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Review of the VIP Visa Card
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The VIP Visa Card was last reviewed on 25th September 2006.
Summary - The VIP Visa Card is a basic prepaid debit card that will appeal to those with either no credit or bad credit who want the spending discipline that a prepaid credit card imposes.Let us look at this card in greater detail.
Application Fees - When you apply for the VIP Visa Card you will be charged a non-refundable application fee of $59.00 and a processing fee of $90.00. You also need to load an initial balance of $10.00 into the card. Hence, your total initial charge is $159.00. You will be charged a monthly fee of $8.90, which works out to a total of $106.80 annually.
Methods of loading - There are various ways which you can load your VIP Visa card. Firstly, you can load them via Direct Deposit from your employer. There is no limit as to how much funds you can load via direct deposit. You can also load your card via another debit Card or from your bank account.
Cardholders will be charged a fee when you load your card. There is a $1.00 charge each time you load via direct deposit and bank account to card reload. There is also a $0.50 charge each time you use the card to make a purchase at a merchant or for online purchase.
Funding Limits - There are a few funding limits that cardholders of the VIP Visa Card have to observe.
1. There is no limit upon the maximum amount that may be transferred to your Card by an employer for your regular work payment.
2. You may not load more than $500 or less than $25 onto the card at any one time from your Funding Account.
3. The Card may not be loaded more than twice per day or ten times per week, nor for more than $1,500 per day or $5,000 per week.
ATM Withdrawal - You can also use the card to withdraw money from ATM machines or even from merchants. You are allowed to withdraw up to $300 within 24 hours from ATMs. The maximum cash back service cardholders can receive from a merchant (upon a purchase) is $50.00. Cardholders will be charged $1.50 for each ATM withdrawal.
Verdict - The VIP Visa® Card is a basic prepaid credit card with pretty much standard fees. It will appeal to those looking for a prepaid debit card to help control their credit card spending. As it is a prepaid card, this card will not help you build or rebuild your credit history.
Update - As of 27th September, the VIP Visa Card is no longer being offered.
Positives
No credit or employment checksCan be used anywhere Visa is used
Negatives
Fees - which are typical in these type of cards
| VIP Visa Card |
| Cost/Fees |
| Annual Fee |
$No annual fee |
| Monthly Maintanence Fee |
$4.95 (Holographic Debit Card)
$3.95 (ATM Card) Withdrawal limit is $300 a day |
| Application Fee |
$59.00 |
| Processing Fee |
$90.00 |
| Card to Card Reload Fee |
$1.00 |
| Bank Account to Card Reload Fee |
$1.00 |
| Direct Deposit Reload Fee |
$1.00 |
| Purchase at Merchant Fee |
$0.50 |
| Purchase Online Fee |
0.50 |
| Telephone Purchase Fee |
$0.50 |
| ATM Withdrawal Fee |
$1.50 |
| Point of Sale Withdrawal Fee |
$0.00 |
| Live Teller Withdrawal Fee |
$1.50 |
| ATM Balance Inquiry |
$1.00 |
| Online Balance Inquiry/Service Fee |
$0.10 |
| Automated Telephone Inquiry/Service Fee |
$0.50 |
| Customer Live Call Fee |
$3.00 |
| Paper Statement Fee |
$5.00 |
| Card replacement/cancellation/reactivation Fee |
$5.00 |
| Maximum Load |
Not more than twice a day or ten times a week
not more than $1,500 a day or $5,000 a week |
| Maximum ATM Withdrawal |
$300 within 24 hours |
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