Guaranteed To Turn You On (Switch Card Services)

Member Name: blackjane

Product:	Switch Card Services
Date:	17/10/01 (1239 review reads)
Rating:

Advantages: Convenient, Widely accepted

Disadvantages: Funds required in your account :(

If like me, you like the convenience of cheques, but don't like the inconvenience of carrying round a bulky cheque book all the time, then Switch is a handy companion for a multitude of purposes. It is particularly useful for those of us, myself included, that occasionally have shopaholic tendencies.

A number of banks offer the Switch service, which is now widely accepted at the vast majority of retail stores and other outlets such as restaurants, hotels, leisure facilities and just about anywhere else where you might spend money. HSBC, NatWest, and The Bank of Ireland are three major players that offer Switch functionality to its account holders, being in the form of a plastic card. It is possible to pass this card over for payment, or even to quote the details (ie: card number, expiry date, issue number as well as your own details) via telephone or on a web site to purchase goods on-line. You will usually be asked to sign a receipt and will also be given a copy to keep for your own records (for any 'off-line' purchases.) It is worth holding on to these receipts for your own records.

Debit cards, such as Switch, offer a high degree of convenience, provided you have sufficient funds in your account. Switch is not the only debit card available - some banks offer Delta and others Visa, which is perhaps more commonly associated with credit cards, although the principle is the same in all instances. The major difference will be which debit cards are accepted at which outlets. Switch is now very widely available, as is Visa, although Delta is also becoming much more commonplace as well.

The amount that you have spent using Switch will usually be debited from your account the next working day, although in some instances it may take 3-7 working days or sometimes longer for it to show on your account. If you do not have sufficient funds in your account at the time of purchase then you would be better advised to use a credit card that a
llows you to pay off your account in stages if you wish. However, it is worth noting that you will be subject to interest charges if you choose to pay off a credit card balance in instalments rather than paying off the entire amount in full. Debit card purchases do not occur any interest as the amount is taken directly from your account soon after purchase, in much the same way it would do with a cheque.

Switch negates the requirement to carry large amounts of cash around with you, and is therefore a safer and more secure method of payment with a lower risk. Of course, card fraud is possible and it is as well to keep a regular check to ensure your card has not been stolen and to study your statements regularly to ensure that no unauthorised payments have taken place. I use Switch several times each month - at the shops, at the petrol station, and increasingly on-line. I also have a credit card but tend to keep that reserved for more significant purchases.

Switch can also be used to get cash back in a growing numbers of outlets, including supermarkets and some pubs. This can prove to be particularly handy if there isn't an appropriate cash machine nearby. For example, if you buy £40 of groceries, you could use your Switch card to pay for them, and also to get up to £50 cash back. If you take full advantage, you will have paid for your goods, with £90 billed to your account, and £50 in your pocket to spend elsewhere.

Increasing numbers of customers are realising the benefits and convenience that Switch offers - have you joined the revolution yet?

{An original Dooyoo opinion
© Blackjane 2001}

Summary: