Can you rent cars, purchase airline ticket, etc. with a prepaid credit card. I'm maxed out on my cc, and I don't want to take money to pay the balance down, just to recharge a amount again.
All a PCC is is a 'debit' card in theory, with a 'bank' which charges you up to $10-50 to make a deposit. Take what you would pay to put on the card and the re-charge fee, and put it on the regular CC's.
To answer your question, when renting a car, there are 2 parts to the transaction: 1. Presenting a credit card before getting the car. They get a pre-authorization for the estimated cost of the rental. CAN NOT USE A DEBIT CARD OR PREPAID CREDIT CARD 2. Paying for the rental when turning in the car. CAN BE PAID WITH A DEBIT OR PREPAID CREDIT CARD. You could try calling the credit card company and asking that they authorize that one purchase or at least give the preauthorization and that you will use another means when actually paying for the rental. Dave
FYI: There are many prepaid or "loadable" debit cards. They can be used for most typical transacations. For car rentals, they charge the card for the anticipated amount of the rental. When the card is returned, they credit the account for anything over the cost of the rental. I call the car rental agency I want to use before reserving to determine if they honor one of the cards I have. I am still cleaning up poor credit, and use prepaid debit cards. Visa Buxx - My spouse uses a checking account check card to fund it. Although it is for students, anyone can get one. The only down side - you can only fund it with another credit card. Since it is a student card, the fees are minimal ($3.00 to load funds - no per transaction fee). www.visabuxx.com American Express Prepaid Travel Card - Our family got one for vacations. We did not trust using the Visa check card tied to a checking account for renting cars and booking hotels. http://www10.americanexpress.com/sif/cda/page/0,1641,18622,00.asp NetSpend Master Card - I got this just to have a card I can load quickly with cash. You get one and can load it at Ace Cash Express sites for $2.00. The money is on the card in 15 minutes. The fees are high; a $1.00 per transaction, so I don't use this one often - and only in an emergency. I am self-employed and must use the internet for business purchasing, and need a Visa or Master Card for these purchases. www.netspend.com I recently applied for the National City and the Bank of America secured cards as an alternative for car rentals and business transactions.
