Curve Card

unclearengineer · 17 February 2016 at 3:52PM

Official MoneySavingExpert Insert Jan 2018:

Hi everyone, you may like to read ourNew Curve card claims to be 'the only card you need to carry' - but here's what to watch out for news story.

Back to unclearengineer's original post...

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I saw a new "Curve Card" advertised and reviewed.

From what I gather, for £35 you get a pre paid Mastercard connected to your other credit cards which you then use and can select (from an app) which of your original cards is charged.

The benefits are that you can use your AMEX card anywhere now (and hopefully get the cashback),

My question is this: As it is a pre paid card, is it still subject to the credit card fee you get charged when using a credit card in some places (like paying for road tax online, for example), or are you not charged at all, as if you had used your debit card?

For the one off fee I am tempted if it means I can use AMEX anywhere, as I can then get rid of my standard Credit Card that pays less in cash back, and also use it to pay for things like insurance without the AMEX fee (obviously paying off the balance at the end of the month and taking the cash back).

Any other thought on it?

grumbler · 17 February 2016 at 4:26PM

Free ATM withdrawals in UK from all CCs essentially? A perfect 'mule' card for big amounts (ignoring the daily limit)?
:think:
What about cashback on ATM withdrawals? Something doesn't sound right here...

Candyapple · 17 February 2016 at 4:59PM

Curve looks, feels and smells just like a normal bank card. But it isn't. Access all your cards and accounts with just one PIN, withdraw cash, use online and on the high street plus keep earning your rewards points. Curve also does things your old cards can't - such as making sure you never pay fees when you withdraw cash with a credit card in the UK. Curve even makes Amex work everywhere it's not accepted. Curve offers the advantages of products such as Apple Pay, but in the widely accepted form of a card and without the £30 transaction limit.

I'm sceptical. It's not released until Summer 2016 according to their website so will wait for further info.

Biggles · 17 February 2016 at 5:16PM

grumbler wrote: »

Free ATM withdrawals in UK from all CCs essentially? A perfect 'mule' card for big amounts (ignoring the daily limit)?

I'd think that unlikely, due to the fact that if your CC is currently used for a cash-based transaction, eg gambling or buying foreign currency, you still get hit with the cash charge. Be interesting to see what loopholes there may be, though.

WorkingTowardsDebtFree · 17 February 2016 at 5:19PM

I'd be careful of this - I guess that there's the potential for some/all credit cards treating this as a cash advance (as they do with cash back, ATM withdrawals, travel money, PayPal loading, etc)?

Biggles · 17 February 2016 at 5:23PM

Interesting that their website, https://www.imaginecurve.com/, claims that it does avoid ATM fees, and that it retains CC cashback. And that you can use it for Amex at places that don't take Amex.

The one thing I can't figure is how you know which of your cards the payment will be taken from, eg when you have a better cashback for petrol with one card, or when you're up to your limit with one and want to use a different one.

BTW they now say 'shipping from March'.

Edit: If you click 'Join now', the links on the following page don't work, but on that page it still says 'available Summer 16'

guesswho2000 · 17 February 2016 at 5:24PM

WorkingTowardsDebtFree wrote: »

I'd be careful of this - I guess that there's the potential for some/all credit cards treating this as a cash advance (as they do with cash back, ATM withdrawals, travel money, PayPal loading, etc)?

Maybe, but this is how the Travelex Supercard currently works - you can link it to a credit card, use it for cash withdrawals abroad, it bills your CC as a purchase, you get charged no fees and earn whatever rewards the card offers.

The only downsides to Supercard are that it doesn't work that way (free) in the UK, and doesn't allow you to link an Amex.

Biggles · 17 February 2016 at 5:33PM

Biggles wrote: »

If you click 'Join now', the links on the following page don't work, but on that page it still says 'available Summer 16'

Those links don't work in IE11, but work in Chrome, and when you put your details in you find that the initial tranche is only for self-employed people who use iOS.

WorkingTowardsDebtFree · 17 February 2016 at 5:48PM

I guess it depends what deal that Curve has setup with each CC operator? Travelex are huge and probably in a better position than a startup to make arrangements. Ultimately though, things will happen one of two ways:

1) Curve puts a purchase transaction on your other cards, and then pays the merchant. In such cases what happens with charge-backs, refunds, etc? What about S75 protection? In effect they have the contract for supply with the merchant, not you - and so your CC company may be off the hook. This I suppose is similar to how PayPal operate?

or

2) Curve act as a pass through like Apple Pay, your payment is made from your originating card to the merchant. In this case though, especially where used for cash back or in ATMs whilst Curve may try to pass it off as a purchase item, I can't see CC companies being too happy? Not quite sure of the implications, but would CC companies have any leeway in how they consider Curve payments? Could some just decide to class all Curve payments as cash advances? If then it's down to individual bank/CC negotiations it could create a bit of a confusing mess for consumers?

john1002 · 17 February 2016 at 6:14PM

Also the fact thay you pay a one time fee of £35 and £75 depending on which offer you go for.

Says mid 2016 for shipping and you only get charged at that point.

John

simongregson · 17 February 2016 at 11:17PM

I suspect that it is for business owners only as these are the only cards exempt from the new EU fees cap which would seem to be the only way to fund it. Of course the definition of business can be stretched to all sorts of things...

Curve Card

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