The number of bank cards used in everyday life is constantly growing. One of the most popular types of this payment instrument is deservedly considered a debit card. It is a registered financial document that is designed to store funds in a specially created account and perform cashless payment or replenishment operations. For the onevanilla balance this is important.
The popularity of debit cards is due to several factors. The following features of the payment and financial instrument under consideration can be identified as the most significant:
- Tariffs set by banks for debit cards are lower than for credit
- Terms of service imply the impossibility of spending funds that exceed actually available money on the card
- Efficiency of financial transactions, most of which are carried out instantly
- The possibility of free registration provided by a large number of banks
- Interest on the balance of the account provided for some types of debit cards.
Often a debit card is issued for crediting wages, pensions or benefits. Some enterprises include in the social package provided to employees the manufacture of such a financial instrument and its use for making various payments between the company and the employee. The low level of tariffs and the inability to spend more than what is on the account makes debit cards an extremely convenient and efficient payment tool. If the conditions of the issuing bank provide for the possibility of accruing interest on the balance of funds, it also becomes beneficial for the owner.
Debit Card Service
One of the main elements of advertising campaigns conducted by banks when issuing debit cards is a mandatory mention that the tariff for their service is either low or not at all. This is rightly considered one of the main advantages of this type of cards. However, it is necessary to take into account the fact that there are many varieties of debit plastic, among which there is such a tendency, the more solid the card, the higher the cost of its maintenance. There are practically no exceptions to this rule.
Free debit cards
It should be understood that, when talking about a free debit card in an advertisement, banks do not mention the annual service fee. In some fairly rare cases, even it is not charged, but usually this refers to the most primitive plastic options an unnamed instant release card. As a rule, it is made out in the form of an incentive when receiving a large loan or during any advertising campaign. Examples of such free cards are MasterCard Maestro, Visa Electron and Pension Maestro. The functionality of such products is also very limited.
Service cost
Obviously, a debit card that provides the owner with a full range of functionality is rarely free. Moreover, in most cases, the main feature of the financial instrument under consideration is retained the fees for servicing debit plastic are lower than the rates set for credit. The exact amount of the service charge varies widely and depends mainly on the functionality provided. For example, in debit cards issued by bank, the tariff can range from 60 dollar per year for the simplest to 10,000 dollar per year for premium varieties of the product.