Green Dot MasterCard – Review
The Green Dot Visa & MasterCard are prepaid debit cards. You may be unfamiliar with debit cards so let me explain the basics.
This is not like an unsecured card where the company issues it and attaches a limit on which they then charge interest as it is used. With this you must deposit money and then that amount then becomes your limit.
Instead of making purchases and paying for them later and the interest rate and associated fees. You pay beforehand by loading cash amounts. The issuer is Columbus Bank and Trust Company.
You will need to reload money onto the card. The minimum amount of the initial load is $20 and the maximum amount of the initial load is $2,500.
You can not have more than $2,500 loaded on the card at any given time. To load or reload your Green Dot card, you may have a portion of your paycheck directly deposited to your card or you may purchase a Green Dot MoneyPak universal reload from locations such as Rite Aid, CVS, Eckerd, Radio Shack, The Pantry and other participating merchants. The MoneyPak costs $4.95.
The card charges a $4.95 per month maintenance fee, $2.50 for each ATM transaction ($3.00 per international ATM transaction, $4.00 per cash advance from a teller or non-ATM transaction), up to $1.00 per call to obtain your balance using the interactive voice response system or a live operator, and $10 fee to replace a lost or stolen card. Always be sure to read the Terms and Conditions before applying.
Columbus Bank and Trust Company also offer a Premier version of this card. Be sure to research the Premier card fees before moving forward.
Fees include a one-time $19.95 membership enrollment fee and a $5.00 fee per month if you do not load $750 per month to the card. Additional charges may accrue if you use an ATM.
Likewise, if you purchase one of these cards at a store, the retailer will charge an initial activation fee and a reload fee. Be sure to check with the retailer for the costs involved with purchasing one of these cards.
I do not suggest these cards, however it depend on your situation and why you need the card. Again, personally, I don’t really feel that I want to pay to call someone’s answering machine.
I also don’t want to pay $5 per month merely because I don’t reload $750 per month. I believe I should be the one to decide how much a balance I want to maintain.
Additionally, there are other cards which allow more flexibility as to reload options.
Popularity: 9% [?]
I was laid off from my job of 15 years and needed to cancel all of my credit cards, and my bank account has recently been closed due to insufficient funds.
I have been using a prepaid card called Pr1macard MasterCard, and it is just like having a checking account again, without all the minimum balance requirements.