I haven't posted on here before. I am 42 months into my IVA, desperately wanting the remaining 18 to go really quickly....wishing my life away!
We need to hire a car to go on holiday this year as we are unsure that our car will make it. The problem is that you can't hire a car without a debit or credit card, don't really want to ask somebody else to do it for us either. We have applied for the Co-op current account and have our fingers crossed that we will get accepted for that and get a debit card, if so problem solved! If that doesn't work does anybody have any other suggestions???
I have a paypal card but had a nasty experience last week with it, somebody had managed to take some money off it and when I went to pay for fuel in my car it was declined for insufficient funds which was rather embarrasing as I had to walk to a cash point to pay. However with the clearcash card you can request a balance by text message which takes seconds and would have saved me a very red face.
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Not all pre paid cards allow you to hire a car so it's worth checking that before you pay for one. I know the Cashplus prepaid card will let you hire a car, although you have to use the card for a few months and then ask customer service to add it on for you.
Also make sure you compare fees for the card - some of them can be quite high. I think the Cashplus card is around £1 per use or £4.95 a month depending on which type you choose.
You also need to check what you are actually getting as some cards are very basic but the clearcash card offers a lot of additional services that the other cards don't.
IVA.co.uk The best place for debt advice. Thanks to Melanie Giles, David Mond, David and J (Elv5) Kallis, Dand, Skippy, Andy Davie
Will it allow you to hire a car? Most cards don't, hence recommending the Cashplus card, which also gives you the same protection as a normal credit card if you pay for something using it.
Also, if the card isn't going to be used very often it's not worth paying a monthly fee, you'd be better off choosing a 'pay as you go' option.
ppi insurance is included with the clearcash card and as it is a mastercard I beleive it is accepeted nearly everywhere and should be fine for car hire. There is a live chat on thier website for any questions which is also an excellent way of making sure that you get what you want.
IVA.co.uk The best place for debt advice. Thanks to Melanie Giles, David Mond, David and J (Elv5) Kallis, Dand, Skippy, Andy Davie
You will never convince me that paying for a card is the way to go when I can get free banking.
There is another card out there - Secure Trust - which does the same as the Clearcash card, but also has direct debits. It's a bit more expensive though.
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I still think £9.99 a month is a lot. Personally while I can get a free bank account (Co-op Cashminder) I wouldn't pay for one. If I needed a Mastercard I would choose one of the cheaper ones such as the Tuxedo, or if I needed to hire a car, the Cashplus as just because it's a Mastercard it doesn't necessarily mean you can use it to hire a car - you need to check the Ts & Cs.
I dont think the secure trust has ppi insurance and the cashback deals that clearcash does. What really convinces me with the clearcash card is being able to obtain a balance by text message and not stood at the petrol pump trying to count on your fingers how much you have left on your card. When I was with Lloyds TSB prior to IVA there was still a monthly fee of between £8 and £15 for the current account.
IVA.co.uk The best place for debt advice. Thanks to Melanie Giles, David Mond, David and J (Elv5) Kallis, Dand, Skippy, Andy Davie
you also need to have your salary paid into the secure trust. Basically you get a current account which you pay your salary into then they put an agreed amount monthly onto the prepaid card.
IVA.co.uk The best place for debt advice. Thanks to Melanie Giles, David Mond, David and J (Elv5) Kallis, Dand, Skippy, Andy Davie
Personally if I had no option other than to pay for an account I'd go for the Secure Trust one as I couldn't manage without a direct debit facility. Paying bills would be a nightmare without it.
I had a prepaid card for a while, but after I opened a second Cashminder account I don't need it - I have DDs coming out of one and petrol and spending money in the other. I begrudged having to pay to spend my own money, and also paying to withdraw it.
Regarding the text message facility - make sure you're not charged by your provider for the texts. Although it's a free service from the card issuer some mobile companies charge.
