Do you still notify your cc company of your travel plans

[DarrenM]

I suppose my issue is they are banks. I dont trust banks.

 

I also believe that big brother is watching folks every move.

 

In the UK I rail against ID cards and will never give a DNA sample willingly.

 

But banks are the worst.

 

The big short is my favourite film. Shame more bankers didnt go to jail.

 

 

[feathersandnananose]

11 hours ago, sparks1093 said:

Because if they notice unusual activity they may block the card for fraud and sometimes unusual activity can be activity in a place you've never been before. Best to be proactive and let them know because as many have mentioned having your card deactivated while traveling is a hassle.

Years ago,  we got a call from our credit card company about an expensive plane reservation made to Dubai.  Not us.....we were GRATEFUL for their vigilance.  It's a two-way street.  If you DON'T tell them, and then they decide to block you..... what are your options?  If you tell them beforehand.....  Just wondering and not sure what is best.

 

[sft429]

13 hours ago, feathersandnananose said:

Years ago,  we got a call from our credit card company about an expensive plane reservation made to Dubai.  Not us.....we were GRATEFUL for their vigilance.  It's a two-way street.  If you DON'T tell them, and then they decide to block you..... what are your options?  If you tell them beforehand.....  Just wondering and not sure what is best.

 

 

If they request that you call them.... call them. 

If they tell you there is no need to call them... don't call them.

[ontheweb]

OP back. There message is you do not need to call. I called anyway and said I have not had your card that long so you do not know we do foreign travel every summer and I don't want the card to be denied in (name of country). They took the information and said they would make note of it.

 

[cruisemom42]

17 hours ago, feathersandnananose said:

If you DON'T tell them, and then they decide to block you..... what are your options?  If you tell them beforehand.....  Just wondering and not sure what is best.

 

 

39 minutes ago, ontheweb said:

I called anyway and said I have not had your card that long so you do not know we do foreign travel every summer and I don't want the card to be denied in (name of country). They took the information and said they would make note of it.

 

 

If the company says they do not need the info, what do you realistically think they are going to do with it if you give it to them?  It's not like an actual person is going to go look up your paper file in a file cabinet and read a handwritten note that you are traveling, smack hand to forehead, and unblock your account. 

 

Likewise, there is probably no field where they can note this information in your computer profile, and the algorithm isn't going to go looking for it. 

 

My guess is that if some kind of unusual activity triggers a block, any info you provided in advance will not weigh in that decision one way or the other.

 

What is the best thing to do?  Make sure you have access to and monitor your account while traveling, and make sure whatever method of contact they will use should a question arise is one that you can actually respond to -- email, text, etc. If you do that, any blockage should be a simple matter of responding and telling them the transaction is legitimate and they will unblock your card.

[sail7seas]

4 hours ago, sft429 said:

 

If they request that you call them.... call them. 

If they tell you there is no need to call them... don't call them.

 

 

IF  only it was THAT simple for all of us.

 

Not so for a senior worman  traveling alone.   ( as in  REALLY alone..  no one with  me.)      if  I had no access to my cards I am in a pickle..  What works for one, does not work for all in  many circumtsances      One can only safely carry just     so much cash.

 

 

 

 

 

 

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[K32682]

I hold 5 credit cards from 4 Canadian banks.  Each says not to notify so I don't.  

 

Years ago I had a credit card suspended while on a foreign trip which created a somewhat awkward moment at a business dinner.  They'd already approved a hotel and car rental in the same country.  When I contacted the card company I was quite snottily told it was my fault because I hadn't informed them.  

 

When I got home a request to immediately cancel all my accounts (credit cards, savings, chequing, line of credit, business, investment) because of the poor treatment resulted in profuse apologies from the bank manager and a large number of loyalty points to retain my business. 🙂   

[iancal]

Only if it is required.  Some want it, others do not.

[CPT Trips]

I make the call unless I can notify the bank through the thier website.

[K32682]

28 minutes ago, iancal said:

Only if it is required.  Some want it, others do not.

 

Are the ones who still want it American credit card issuers?  They remain well behind the rest of the world in adopting the pin and chip technology. 

[geoherb]

My Visa card has a page on its website to notify them about my travel plans. Amex told me not to bother to call them the last time I tried. 

[SRF]

17 hours ago, sft429 said:

 

If they request that you call them.... call them. 

If they tell you there is no need to call them... don't call them.

 

Yes, it is that simple.

 

If they tell you no need to call them, and you do, THEY DO NOT KEEP THE INFO TO USE.

[SRF]

12 hours ago, sail7seas said:

IF  only it was THAT simple for all of us.

 

Not so for a senior worman  traveling alone.   ( as in  REALLY alone..  no one with  me.)      if  I had no access to my cards I am in a pickle..  What works for one, does not work for all in  many circumtsances      One can only safely carry just     so much cash.

 

Yes it is that simple.

 

If they tell you to not bother to call, and you do call.  They will be polite, and DO NOTHING DIFFERENT.

 

If it makes you feel better, do so, but it will NOT change whether they block your card or not.

 

And anyway, a simple phone call (I love my T-mobile international plan), and things are up and running.

[SRF]

On 8/17/2019 at 7:35 PM, DarrenM said:

Why do the card forms need to know where you are?

 

I must be missing something.

 

I have had many credit cards down the years and have never been required to do this from any of them. Including amex.

 

And to be honest I wouldnt have told them anyway.

 

I dont even tell family where I am going.😁

 

Because, in the past, if you lived in the UK, and all of a sudden your card was being using in Nigeria, they would wonder if it were stolen.

 

 

 

[SRF]

On 8/16/2019 at 6:48 AM, ldubs said:

 

I haven't seen this, yet.   Currently our Chase Visa asks for specific dates and countries to be visited.  Amex says don't call us, we got it covered.   

 

Hmm, my Chase cards don't seem to mind at all.

 

I have used both in various countries, without notification of any sort.

[ldubs]

12 hours ago, SRF said:

 

Hmm, my Chase cards don't seem to mind at all.

 

I have used both in various countries, without notification of any sort.

 

I think what you are saying is you elect not to make the travel notification and have not experienced any issues.   Not too surprising and good to hear.   We still elect to make the travel notice.  Pretty easy to do online.   

[snaebyllej]

It's been years since I called a credit card issuer, but I still enter my travel plans online if there is a mechanism for it.  Citi, Barclays and Bank of America have it, CapitalOne says not to bother.  I've never found a bank that wants me to register an ATM card, though.

 

 

[sail7seas]

13 hours ago, SRF said:

 

Yes it is that simple.

 

If they tell you to not bother to call, and you do call.  They will be polite, and DO NOTHING DIFFERENT.

 

If it makes you feel better, do so, but it will NOT change whether they block your card or not.

 

And anyway, a simple phone call (I love my T-mobile international plan), and things are up and running.

 

 

 

Shall I plan to call you if my cards are  refused when away from home? I think I'll do it My way seeing as I am the only  one responsile   for my safety and  needs?     A

 

 

 

mile in my shoes and all  that.................

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

[SRF]

On 8/19/2019 at 3:33 PM, ldubs said:

 

I think what you are saying is you elect not to make the travel notification and have not experienced any issues.   Not too surprising and good to hear.   We still elect to make the travel notice.  Pretty easy to do online.   

 

Yes, I don't make ANY notifications.  And have not had any issues with Chase or Amex.  My work card is Citi, and other than the one instance I mentioned, I have not had any issues.

 

And again, one phone call, and everything was fine.

 

If they have a way to notify, fine.  I still wonder what people think is happening, when their card company says to not notify, but they call anyway?

 

BTW, EVERY time I have had a card compromised, it has been IN THE US. 🙂

 

[SRF]

On 8/19/2019 at 4:43 PM, sail7seas said:

 

 

 

Shall I plan to call you if my cards are  refused when away from home? I think I'll do it My way seeing as I am the only  one responsile   for my safety and  needs?     A

 

 

 

mile in my shoes and all  that.................

 

 

 

 

 

If you card company says they do not need or want notification, what do you think you can accomplish by notifying them????????

 

At best, they make a note in a memo field, and after, they will apologize.

[ldubs]

7 hours ago, SRF said:

 

Yes, I don't make ANY notifications.  And have not had any issues with Chase or Amex.  My work card is Citi, and other than the one instance I mentioned, I have not had any issues.

 

And again, one phone call, and everything was fine.

 

If they have a way to notify, fine.  I still wonder what people think is happening, when their card company says to not notify, but they call anyway?

 

BTW, EVERY time I have had a card compromised, it has been IN THE US. 🙂

 

 

Earlier this year while in Copenhagen I received a notice from Amex that they had nipped some fraudulent activity happening in Florida.   As you say, it is pretty easy to deal with.  

 

I also wonder why someone would insist on providing out of country info when card company says it is not needed.  I would not assume that some kind of special watch is going be placed on the account.  IDK.  

  

[sparks1093]

I guess all that matters is that everyone does what makes them feel most comfortable, even if it means giving the CC folks info they don't want. I remember reserving a room in a French hotel through one of the online agencies and within a couple of days items were purchased in France on my card at two different boutiques. Didn't take the bank long to reverse the charges.

[SimplyMarvie]

I would never call for a credit card because my liability for unauthorized charges is laid out in the contract and limited. I DO call my bank when I'm going to be using my ATM/Debit card overseas. I bank with USAA who you would THINK would be great about this sort of thing, but the list of uncomfortable situations where they've randomly decided to turn my card off while I was overseas is long and storied. And trying to call them from overseas to sort things out is a screaming pain in the arse. 

 

(This is, by the way, not limited to overseas travel. I had the bank turn ALL of my and my husband's Visa cards off while we were moving to the east coast, which we discovered with a cart full of perishable groceries and only one MasterCard between us. When I called to report it the bank said "Well, but we saw a charge for gas in one state, and then a charge for food in another, and then a hotel charge in a third state... so, of course it was fraud." You know what else commonly creates that pattern of charges? A good old American Road Trip. *headdesk*)

[ilikeanswers]

19 hours ago, SRF said:

 

If you card company says they do not need or want notification, what do you think you can accomplish by notifying them????????

 

At best, they make a note in a memo field, and after, they will apologize.

 

It depends what they mean by you don't have to provide information. My bank says I don't have to provide information before I leave but that when I make an international purchase they will can me to check I made that purchase. So they do want to know where I am and they do make notes and since I travel to many countries in one visit it is more of a hassle to wait for that call than to give them the information before hand. I have had problems with my phone overseas and if I don't answer their calls they block my card and then I have to call them back to unblock my card which just ends up being more of a hassle. When I give the information beforehand I never have any of these problems. 

[SRF]

12 hours ago, SimplyMarvie said:

I would never call for a credit card because my liability for unauthorized charges is laid out in the contract and limited. I DO call my bank when I'm going to be using my ATM/Debit card overseas. I bank with USAA who you would THINK would be great about this sort of thing, but the list of uncomfortable situations where they've randomly decided to turn my card off while I was overseas is long and storied. And trying to call them from overseas to sort things out is a screaming pain in the arse. 

 

(This is, by the way, not limited to overseas travel. I had the bank turn ALL of my and my husband's Visa cards off while we were moving to the east coast, which we discovered with a cart full of perishable groceries and only one MasterCard between us. When I called to report it the bank said "Well, but we saw a charge for gas in one state, and then a charge for food in another, and then a hotel charge in a third state... so, of course it was fraud." You know what else commonly creates that pattern of charges? A good old American Road Trip. *headdesk*)

 

Interesting, as I bank with USAA.  But I don't use my debit card that much overseas.

 

Not as bad as the one I posted.  They turned off my WORK TRAVEL CARD as I paid a hotel bill in one county in the morning and tried to check into a hotel in another  country that evening.  AIRPLANES allow that. 😄