Warning :Debit card locked, notify your bank before travelling

Burning Bridges

In France at the moment, I tried to withdraw money from an ATM and was declined, I tried again and was declined. I went to another ATM and again was declined.

I called my bank who told me that because I had not told them I was traveling , my debit card was declined, and because I had tried three times it was now locked.

I cannot unlock it until I get back to Ireland.:mad:

So no access to funds unless I use my credit card.

Just a warning to others to infer their bank before traveling .

RossieMan

Its a common policy. So people who aren't you can't take your funds.

athtrasna

Aib have an online facility where you can flag upcoming overseas travel but only 7 days in advance

Atlantic Dawn

Kind of overkill really, if you have the pin you should be trusted worldwide without any notice. The issue of cloning arrises in backward countries like the US where no pin is required for purchases.

dory

Permanent TSB blocked my card for paying a recurring bill while abroad. Thought I couldn't be at home paying a direct debit and also be on hoildays. Aren't they smart?!

JIdontknow

Just on this issue, if anyone is travelling and has BOI online banking, you can do your credit card travel authorization on the online website.

when you log in click manage accounts, online service desk, and then credit card travel authorization from drop down menu...

RedXIV

Ulster bank actually have no use for the information that you are going travelling. I forget every time I'm going away and ring them but they just say "that's grand but we don't inform fraud department or anything"

whiskeyman

I thought they'd unlock it once you give them enough security info?
Happened to me a few years ago when I never told them. I was with AIB at the time.
Took about an hour to switch back on.

Fred Swanson

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Celtic Tiger

I've used my BoI mastercard all over the world with no problems. However my Visa debit card was locked last year in India. Once I rang the bank they reactivated it over the phone and just told me not to try to take out more than €100 worth of currency.

Burning Bridges

whiskeyman wrote: »

I thought they'd unlock it once you give them enough security info?
Happened to me a few years ago when I never told them. I was with AIB at the time.
Took about an hour to switch back on.

No , they cannot do it apparently, because I tried to withdraw 3 times , I effectively locked my card.

coylemj

Burning Bridges wrote: »

No , they cannot do it apparently, because I tried to withdraw 3 times , I effectively locked my card.

You need to give some serious thought before attempting to use a card in a machine after two refusals. If abroad I'd usually use a different card (even a credit card) to get cash to tide me over and find out why the original card was declined before trying it again because the third refusal almost always has consequences as described above.

Burning Bridges

I had been accepted earlier at a petrol station after being initially declined.

So I went to the first cash machine , declined , tried again declined, left it until I got to another machine and was declined , then called.

Really should not have tried a third time.

keithclancy

Never had a problem with my Avantcard Visa Card anywhere i've visited in Asia, the US, The Caribbean or Africa.

My Dutch Bank Card I have to Activate the a World profile if I travel outside of Europe.

naughtysmurf

I always notify them in advance, Ptsb, only issue I've ever had was with their Visa credit card in the US, which whether you notify them or not, I suspect they block first usage, so you have to call them to verify your whereabouts, (same happened my missus on same trip) never a problem in Europe once notified in advance

Princess Consuela Bananahammock

News to me. I travel once or twice a month with work and I've never had a problem. Never even considered the need to tell the bank I was travelling, nor have they felt the need to act.

connundrum

What is the trigger point for locking a card though?

I'm just back from Denmark having used and withdrawn money on both AIB and BOI cards without issue.

Last year I used both cards in Brazil without issue.

Ages ago I did have a PTSB card blocked while attempting to use it in Vegas (not the worst time to block a card tbh).

keithclancy

connundrum wrote: »

What is the trigger point for locking a card though?

I'm just back from Denmark having used and withdrawn money on both AIB and BOI cards without issue.

Last year I used both cards in Brazil without issue.

Ages ago I did have a PTSB card blocked while attempting to use it in Vegas (not the worst time to block a card tbh).

This was the old policy of ABN Amro, certain countries were seen as high risk.

The United States, Indonesia, Vietnam, Thailand to name a few.

They changed the policy to have Europe or World profiles to stop confusing the customer on where their card would work and where it would not.

Strangely the United States is seen as the most high risk of all, with most of the worlds Card fraud occurring there.

tannytantans

I always call PTSB before I go on holidays - and they still always block my card! (usually in USA). It's a pain to have to call to get it unblocked, not to mentioned embarrassing (my card has been blocked as I'm paying for goods at the counter).

Wanderer78

op this happened me in australia years ago. luckily realised something was up after a couple of goes and rang the bank. would have been a disaster of a holiday if it was blocked. be warned folks.

Atlantic Dawn

The whole system is crazy, basically they want to cover themselves in backward countries where even if you only know your pin your car can be compromised. There should be an opt out where if your pin is used by someone else you are responsible for the loss but if the card is used for purchases without pin they are responsible. Just cheap ass credit/debit card companies unwilling to have the same standards worldwide.

I don't like having to tell my bank every time I go on holidays, it's like asking your parents can you go to the shops.

rainbow kirby

Had the option to add travel information for my cards on the Lloyds Bank and AIB sites, did so for both, no problems in the US on honeymoon. Was absolutely crucial that my cards worked because OH was having issues with NatWest at the time and had no functional cards.

jaymcg91

I called BOI before I went away 2 weeks to say I was travelling, gave the locations and dates etc. Then they still blocked it halfway through my trip "just to check I was still away". I mean it wasn't the guy who picked up the phone's fault but REALLY. A little excessive. Especially because the fraud alert was triggered on a $9 Chipotle meal .

solerina

My PTSB visa & debit card both got stopped on holidays in New York last year. I rang them tho and they unblocked both...was a hassle to ring them though as the push button numbers didn't work for some reason so I had problems and had to get my mother to get them to ring me.

danimalitoX

Fred Swanson wrote: »

This post has been deleted.

I'm in a similar position, i travel globally 6-9 months/ year, i've never informed the bank and have never had a card blocked. I'm starting to think it's more likely they block a card if you ring the bank beforehand.

jaymcg91

danimalitoX wrote: »

I'm in a similar position, i travel globally 6-9 months/ year, i've never informed the bank and have never had a card blocked. I'm starting to think it's more likely they block a card if you ring the bank beforehand.

No they say it'll definitely be stopped if you don't call. I've got no idea, it's an automatic system that stops it so who knows what the criteria is.

mikemac1

AIB didn't block me when I was inter railing in Eastern Europe but there was a letter waiting for me on my return asking me to call them. We verified every transaction so all good

AIB online banking has the option to notify them on travel plans but this is no guarantee you won't be blocked.

Their computer automatically blocks you if you fail some rule and the note you left on the account us for the staff when they review it. That may be a few hours later though.

The banks are very automated and telling your bank in advance won't stop the computer saying no.

danimalitoX

I was curious so asked a mate in AIB about it who works the floor in a branch, she says that if you have a pattern of regular foreign withdrawals they won't block the card, it's more if you don't travel much that you are at risk.

If you call into the branch to tell them you are travelling, she would tell you to do it online or throw you onto the card department in D1.

I'm told that they should make an attempt to get in touch with you before blocking anything, so best to have your mobile phone contact details up-to-date.

368100

All that calling beforehand does is puts a note in the card so if a transaction is picked up that's potentially fraudulent and is manually reviewed, if it ties in with where you're travelling it'll be authorised eventually. Complex series of rules are running in the background of the banks fraud systems and things are 99% automated. You'll never know what triggers a stop on a card for obvious reasons and those rules are always changing in order to keep up with fraudsters.

Atlantic Dawn

368100 wrote: »

All that calling beforehand does is puts a note in the card so if a transaction is picked up that's potentially fraudulent and is manually reviewed, if it ties in with where you're travelling it'll be authorised eventually. Complex series of rules are running in the background of the banks fraud systems and things are 99% automated. You'll never know what triggers a stop on a card for obvious reasons and those rules are always changing in order to keep up with fraudsters.

Yes but it's a complete pain if your travelling and it's your only source of money and you are using it as intended with the pin and they block it, it should not be locked it you are using the pin unless you opt in to some kind of child lock type system for idiots who write their pin on the card or use 1234 as their pin and then call Joe Duffy on their return to say they were ripped of by some "advanced cyber crime".

Celly Smunt

When dealing with ulster bank before head off the response is always.

"that's fine, but just to let you know we're going to block your card anyway"

Rediculous carry on.

DEmeant0r

I'm with bank of Ireland, using a visa debit contactless card and I've never had any issue while travelling abroad and I never had to tell them I was travelling. I normally only travel to places in mainland Europe and the UK.

Atlantic Dawn

DEmeant0r wrote: »

I'm with bank of Ireland, using a visa debit contactless card and I've never had any issue while travelling abroad and I never had to tell them I was travelling. I normally only travel to places in mainland Europe and the UK.

Those areas are secure with chip and pin, it's when your outside of these areas in backward non chip and pin countries that the problem arrises.

spurious

Problems can also arise with a card where your room is prepaid but hotel reception is putting through a small test payment on your card - in case you wreck the gaf presumably.

If this amount is very small (I know ibis insist on trying for just 1c) it will be rejected by PTSB. If they put through one euro it works.

368100

Atlantic Dawn wrote: »

Yes but it's a complete pain if your travelling and it's your only source of money and you are using it as intended with the pin and they block it, it should not be locked it you are using the pin unless you opt in to some kind of child lock type system for idiots who write their pin on the card or use 1234 as their pin and then call Joe Duffy on their return to say they were ripped of by some "advanced cyber crime".

I agree but not every country is chip and pin enabled so that's no good until they all take on that security.

Also pins can be compromised with skimming a card at an atm and having a camera to record your pin input.

What I'm saying is that there will always have to be some sort of random checking as any security tech that is introduced, a fraudster will always find a way around it.

jaymcg91

Yeah it's always the US as opposed to short haul Europe, because it's just swipe.

BuffyBot

Each bank has it's own individual policies, and on the next level it's own fraud detection algorithms and policies.

Saying "I did X..and nothing happened" is no help as different circumstances will have different results.

The simple answer is to check with your card provider and work from there.

Burning Bridges

368100 wrote: »

All that calling beforehand does is puts a note in the card so if a transaction is picked up that's potentially fraudulent and is manually reviewed, if it ties in with where you're travelling it'll be authorised eventually. Complex series of rules are running in the background of the banks fraud systems and things are 99% automated. You'll never know what triggers a stop on a card for obvious reasons and those rules are always changing in order to keep up with fraudsters.

I had used my card to withdraw money in Hong Kong in March with out any issues.
I was blocked in France, luckily I had a CC or I would have to rely on an emergency money transfer.

Just warning people to tell their banks before travelling.

Fred Swanson

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Stinicker

I am a former Bank of Ireland customer specifically due to this issue, the Bank of Ireland would purposely limit my card to around €100 withdrawals so that they could rip me off in their outrageous overseas fees, placing insanely low withdrawal limits and sometimes just plain outright blocking my cards completely. I remember having to go to the ATM in Thailand once before midnight again after it to get my hands on around €200 worth of Baht, and then afterwards seeing Bank of Ireland had charged me over €15 in their rip-off fees. I had always informed the Bank before I travelled but I since closed all my accounts and pulled my savings out too from BOI. I now have an EBS Account with a Mastercard Debit Card, never have any problems using it abroad and their fees are much lower. Bank of Ireland are just a shower of rip-off merchants. And all of

jaymcg91

Stinicker wrote: »

I am a former Bank of Ireland customer specifically due to this issue, the Bank of Ireland would purposely limit my card to around €100 withdrawals so that they could rip me off in their outrageous overseas fees, placing insanely low withdrawal limits and sometimes just plain outright blocking my cards completely. I remember having to go to the ATM in Thailand once before midnight again after it to get my hands on around €200 worth of Baht, and then afterwards seeing Bank of Ireland had charged me over €15 in their rip-off fees. I had always informed the Bank before I travelled but I since closed all my accounts and pulled my savings out too from BOI. I now have an EBS Account with a Mastercard Debit Card, never have any problems using it abroad and their fees are much lower. Bank of Ireland are just a shower of rip-off merchants. And all of

Really? I took $180USD out a few weeks back and was charged €4 or something. They must have changed their rates or something since you did it.