POLL: How many credit cards do you have?

[BlobVanDam]

^ Do you do a lot of online shopping? Remember what I said about that. If you shop online with a debit card and hackers get ahold of your account information, they can go right to your bank account and drain it dry *instantly*. With a credit card, you can dispute the charge and not be out any money while it's investigated.

True, most banks with any shred of human decency will let you dispute a charge with a debit card as well, but that can take time. You don't get your money back as quickly as you lost it. If an outstanding check or other charge comes in while you're getting that investigated, it'll bounce. With a disputed charge on a credit card, no money changes hands in the first place.

Valid points. I definitely had initial hesitations using my card online for this reason. I use PayPal whenever possible, and when I use my card, I only stick to a few select safe sites I trust. I do a fair bit of online shopping, but only on a handful of sites.
And I'm very careful online with security, such as having good virus software, avoiding scams, checking links, safe browser etc. And I regularly check my transaction history online to make sure I notice anything suspicious quickly.
For my situation I still feel a debit card is more suitable right now. I'm not saying a debit card is better than a credit card, just that I feel it's the most suitable for my current situation. I don't earn a lot, and I don't spend a lot.

 

[Miss Chicken]

I have a special debit card account which is linked to my regular account. If I want to make an online purchase I moved money into that account from my main account. My debit card cannot be used to take money out of my main account. This means that if hackers do get my debit card number they can only take money out from second account so would be lucky to get more than a handful of dollars.

 

[Mr. Laser Beam]

I'm not saying a debit card is better than a credit card, just that I feel it's the most suitable for my current situation. I don't earn a lot, and I don't spend a lot.

Fair enough. But if you do a lot of online shopping in your situation, you might want to look into getting a prepaid VISA or MC gift card. AFAIK, you can use them online just like a regular credit card.

Or, failing that, just get gift cards from wherever you shop. I know Amazon has them. And it's how I shop from iTunes as well.

 

[propita]

My one non-Amex, non-dept store, non-gas card (that’s 4 cards there) is with USAA, my primary bank. We keep getting unsolicited card applications in the mail from all sorts of institutions. All that means to me is: this part gets thrown away, this part gets shredded.

 

[SPCTRE]

I just wanted to add that I only spend what I can actually afford. So earlier this year, I ordered a new bed (with a new mattress) and a new couch. Well, I put both purchases on my credit card. I had enough money in my account to pay for everything, however using a CC is just more convenient.

I also shop online quite a bit (mostly Blu-rays and video games) so I'd be screwed without a CC.

Same here, basically.

I only use my prepaid credit card for online purchases. Almost all of my videogames and DVDs/Blu-rays are shipped from Amazon.co.uk, which requires a CC.

 

[Nerys Ghemor]

Fair enough. But if you do a lot of online shopping in your situation, you might want to look into getting a prepaid VISA or MC gift card. AFAIK, you can use them online just like a regular credit card.

You can. I pay my TrekBBS membership that way each year.

 

[propita]

I’ll say this for Amex, they did come through. I bought a replacement battery for my brother-in-law’s Dell laptop but didn’t have a chance to check it until AFTER the "21 days from date of order” had passed. It didn’t work and they wouldn’t refund the money. I called up Amex to dispute the bill. While technically it didn’t break after purchase, that they could tell, they disputed the claim anyway. I got credited the amount and returned both crappy batteries. Yay for Amex on that one.

However, they did misread a check payment as $11,000 instead of $1,100. Fortunately, we had transferred money into the checking account to use as a car downpayment, so it didn’t bounce and screw our credit. But they took a while to straighten out--which it shouldn’t have since I called them before the check cleared. I didn’t stop payment because then we’d’ve been late with our payment and screw our credit. The fix was ultimately easy, but shouldn’t’ve taken so long. I pay online now.

 

[SmoothieX]

Two.

One is an AmEx affiliated with Delta that gets me FF miles. It's got some other nice perks with it too.

The other is a Visa affiliated with Alaska Airlines that I rarely use. It's more to use when I need to charge something for work or that will otherwise be submitted for reimbursement. It's nice to be able to submit a bill with 1 item on it rather than having them see everything I've charged lately.

 

[Starbreaker]

None. Credit cards are the devil.

 

[Holdfast]

Even if you personally manage it, the reason the companies exist is to make money off of the poor, the desperate, and the fools.

And why should they not be charged interest to borrow? They can see what the terms and conditions are and take responsibility for their own actions.

It's not as if they do not get a service in return. The poor and desperate get access to some temporary credit, albeit at a high rate of interest (and a lower rate and in a safer manner than using the door-to-door loan-sharks they turn to otherwise); and the fools are better off parted from their money as it is doing more good circulating around the economy than it is lining their pockets.

In return for the irresponsible actions of the feckless, I get free rewards, no annual fee on the card, the usual grace period of no interest, and the extra protection that using a credit card offers. The credit card companies get no complaints from me.