LocostUSA.com

After having our credit card compromized four times in less than a year, we are going to rein in our credit card purchases. Going to rely more on checks and cash. Maybe even request monthly bills to be sent by mail, just like 1914!

Any others experiencing this problem?

Bill

Even once is too often.

Snail mail and real checks also have an advantage, most laws & courts don't recognize electronic transfers or transactions. It's up to the judge and many don't.

You also want to pay a little extra and get your cancelled checks or at least pictures of your checks so you can prove things up. If you have a problem with a creditor they'll always recognize a copy of the check but they can make your life hell over anything electronic. Try to prove up your electronic transfer. It's lacking basic information that allows you to prove it was for the purpose you say it was for.

I own a mortgage company and I fight this battle all the time. It's a long drawn out and often unsucessful fight when someone pays totally electronically. When we have a copy of the check I can get things off people's credit and get their credit scores raised very quickly.

I've seen so many problems I do nothing electronically.

_________________
mobilito ergo sum
I drive therefore I am

I can explain it to you,
but I can't understand it for you.

How do you make on line purchases, or do you?

Bill

I like PayPal.

I've seen so many people's bank accounts emptied and credit ruined with Paypal that if someone just has to sell me something with Paypal I've found I don't need it that badly.

I do make the occassional online purchases and I've learned NEVER to use a Debit card, but always to use a credit card. My cards will give me a special one time use number for online purchases. That way if the number is stolen it goes nowhere.

I don't shop online much. I usually want to touch and feel it before I buy. I've been burned and while I'm not a genius (OK actually I am) I've quickly learned.

What's that saying? "Once burned, twice shy."

If you dealt with as many problems for other people as I do it would definitely make you stay far, far away from the electronic life. GMAC has this cool little trick they do where the don't give you credit for your last payment and a collection shows up and if you don't have a cancelled check then you have to pay it twice. They must make millions on this.

_________________
mobilito ergo sum
I drive therefore I am

I can explain it to you,
but I can't understand it for you.

My ex-wife beat PayPal to that a long time ago.

I'm 41, never had cheques, never will. They were obsolete by the late 80's.

You guys need to raise some hell and get your banking system regulated.... all this is an outcome of the childish anti-government posture so many Americans adopt.

You know in Canada debit cards are the majority of payments? I don't know what the US stat is, but pretty far behind.

Oh, and I've done somewhere between 1500-2000 online and phone transactions and never had a problem. Not one.
Paypal always (I mean always) sides with the buyer, so you'd have to be some kind of special to lose in a paypal transaction buying....