I purchased a kitchen appliance from a major DIY retailer online this Friday and paid via my bank debit card. Shortly after it was delivered yesterday we noticed a scratch on the freezer door. We called the stores customer service immediately and they offered to refund 10% of the purchase price....we agreed.
This morning a store employee called and wanted the card number because it was an internet purchase they didn't have all the card info.
We gave him the info authorizing them to refund the 10%.
I went online later today and noticed that they had charged me an additional $672.17. When we called the store we were told that they had charged us the corrected price and issued a refund for what we paid originally. The new charge went through immediately but the refund didn't. We are now several hundred dollars overdrawn and being charged $32 for each overdrawn item. We are going through hell trying to get them to correct it.
Can they do this??
I feel for you! That's why I never use debit cards. It's straight credit cards online and cash in person.
Good luck!
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I'd be contacting Corporate since you weren't informed of the new charge during the phone call. If they were going to issue/adjust a charge I'd imagine they should at least say something ahead of time.
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...and think that are the best thing since sliced bread
(me)
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Even if it were a CC transaction, that's a sleazy way of doing things.
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That is how check cards work. You may want to use a normal credit card in the future, one with a monthly statement set-up that is not linked to your checking account.
The store did nothing wrong. They don't even know if you used a check card or a credit card. It takes longer for refunds to post than purchases for some reason. If your bank values you as a customer, they will remove the overdrafts from your account once the refund posts and you call and explain the situation to them. Don't expect them to ever remove any overdrafts for you in the future, though, if they do it this time.
Not all retailers are set up to "refund 10 percent of the purchase price" as a flat refund in that manner. Some have to reverse the old transaction then initiate a new transaction at the new lower price. Other retailers are set up to just process a price adjustmeht where you receive a refund in the amount of the difference and the original charge just remains. Rather than trying to second guess what kind of refund system a given retailer uses, it is a lot easier to just use a standard credit card that is not tied to your checking account to avoid this type of problem. There are many free, no annual fee credit cards out there that will not cost you a dime to use as long as you pay in full each month. You may even make a few bucks a month using a standard credit card if you can find a rebate card that suits your needs.
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I can do a
or
I can refund $672.17
...then charge $604.95
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And for some people they are indeed the greatest thing since sliced bread.
This does, however, show a real weakness of the card.
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To me that sounds like fraud. My recommendation is get the card hotlisted right now and get a new one. Call your bank as soon as they open, tell them you want you card hotlisted/carded because you suspect fraud and when the charges and credits hard post (It takes 3 to 4 business days to hard post)tell them you will be in to fill out a dispute form and get a new card. Do not every give your card number over the phone like you did. The employee just used it to charge you more. You can still get a credit even with the card hotlisted.
Here the normal policy
For debit card with 2 business days the loss is $50.00
2 to 60 business days the loss is $500.00
60 or more business days all the money plus any overdraft.
Both MasterCard and Visa has extended there zero liability to their debit cards. If you need to claim this. You may need to request a special form from your bank. This does not apply to pin transactions. (However, I think visa interlink may be covered under this but you would have to prove it went through this network).
Regulation E requires banks to give provisional credit within 10 business day of a written dispute. They have 45 days (90 days international) to investigate
Technically it is the 11th business day (even if the bank credits you on the 10th business day, you won't be able to use tell the 11th business day.)
Another rule that is sometimes overlooked is this
for unauthorized transfers involving only your debit card number (not the loss of the card), you are liable only for transfers that occur after 60 days following the mailing of your bank statement containing the unauthorized use and before you report the loss. This info was obtained from
For that rule above it does not matter if your card was used as a pin or a signature transaction.
That may not fit in your case except for regulation E. What you need to do is when you file a dispute, tell them in the note section of the dispute form. You want to claim the zero liability policy of either Mastercard or Visa. Tell them you were also incorrectly charged. You want a credit plus a refund of the overdraft charges. Remind them in the note section of regulation E, they have to give you provisional credit within 10 business days of a written dispute. It wouldn't hurt to go ahead and ask for provisional credit.
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And for some people they are indeed the greatest thing since sliced bread.
This does, however, show a real weakness of the card.
George,
DazedNConfused made a honest mistake that anyone can make if caught off guard and is nothing to be embarrassed about, a lot of people do this with either a credit or debit card. This does not show the weakness of the card. Just for your information it takes 3 days or more for a credit to appear with a credit card.
You run into the exact same problem with a credit card. Instead of just overdraft fees. You can get hit with over limit fees and higher interest and cause other adverse actions.
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Living on the edge is dangerous, either with a debit or a credit card. But I think the odds of someone having a cushion is higher with a credit card than a debit card. (Personally, just to avoid overdrafts and other budgetary headaches I keep 1 month worth of expenses in my checking, but I think I am an exception). Besides, the over the limit fee is charged just once, and not multiple times as in the case of bounced checks due to a overdrawn checking account. Also, merchants charge you for every returned check as well. Debit cards have their place, but no one in their right mind will use it over a credit card. You cannot even rent a car without a hard while using debit.
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No webworm there would not have been any over limit fees with a normal credit card.
The transactions process and are pending.
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*** Balance 719.99
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LBCS yes some companies do allow you to rent a cars and get a hotel room with a debit card. However, they put a bigger hold on it.
a few Merchants only charge you a restocking fee.
to thelowpriceleader
Yes it would go over the limit. Let assume your credit line is $1,000
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over the limit and yes some credit cards will charge you, even if you go over the limit for one second. Some companies will even do an AA (Adverse action).
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They may not charge you overdraft fee each time, they will charge you each month if your account remains over the limit.
I do not make this stuff up. Some of it is from reading creditboards, the other is reading news articles.
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Yup, with a nice hard inquiry.
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Yup, with a nice hard inquiry.
hard inquiry
Car- Maybe and can be blocked with a security freeze.
Hotel-No
Hmm, I wonder how they do that in Germany. Since, most hotels and car rentals do not take credit cards. They are mainly a cash society with a debit card of sorts. They use maestro debit card. Works with the EC. So, they can use the card outside of Germany. Now, tourist can also use their Maestro card if their banks support international pin pos transactions.
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Yup, with a nice hard inquiry.
hard inquiry
Car- Maybe and can be blocked with a security freeze.
Hotel-No
Hmm, I wonder how they do that in Germany. Since, most hotels and car rentals do not take credit cards. They are mainly a cash society with a debit card of sorts. They use maestro debit card. Works with the EC. So, they can use the card outside of Germany. Now, tourist can also use their Maestro card if their banks support international pin pos transactions.
If a rental agency pulls a report and finds a security freeze, no car for you. If they find "no report", then you *might* get a card, depending on other circumstances. This from a friend of mine who works for Dollar.
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Probably so, but that's a function of the card holder, not the card itself. It's just as easy to carry 90% utilization and make minimum payments as it is to run your checking down to single-digit balances.
I also agree that bottoming out a checking account can get expensive in a hurry, while going OL with a credit card normally only results in a single fee being charged. Of course if that happens, there is the matter of the interest you'll be paying on that maxed card balance- perhaps for years. (40-60% of card holders carry a balance from month to month depending on which statistics you believe)
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Probably so, but that's a function of the card holder, not the card itself. It's just as easy to carry 90% utilization and make minimum payments as it is to run your checking down to single-digit balances.
I also agree that bottoming out a checking account can get expensive in a hurry, while going OL with a credit card normally only results in a single fee being charged. Of course if that happens, there is the matter of the interest you'll be paying on that maxed card balance- perhaps for years. (40-60% of card holders carry a balance from month to month depending on which statistics you believe)
True. Sometimes I forget that there are people outside of CB too :-)