Credit cards..important ?

[heatherandfred]

Hi every one.

 

Does anybody notify their credit card company that they are going on vacation and to not be alarmed if they receive any unusual charges, because it's you traveling and not someone who stole your card.

 

What's your strategy?

[reallyitsmema]

I will definitely be calling to notify my CC company. I don't want a hold put on my account and ruin my shopping fun.:)

[OceanDreamin]

I called my CC company. I figure the time it took to make the phone call is definitely worth the peace of mind by not having to worry about having my CC declined for "fraudulent" charges.

[paul929207]

I do not contact the cc companies. I have never had a problem.

[alexspepaw]

I have never had a problem on a cruise...however if I am flying overseas I always contact them.

[mr green]

Hi every one.

 

Does anybody notify their credit card company that they are going on vacation and to not be alarmed if they receive any unusual charges, because it's you traveling and not someone who stole your card.

 

What's your strategy?

 

NOTIFY THEM. I had my card stolen just prior to one cruise, and my CCC knew that it was being used in the wrong place, and at the wrong time. They canclled the card on the spot. I DID carry a spare card, so no real harm was done.

 

john

[ger_77]

We always notify our credit card company, that way they won't stop purchases in places where we aren't normally found. Even if we're just heading "down south" into the US, we advise them and that way they know it's us, not somebody using our stolen cc. It's particularly important when travelling to Europe because if you decide to pick up something a little pricey and put it on your card, you won't have to worry about the card being declined.

 

Smooth Sailing! :) :) :)

[isujim]

ALWAYS notify them.........no matter what the trip..........

[LHT28]

We always call them when we leave the Province!

[bankerbabe]

With fraud detection software becoming more and more sophisticated - and fraudulent activity costing banks a pretty penny - you will hear of more transactions that are declined as suspected fraud. The software used by credit card companies is designed to detect anything unusual about the card's use, and usage outside of your normal area is one very big red flag for those looking at fraudulent activities.

 

I would highly recommend calling your credit card company to let them know you will be travelling outside of your regular area. Some people have been lucky so far, but it would really put a damper on your vacation plans if the credit card company put a freeze on your card and you were unable to use it.

[blindrid]

We do not but I might add on my last trip when I got home there were a few messages from their fraud department.

[Wiseone24]

I plan on calling 2 of my credit card companies just in case. The other cards I am leaving at home since I won't need them and less risk of loss. I might also notify my bank in case i need to use an ATM machine on the ship.

[kruisecat]

This is not something I have ever thought to do, but it makes perfect sense! That's what I love about CC you learn something new everyday!

 

Thanks and happy cruising :D

[Andee]

We started calling them after Visa called me to ask about unusual purchases when my husband was buying me some jewelry while in Sao Paolo, Brazil on business, and the surprise was ruined.

 

Buying jewelry in other countries isn't an unusual purchase for us--and to make matters worse, the Visa charge wouldn't go through. The very trusting jeweler gave my husband his business card along with the jeweltry, telling him, "Send the money to my US bank account when you get home."

[Krazy Kruizers]

We always call AmEx about a week before we leave home and give them the dates and places we will be traveling to. That way they won't have to worry when they see a large amount get charged from a foreign place.

[Keith1010]

Absolutely. You should call your credit card companies and let them know the dates you are traveling and where you will be traveling. Likewise, you should do the same for your ATM card(s).

 

Keith

[bigwally]

Our credit card company (Chase) makes us mental with the fraud account holds. Happens all the time while we're here, so it would DEFINITELY kick in if we went overseas without telling them!

 

Make sure you take a toll number for customer service with you too. Primarily in case you loose your card, but also in case they put a fraud hold on the account anyhow and you have to call and yell at them. I had to do this at the airport once over a gate upgrade charge or something. Didn't even make it out of the country AND I had already called them to say that I was going to be travelling.

[Wiseone24]

Our credit card company (Chase) makes us mental with the fraud account holds. Happens all the time while we're here, so it would DEFINITELY kick in if we went overseas without telling them!

 

Make sure you take a toll number for customer service with you too. Primarily in case you loose your card, but also in case they put a fraud hold on the account anyhow and you have to call and yell at them. I had to do this at the airport once over a gate upgrade charge or something. Didn't even make it out of the country AND I had already called them to say that I was going to be travelling.

I had the same experience with Chase. One day I went on a shopping spree locally and that night they called me to verify that it was me who made all those purchases. I almost felt like saying No. LOL! But I guess it is nice that they do that to play it safe.

[cruzermon]

For the most part, I want as few people as possible to know when I'm not home, so I don't notify the credit card company unless we hit many countries in a short period of time. As long as they are only a phone call away to resolve , even if it is an international call, I prefer to keep my travel plans private.

 

Besides, all my fraud alerts have been locally triggered from normal purchases. And, the one foreign trip we did take that alerted the fraud patrol wasn't triggered until we charged our parking at the home airport. Maybe they figured we had charged tickets to Paris, booked 3 different hotel stays there-well in advance--so maybe local charges from Paris really weren't out of the ordinary. But the San Jose Ca charge must have been over the top.:rolleyes:

 

I'm not too impressed with our card's fraud detection system, it's more a pain-in-the-butt than anything else. Much as they say it's for our protection, it's really for theirs, so I am grudgingly accepting. So long as they don't call me more than twice a year, I'll be happy.

[Plant]

We also notify our credit card companies when we cruise.

 

When we bought a new computer at a "Big Box Store" here at home we were called that evening to verify that we bought it. They said that buying any expensive electronics triggers a notice. I appreciated them being so careful!

[phoenix1181]

Letting your credit card bank know where and when you'll be traveling doesn't guarantee your card won't get shut off. It helps............. but it can still happen. Unless you're willing to accept full responsibility for payment of fraudulent transactions made when your card is lost/stolen or the number compromised? :eek: Make sure you have a backup card. I do this every day. Knowing someone is going to be in a particular location doesn't guarantee they're the one using the card and once the transaction has been authorized, the merchant gets paid and the bank eats it.

[Sandi149]

Hi every one.

 

Does anybody notify their credit card company that they are going on vacation and to not be alarmed if they receive any unusual charges, because it's you traveling and not someone who stole your card.

 

What's your strategy?

 

As a matter of fact I just called my cc company tonight. I think it's a very good idea to do so. One time when I was in Florida and made a few purchases they called me a few days after I came home and asked if we had made the purchases on those particular dates. I am glad that they called us up when they see a charge that is "not the norm".

[GreatLakes]

We always notify our credit card company when we travel on vacation. If you plan to use a debit card as well, you may want to notify your bank so they can make a notation in their system. My hubby carries one credit card; I carry another credit card - just in case - and we don't keep them in our wallet, but rather in the security belt under our belt (particularly in Europe). Hope this helps.

[4timer]

:( :( We only take 2 credit cards when we cruise. Good thing we did in April. We were on the Glory, and we were visiting 3 ports. In our last port we had a card declined. It was the same one we had secured the sign and sail with. We purchased some jewelry, in our last port, then 1 hour later tried to make another purchase. The card was declined. Good thing we carry 2 cards. It seems that Carnival was billing by the day. When we got home there was a message on the machine from the CC Co, asking if we were making these purchases. Like that helped. :rolleyes: WE WEREN'T HOME. So even thou my DH never saw the need to notify, we will now.

[snaebyllej]

CapitalOne is very quick to decline foreign charges if they haven't been notified.

 

Another reason to talk to them in advance is so they can tell you what telephone # to call if you have problems when you're out of the country; it won't be the usual US toll-free one.