she is now an adult.

She opens her own account, by herself, in her name, and you fund it with bank transfers.

Bigphil1474

I have a Revolut account. Anyone can transfer money into my account, although they don't very often
. It can be easily managed via App. I'm sure others are similar - Chase etc. I'm not sure what the advantage of a prepaid card is. These newer type accounts allow you to store money in multiple currencies as well so you can exchange now or later or just let the card sort it for you. The free account is absolutely fine, depending where she is going - you just pay £5 if you want a physical card sending to you. 

NoodleDoodleMan

Probably best with her own card as advised above, however if you want a pre-paid card, the Caxton FX card allows the account holder to authorise a secondary card(s) and access funds allocated by them.

daveyjp

The market is now far more mature than the pre paid card days.  They are expensive to fund and operate.  

The way now is a forex free current account with Starling,  Chase or any other number of providers (Revolut is popular, but they still haven't secured a full UK banking licence, which can cause problems if things go pear shaped).

These accounts can be funded by anyone via bank transfer.

2stixoftwixes

NoodleDoodleMan said:

Probably best with her own card as advised above, however if you want a pre-paid card, the Caxton FX card allows the account holder to authorise a secondary card(s) and access funds allocated by them.

Thanks Noodle, this actually looks like what I need

As I can open the account and give her a separate card that is linked to emergency bank funds

2stixoftwixes

Actually I think I have found a better solution

I think I can use Wise  and create a group - The 'group' will hold a certain balance with a virtual card connected to it that she can then use

Hopefully I have got that right!


Ive looked at  Monzo / revolute and can't find a similar feature (only groups to split bills)

la531983

2stixoftwixes said:

Actually I think I have found a better solution

I think I can use Wise  and create a group - The 'group' will hold a certain balance with a virtual card connected to it that she can then use

Hopefully I have got that right!


Ive looked at  Monzo / revolute and can't find a similar feature (only groups to split bills)

But Monzo, and Revolut (and Chase,  and Starling etc etc) will let you or anyone else make payments using the 6 digit sort code and 8 digit account number..
 I am sure an 18 (?) year old might find it a bit more independent having his or her own account away from your potentially prying eyes.

NoodleDoodleMan

Indeed, if the young lady is 18 then a personal "user friendly" current account is the way forward, such as Chase or Starling - Mum can easily transfer funds electronically as and when needed.

We have both - Starling works for us with absolutely no issues both in the UK and abroad.