Cards blocked while overseas

[amaroo]

Never had a card out of order.

I've just started to inform the bank of travel intention. Very quick and painless via their on-line service.

 

[erkpod]

Told both my major card providers I was going OS & still had letters waiting for me when I got home. Cards not suspended, though.

 

[here2go]

Bankwest have a webform for advising you are traveling OS, and I know they check it, as they have studiously failed to put my middle name on my account, so I get a phone call saying they can't find my details.

 

[Princess Fiona]

Woolies EDR card was blocked last month in the LOTFAP. No notification but card was declined in Whistler. I rang up and was advised that it was blocked due to suspicious transactions including one at the Apple Store NY. This was 7 weeks into an 8 week trip and the card had been used in every destination between HKG and MCO. I don't rate their fraud department after that

 

[dairyfloss]

I've been a Citi Visa Signature cardholder for many years, and while it's happened once in a while, it's been pretty manageable for mine. I recall telling them at some point that I travel... a lot... and we're going to get on a lot better if they just focus on suspicious, rather then international alone. Most recent 'hold' was for my first QF ticket on a certain .br website. Fair enough I guess - never been to Brazil, and never purchased online from there either. All in all, few dramas.

Cheers.

 

[blackcat20]

I always let my bank know when I'm travelling and never had a problem. They've rung me once to check a transaction was actually me and that's it.

 

[zig]

Have never had my cards blocked whilst travelling. Like others here have reported I always ring and tell them dates of travel and countries I will be in.

 

[Pushka]

It's happened to me but the credit card provider swears it wasn't them but the merchant. And I did advise the CC provider before I left. Mine was also 28 degrees.

It's made me go backwards in time. I now carry much more cash than I used to.

 

[RooFlyer]

Woolies EDR card was blocked last month in the LOTFAP. No notification but card was declined in Whistler. I rang up and was advised that it was blocked due to suspicious transactions including one at the Apple Store NY. This was 7 weeks into an 8 week trip and the card had been used in every destination between HKG and MCO. I don't rate their fraud department after that

Don't understand your deprecation of the card operators (not arguing, just trying to understand). You were on a long o/s trip and presumably your travels can be tracked by the 'crumbs' of card transactions. According to the card operator, they saw 'suspicious' transactions in a particular location, so blocked the card. Isn't that reasonable?

If the card people saw that you had 4 transactions in BC, then 'suddenly' (or at the same time) 'you' bought a bunch of stuff in NY, including at Apple (which I guess would be one of the main places for fraudsters to load up), then 'suddenly' you were back in BC, I would hope that card bells would go off. Nicer if they gave you a call to see what was up, but it seems reasonable to me.

Or are you saying there was never any evidence of the NY transactions and you doubt their occurrence?

(Once, I had to rush out and get more supplies for an office party. When I was walking out of the second liquor store (this is in Oz), having 'loaded up' in that and another store before, 10 mins earlier, I got a call from the card people. "Are you suddenly buying lots of booze?". Yes! "No problem, just checking." )

 

[Archphoto]

I have no problems with them being vigilant, however how hard is it to confirm before they block (or cancel) the card?

Sending a letter rather defeats the purpose - if you're away you're definitely not going to get it; a phone call to check if the transaction is legitimate shows customer service in action rather than leaving your client in a (potential) fix.

Been there and it wasn't pretty - they refused to reinstate the card and my Amex wasn't acceptable. Thankfully a colleague was willing to cover the cash amount for me - but could have all been resolved amicably with one simple phone call (to confirm what they had been told prior to the trip) and cancelling of the card would not have been needed.

And sure enough, when I got home, a letter confirming the cancellation was waiting for me. . . . . .:evil:

 

[anat0l]

I have no problems with them being vigilant, however how hard is it to confirm before they block (or cancel) the card?

I guess the problem is that they are sometimes in a rock and hard place.

If they don't block the card initially then ask you to confirm, how do they do this. If they try phone, that's fine, except not everyone checks their phone immediately, let alone if you are overseas, who necessarily has roaming? (You might say, well then nuts and tough luck to those who choose not to be so contactable, but so there. Maybe companies should consider taking Skype accounts or the like for alternative contact methods).

Email can work but again the problems are related to the time delay between sending the email and receiving any confirmation of the situation (whether it be genuine or fraud). The length of that delay, even if measured in hours, can give rise to other transactions which may need to be similarly checked.

Again, being overseas out of normal range of packet data or constant internet connectivity can complicate all of this.

I guess it comes down to what's a better customer failsafe - let the card user do whatever and then follow up on possibly fraudulent transactions (and then clean up any mess following that), or block the card first to stop any more possible fraud? Customers complain about both scenarios, i.e. both the inconvenience caused by having to action based on either failsafe scenario, and complaining that their card provider should adopt the opposite model.

Suffice to say, I have at least a card each which uses either model. I find that 28 Degrees is more of a block first approach, whereas American Express seems to take a more follow-up on suspicious or large transactions approach. For Amex, I've had contact both via phone and email (and sometimes both).

I have to say I lied when I said I haven't had a block situation before, but I kind of blame myself for this one. I was making a purchase on a Brazilian website (no prizes for guessing what it was ) whilst in Australia using my 28 Degrees, which was rejected (I saw the message online). Problem was, as I found out, the merchant makes two transactions on the card for the one purchase, and one of those transactions had succeeded but the other not, however the system didn't autocancel the first given the failure of the second. I called 28 Degrees and found this all out, and they gave the all clear for a new transaction to occur from this merchant. I called the merchant and got them to cancel the transaction from the first failed purchase, then proceeded to make a new purchase without issue.

 

[drron]

I used to have cards blocked when I was in the habit of informing the banks of my travels.Twice it happened when I pre authorised a payment-DC and Citibank.
Since I have given up telling the banks when I am travelling I have had no problems.
Of course often I am home for only 3-4 months a year.

 

[Princess Fiona]

Don't understand your deprecation of the card operators (not arguing, just trying to understand). You were on a long o/s trip and presumably your travels can be tracked by the 'crumbs' of card transactions. According to the card operator, they saw 'suspicious' transactions in a particular location, so blocked the card. Isn't that reasonable?

If the card people saw that you had 4 transactions in BC, then 'suddenly' (or at the same time) 'you' bought a bunch of stuff in NY, including at Apple (which I guess would be one of the main places for fraudsters to load up), then 'suddenly' you were back in BC, I would hope that card bells would go off. Nicer if they gave you a call to see what was up, but it seems reasonable to me.

Or are you saying there was never any evidence of the NY transactions and you doubt their occurrence?

(Once, I had to rush out and get more supplies for an office party. When I was walking out of the second liquor store (this is in Oz), having 'loaded up' in that and another store before, 10 mins earlier, I got a call from the card people. "Are you suddenly buying lots of booze?". Yes! "No problem, just checking." )

The Apple NYC transaction was several weeks prior to Woolies blocking the card. Transactions at BOS/DCA/MSY in the interim had not apparently triggered the card block.

 

[Cynicor]

I don't bother telling them where I am, in general. If they call for something unrelated then I might mention it, but it seems that they eventually get a handle on international transactions and how frequently one travels.

 

[JohnK]

I have told credit card companies at times when i have been travelling. Only ever issue was trying to use Citibank in Taiwan to withdraw some cash. Impossible.

Nicer if they gave you a call to see what was up, but it seems reasonable to me.

On a side note do people answer their Australian phones when they are roaming overseas? I have taken 2 phones with me the past 2 trips and keep my Australian sim in at all times but I do not answer the phone thanks to the high roaming charges. Anyone important enough will have my Thai number.

 

[TomVexille]

I have told credit card companies at times when i have been travelling. Only ever issue was trying to use Citibank in Taiwan to withdraw some cash. Impossible.


On a side note do people answer their Australian phones when they are roaming overseas? I have taken 2 phones with me the past 2 trips and keep my Australian sim in at all times but I do not answer the phone thanks to the high roaming charges. Anyone important enough will have my Thai number.

Quite often my Australian sim is not in my phone while overseas, so it would be difficult for my bank to contact me.

 

[mushez]

My Australian number is "Call Forwarded" to my office number prior to boarding/phone off for take off. Just a quick swipe in settings on my iPhone.

My office knows my number for where I am going or email the office as soon as I buy my SIM when I land so they can call me or give it to anyone who does.

 

[Simo]

On a side note do people answer their Australian phones when they are roaming overseas? I have taken 2 phones with me the past 2 trips and keep my Australian sim in at all times but I do not answer the phone thanks to the high roaming charges. Anyone important enough will have my Thai number.

I use my phone OS just for phone calls.

Try and keep them to a minimum but.

 

[Simo]

My Australian number is "Call Forwarded" to my office number prior to boarding/phone off for take off. Just a quick swipe in settings on my iPhone.

My office knows my number for where I am going or email the office as soon as I buy my SIM when I land so they can call me or give it to anyone who does.

But how do you go with calls from friends and family when OS and the office is not open.

A lot of the time when I am OS I am catching up with friends and they only have my Aussie number.

 

[amaroo]

I use my phone OS just for phone calls.

Try and keep them to a minimum but.

I'm the same. If you don't gas bag the cost is bugger all. I use hotel and airline lounge wifi so I don't need to walk around the globe with my head buried in a phone

The convenience of having one number/phone out weighs the cost by a country mile IMHO.