SP... don't have a credit card?

[Studio 110 by Sophia 150333]

I would like to take this opportunity to share a piece of knowledge with you that a new SP may not know. If you are like most starting out, you may not have a credit card which is essential for travel and for booking hotels.

Don't stress, there are ways to get around this. If you go to money mart and ask for a Pre-paid Titanium VISA, your problem is solved. You can choose how much you want to put on it, fee's are cheep, and is accepted everywhere that a VISA is( not rental car). I use mine for flight, reservations, and hotels. I use it for my phone payments, ads, etc...so hope this helps anyone out there having a hard time with credit cards:)

[VedaSloan 119179]

Thanks for this! I don't have a credit card (well I do, but it's a student VISA with a limit of $300 and my mom still pays it for me--thanks mom!)

[EmilyRushton 253356]

The money mart credit card is not accepted in allot of hotels as it does not have raised numbers. A few banks and other company's offer a pre-paid secured card which is a better choice.

[roamingguy 300292]

I was going to suggest as Emily did, get a pre-paid card...generally they work by you giving a deposit, that deposit is your card limit.

One thing I do is pay cash as I go, my card I use for reservations, but I request that I pay for the room in cash, I only use the card to secure a reservation...that way I don't use credit of any sort for seeing ladies, just the cash I have

RG

[LeeRichards 177238]

I do a lot of online purchasing so I don't use my regular credit card but use a Bank of Montreal Pre-paid Mastercard. You upload to it from your bank account. It is usually on your mastercard by 6 PM the next day. There is no monthly fee. Just a charge as you use it which is very fair and not much different from a debit card. Online banking access same as a checking account / regular mastercard customer. You also collect air miles if that is your sort of thing. FYI

[Studio 110 by Sophia 150333]

Yes, a secure credit card is ideal , but a secure credit card requires a minimum amount of 1000$ I believe?. With this pre-paid you can choose your amount you start with. I have used it for the fallowing chains: Delta, Crown, Best Western, Minto Suites, Ramada....really is that not good enough? Plus It requires no paper work other than your address( hehehe) and phone number Photo ID. If you are going threw a bank institution they require a load of info that some may not be able to give out.

Just FYI for those who may be held back for CC reasons.

[roamingguy 300292]

Don't quote me since I don't have one, and best way to find out for sure is go to different banks. Whatever you deposit to the bank/financial institution for security is the limit on your card...you need a $500.00 limit, deposit $500.00 for example

The secured card is one means to help people rebuild credit, so if all you can afford is $500.00 that should be it

But best way to find out is to go to a bank and find out

RG

[Studio 110 by Sophia 150333]

For sure, If you are doing it to build your credit, then yes, a secure card is best. But the VISA Titanium offer's you a secondary method of paying with out giving away much info or commitment.

[sugarandspice24 100]

thank you for the useful information I think they also have pre paided cards at 711

[sugarandspice24 100]

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[Guest M***re***e]

Yes you can use a titanium (or other prepaid) visa to book a hotel or car rental but they will not let you use it for the "hold" they need to reserve while you are using the room (or car).

You need to provide either a traditional cc or a cash deposit for that. (reason being is that they can "push" through a transaction at a later date on your credit card after the hold is expired if there are damages or any outstanding fees. On a prepaid card, there is no credit limit that they can dig in to).

Capital One offers a "secured" Mastercard that only requires a small deposit (I started with $75) and they give you a small credit limit (somewhere between $200-$500). Its not much but usually enough to cover a 1-night hotel room security deposit.

[Studio 110 by Sophia 150333]

I also use mine for expedia and hotwire. I booked my 4 day stay threw expedia, and just gave 200$ deposit to hotel the day I arrived. It is always good to get a hold of the hotel and check out there policies for sec. deposit. You would not want to pay $$$ for your hotel with expedia and find out they do not accept cash sec deposit, as you may not get refunded.

[roamingguy 300292]

Yes you can use a titanium (or other prepaid) visa to book a hotel or car rental but they will not let you use it for the "hold" they need to reserve while you are using the room (or car).

You need to provide either a traditional cc or a cash deposit for that. (reason being is that they can "push" through a transaction at a later date on your credit card after the hold is expired if there are damages or any outstanding fees. On a prepaid card, there is no credit limit that they can dig in to).

Capital One offers a "secured" Mastercard that only requires a small deposit (I started with $75) and they give you a small credit limit (somewhere between $200-$500). Its not much but usually enough to cover a 1-night hotel room security deposit.

 

The cash deposit is less about damages than it is about a customer racking up additional room charges (ie long distance phone calls, room service for example) If someone really trashed the room, a couple hundred dollars wouldn't even begin to cover it

RG