In this day and age it makes sense to want to have a credit card. Spend large ammounts of money without carrying the cash on you, a prime source for online verification (paypal/ebay anyone?) and ofcourse good ol' online purchasing.
Some people however are not able to be approved for credit cards , sometimed even our own banks don't accept us! Even if your account appears to be in good standing. Unemployed students get offered credit cards alot ( I did) normal unemployed people get turned down left right and center even a few selfemployed. Fact is if you're unemplyed, have poor credit rating or even perhaps a new british citizen in the UK you're out of luck!
The old "Get a switch/solo , get a maestro" just doesn't cut it anymore it's not as widely accepted an actual decent alternative could be a visa electron(debit card) but even aquiring one of those can be hard.
Now you can get a prepaid credit card, they're actually not that new of a product. Italy, Canada and the US are just some of the countries who have had similar products for over 2 years.
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------- So
what is this Cash Plus Card with the mastercard logo? -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Well think of it like the top up cards we now use for our mobiles but with a Mastercard logo with all the benefits of being accepted all over the world and accepted basically everywhere on the net.
You can spend what you have topped up on the card, if you do not have enough funds your card will simply be declined. Think of this as a Visa electron being that it looks like a credit card but acts as a debit card witha Mastercard Logo. The difference is there's no "overdraft" and you obviously can't buy anything on "credit" so there's no debt.
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Ok so I can only spend what I put on it cool but what's the catch? this sounds too good to be true will they really accept me? --------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Well if you're applying online or In a retail store for a cashplus prepaid mastercard you will need some ID. Photo ID such as a Passport or a Drivers License and a utility/bank statement/building society letter that was recently mailed to you proving address.
Incase you need it pointed out you need to be 18 or older also.
If you can provide these details congratulations on finally being accepted!
AND THAT'S IT!
----------------------------------------------------------------- Excellent but before I sign up what are the fees? ----------------------------------------------------------------- Ah yes the fees. Alot of people get confused at this point but I'll explain it very simply for you.
First off when you are accepted for your card you will have to pay an issue fee to have your card made and mailed out. This is only paid once and it's £9.95
ok here is where people get confused the Monthly fees! First off there are 2 type of cashplus services you can have "Activeplus" and "Flexiplus" when you first recieve your card you will be on the Activeplus service you can switch to flexiplus and back ANYTIME online with a click of the button instantly.
ACTIVEPLUS! • f you're on the Active package you pay a £4.95 a month subscription fee. • You are not charged for purchases you make.
FLEXIPLUS! • If you're on the Flexi package you do not pay any monthly fee! • You are charged £1 for each purchase you make! • If you Fail to make any purchase/transaction in the month you'll be charged £4.95
Other Fees • ATM Withdraw £2 (UK) £3(Abroad) • Cash withdraw at bank £3 •Reload by Cash/Debit card is FREE • checking your balance/transactions online is FREE • payment processing fee • If you use your card abroad expect a 2.75% charge of the purchase/withdraw fee.
If you plan to cancel the card it's £10 and please do it on a £0 or near enough £ balance to avoid confusion.
---------------------------------------------------------------- Customer Service ---------------------------------------------------------------- You'll get a tastse of customer service right when your card arrived, when you go to register your card account on their site your given a secuity code to activate the account online (which you will use to check your balances and transactions etc etc) You actually have to phone up their customer services for this secuity code although this is done fairly quickly your charged a wapping 50p!!!! a minute for the call on your Mastercard no less!! Don't worry though the call is usually complete within 1 minute just be ready for this early with enough funds on your card.
After that's complete relax your done calling that number for a long while all details can now be checked on your online account :) at no fee.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- How long will it take for my card to be mailed out? Is this worth it? ---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- After you've payed the issue fee after being accepted it takes 7-10 for you to recieve your card. Sometimes you recieve it sooner You'll get two cards, the mastercard and a reload card which you use at the post office to add money.
Is all of this worth it? It really depends on your reasons for getting this card. In all honesty the fees are not that much of a trouble if you know what your doing. For example one month you may not play to use your card serious at all so you could switch from active to flexi make a small cheap purchse and avoid the 4.95 charge then switch back to active when you do plan to use your card heavily to avoid the £1 per transaction fee of the flexi service.
The ATM fees are avoidable in my opinion even people with regular credit cards on average never use it to withdraw cash however if you have to just be aware of the fee especially if your using your card abroad. This card can be very useful for people going on holiday or spending time abroad for a long period. You could simply leave the reload card card with a family member or friend who can top it up in the UK and you spend while abroad.
If you're an avid online purchaser this can be invaluable for you, good for gaming monthly fees, purchasing items online (not everything accepts Paypal). Useful for *cough* adult sites (sorry had to be said) Also there is a certain "cool" factor to handing over a mastercard when you make purchases in a store or resturant admittedly.
So should you get it? In my opinion if you have limited choices and can afford the mesely monthly fee I say absolutely. I myself have had one for 3 months and I'm very happy I hope the fees change in the future but you know what I can live with it until I can/decide to apply to a "regular" credit card elsewhere.
------------------------------------- Ok I'm sold where do I go? ------------------------------------- Go to www.mycashplus.co.uk or www.myuniquecard.co.uk (unique card is the same thing from the same company just different name and card design.
You can apply online or use its search system for a retail outlet to sign up with an actual representative.
How helpful would this review be to a person making a buying decision? Rating guidelines
Very good first review. The fees do seem quite high, but at least you're not getting into debt and paying interest. Liz
shazzaspannered 28.12.2006 22:44
I have recently got one of these cards - I don't want a credit card but need something I can use to puchase stuff online and this is perfect. I notice that Ministry of Sound also do one now that is a lot cheaper so I may well look into getting one of those too.
ghost_w1 28.12.2006 22:37
Excellent review, have never heard of this before but will look into it further! I love the idea but i dont think it really for me as im useless at saving, I love my credit card too much! :) ♥
Advantages: Honestly can not think of any. Disadvantages: Missing topups, only contact is extortionate 0871 number (90p per min), very unprofessional customer services
Jimbo37 07.03.2008 (12.03.2008)
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Review of Cash Plus Mastercard
Advantages: Honestly can not think of any. Disadvantages: Missing topups, only contact is extortionate 0871 number (90p per min), very unprofessional customer services
Jimbo37 07.03.2008 (12.03.2008)
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Ciao members have rated this review on average: helpful
Review of Cash Plus Mastercard
Advantages: Fabulous for people who cant trust themselves with credit Disadvantages: Pay for initial card and monthly fee, takes a couple of days for the top up to credit
margomac 11.02.2006 (11.02.2006)
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Review of Mastercard
Advantages: Cheapest way to have foreign cash and make purchases Disadvantages: Without a backup source of money or payment system, if it fails for whatever reason, then you could have a problem. But that applies to whatever method chosen. The foreign bank that owns the ATM could charge a handling fee, but that applies to all cards.
exceptional by (8%):
very helpful by (85%):
helpful by (8%):
