Debit Card Authorizations

[JER001]

Rhapsody on 5/20!

 

First time RCCL.

 

Does anyone know how much/day they authorize for

 

Seapass?

 

Thanks

[FitzLA]

On our Freedom cruise, I used a debit card. Shouldn't have done it. But they authorized my daily charges. So at the end of the day, they would authorize the amount I charged for that day.

 

At the end of the cruise, they charge the entire amount in one lump sum, so until all those authorizations dropped off, I had double charges out of my account. I only use a credit card now.

[Lisichka]

On our Freedom cruise, I used a debit card. Shouldn't have done it. But they authorized my daily charges. So at the end of the day, they would authorize the amount I charged for that day.

 

At the end of the cruise, they charge the entire amount in one lump sum, so until all those authorizations dropped off, I had double charges out of my account. I only use a credit card now.

An authorization is not an actual charge.....

[FitzLA]

An authorization is not an actual charge.....

 

Um, yes. I get that. And i never said it was. I said that until all those authorizations dropped off, I had double charges coming out of my account. Meaning that for a week after the cruise, instead of the $550 or so that I charged on my seapass out of my account, I had $1100 missing. But once the authorization dropped off, which usually takes about a week, the other $550 was back. When they authorize an amount, it still decreases the amount in your account. says its an authorization, yes, but still lessens the available credit on a credit card, or the available amount in your account.

[Lisichka]

Um, yes. I get that. And i never said it was. I said that until all those authorizations dropped off, I had double charges coming out of my account. Meaning that for a week after the cruise, instead of the $550 or so that I charged on my seapass out of my account, I had $1100 missing. But once the authorization dropped off, which usually takes about a week, the other $550 was back. When they authorize an amount, it still decreases the amount in your account. says its an authorization, yes, but still lessens the available credit on a credit card, or the available amount in your account.

 

Hhhmmm, that is odd. I am pretty sure my debit card does not do that.

 

Lisichka <---- is known to be wrong more than she cares to admit

[FitzLA]

Mine does. I bank with citibank, and as soon as I charge something, I can even go online, and it says, as soon as I charge it, where it was charges and that this authorization is reflected in my balance. The only place it does not do that is at a gas station when I pay at the pump. It only authorizes $1 and that is refelcted right away. But the $80 is costs me to fill up my car now (AARGH!!!!!!:mad: :mad: ) is not reflected until the charge posts.

[FitzLA]

Hhhmmm, that is odd. I am pretty sure my debit card does not do that.

 

Lisichka <---- is known to be wrong more than she cares to admit

 

p.s. I know how you could find out if it does this on your account too. Go to rccl.com, and charge a new cruise for yourself....that way you will know for sure. :D :D ;) ;) This way, you can let someone else pay for the gas.:)

[forpaws]

Hhhmmm, that is odd. I am pretty sure my debit card does not do that.

 

Lisichka <---- is known to be wrong more than she cares to admit

 

What Fitz described is very common among debit card companies. Mine did exactly what he described on our cruise last August; in fact, it also happened when we were in Vegas a few months ago. Until the authorizations drop off, the funds are basically tied up, which can take several days.

 

It can really catch a person off guard if he/she is unfamiliar with this process.

[beachdiamonds]

On our Freedom cruise, I used a debit card. Shouldn't have done it. But they authorized my daily charges. So at the end of the day, they would authorize the amount I charged for that day.

 

At the end of the cruise, they charge the entire amount in one lump sum, so until all those authorizations dropped off, I had double charges out of my account. I only use a credit card now.

 

 

I have to agree with Fitz. The same exact thing happenned to me on Freedom last Fall. They authorize money daily from your debit Visa and then charge you the total at the end. So yes he is right and it is a big headache. A week after the cruise I was on the phone with the bank getting the daily authorizations cleared. They are quick to authorize...but real slow to release the authorization. Because of this, we will be using credit cards only on our next cruise.

[terinzak]

On my recent cruise, RCI did not put a "hold" on my debit card. Nothing was charged either until the last day of the cruise. However, after I had been home 2 days, they charged my card for my son's soda card which was not on the final bill.

[Lisichka]

But the $80 is costs me to fill up my car now (AARGH!!!!!!:mad: :mad: ) is not reflected until the charge posts.

 

I have to fill up my car 3 times a week (17 gallons each time). I am with you on the AAARGH thing, although mine only is about $54.00 each time (still about $700 a month now).

 

It is cheaper to cruise than it is to drive.

[melsdt]

Hhhmmm, that is odd. I am pretty sure my debit card does not do that.

 

Lisichka <---- is known to be wrong more than she cares to admit

 

Me either. I always use my debit card, and didn't have any problems like this. In fact, each authorization was gone the following day, I believe.

[veryhotred]

An authorization is not an actual charge.....

 

It's not a charge but you better believe they put that amount in hold to make sure they can get that amount!!

[bankonus]

I have to fill up my car 3 times a week (17 gallons each time). I am with you on the AAARGH thing, although mine only is about $54.00 each time (still about $700 a month now).

 

It is cheaper to cruise than it is to drive.

 

 

Are you driving a tank???:eek:

[caitlyn20]

On our Freedom cruise, I used a debit card. Shouldn't have done it. But they authorized my daily charges. So at the end of the day, they would authorize the amount I charged for that day.

 

At the end of the cruise, they charge the entire amount in one lump sum, so until all those authorizations dropped off, I had double charges out of my account. I only use a credit card now.

 

Yep. I had the same problem. It takes 10 days for my bank to drop the charges.

 

Now I just use cash. I give them a cash deposit, and when that's gone, I just deposit more.

[forpaws]

I don't think a lot of debit card users even realize what can happen as far as authorizations until they get somewhere and their card doesn't work anymore because of the number of authorizations left hanging. I sure didn't!

[OGCFreddie]

It didn't hit me that way on the Sovereign, either. There was only one charge put on and my available never got hit more than once for each transaction (believe me...I would have noticed). I'm with a credit union. Maybe they handle things differently.

[firefly333]

On our Freedom cruise, I used a debit card. Shouldn't have done it. But they authorized my daily charges. So at the end of the day, they would authorize the amount I charged for that day.

 

At the end of the cruise, they charge the entire amount in one lump sum, so until all those authorizations dropped off, I had double charges out of my account. I only use a credit card now.

 

I used a debit card on Rhapsody and never had this problem. They only charged once all charges.

 

I did see a very small amount on the bank statement like $4.34, or something odd which went away. I have heard they put thru a small charge like that to make sure the account is good or something, but I have never seen anything like double charging, only a very small charge that was the authorization like someone said above. $4 showing until the actual charge goes thru is not going to hurt my account. It came right back off when the real charge went thru.

[forpaws]

I used a debit card on Rhapsody and never had this problem. They only charged once all charges.

 

I did see a very small amount on the bank statement like $4.34, or something odd which went away. I have heard they put thru a small charge like that to make sure the account is good or something, but I have never seen anything like double charging, only a very small charge that was the authorization like someone said above. $4 showing until the actual charge goes thru is not going to hurt my account. It came right back off when the real charge went thru.

 

Glad you haven't had to deal with it, but trust me, it DOES happen. If you do a thread search, a couple of months ago, there was a bank employee who posted and explained exactly how and why this type of authorization process works -

 

Just because it's never happened to you personally doesn't mean it doesn't happen. It DOES, and it DID. We're not making it up, and it's not that we don't understand how our cards work. :rolleyes:

[Autumnrose]

I have never had this happen either. I have only used my debit card on cruises. On the last day an authorization was put on the card for the amount of my account. About a week later the auth turned into the correct charge. There was never an auth and a charge. I check my account online everyday while on vacation and while at home. Keeping the auth on the account after the real charge has gone through is because of your bank not RCI. I had a similar situation with a car rental recently. After speaking with both the rental agencies billing department and then my bank I found out that is was my bank.

 

Sorry I just have to say this. I hate when I am told that something is "just an authorization and not a charge"! In my mind if I don't have access to that money at the moment I want it then it is a charge.:( Maybe a temporary charge but still a charge.

[forpaws]

Sorry I just have to say this. I hate when I am told that something is "just an authorization and not a charge"! In my mind if I don't have access to that money at the moment I want it then it is a charge.:( Maybe a temporary charge but still a charge.

 

I hate that too. My bank puts a daily spending limit on the debit card, and the authorizations + real charges can really impact the usability of the card on any given day. I can call my bank and temporarily have the daily limit bumped up, but if the need for it happens on a Saturday, I'm out of luck because they're closed.

[FitzLA]

I hate that too. My bank puts a daily spending limit on the debit card, and the authorizations + real charges can really impact the usability of the card on any given day. I can call my bank and temporarily have the daily limit bumped up, but if the need for it happens on a Saturday, I'm out of luck because they're closed.

 

That is the nice thing about Citibank. Daily charge allowance is very high. I was able to charge 8,000 at best buy in one day. I think they daily allowance is around $10,000. If I need to spend more than that, I will just use a credit card. And their call center is open 24/7

[Aquahound]

To the Op, check with your bank and let them know what you are doing. If your bank recognizes the charges on the ship to be a foreign ATM instead of a charge, you may be limited to your maximum daily withdrawal. This happened recently to a friend of mine and her account was froze on the ship until it was taken care of.

 

As for the authorization, I have an RCCL Visa. They always authorize about $50.00 more than the actual amount. Then when it clears, the actual amount is reflected.

[SmileMom]

Sorry about resurrecting this thread, but I have a question after reading everyone's posts...

 

Does RCI run authorizations through for each transaction at the time the transaction is made, on a daily basis, or in one lump sum at the end of the cruise? For example, if I attach my debit card to my SeaPass account, and at embarkation my checking account has a certain amount of dollars, but then payday (direct deposited into checking) is during the cruise, do I have to be aware of my spending until that payday money is in there, or can I just spend freely (well, not too freely) knowing the lump sum will be in my checking account by the end of the cruise when RCI will make the lump sum transaction? :confused:

[sajeffc]

I am in the travel industry and I deal with this everyday. It is not the same as going to the grocery store and completing a finite transaction. You are asking that hotel or cruise line to extend you credit for a few days that you will settle with your debit card at the end of the stay or cruise. They have to have some assurance that you will be able to pay your bill at the end of the week. So, they get an authorization that reserves estimated funds for them. In the hotel business we typically use the amount of room and tax plus $25 for incidentals times the number of nights your reservation is for. That is the amount we "reserve" for ourselves with your bank. It is all computerized unless your card gets declined. I'm sure the cruise lines have a similar process. When the bank computer "sees" a charge settled by that same company, it deletes the authorization or "hold". Once in a while, though, the computers don't relase the authorization properly and you get your card declined at the grocery store for no reason. You get some really nice phone calls when that happens....