Does anyone know about mastercard giftcards

[fulfam]

Is there a fee associated with the card? Do they sell them in only certain denominations? I looked at mastercard.com but they only had 2 to choose from and the one I looked at said you could only buy it if you were in a state that had washington mutual bank. But I know they sell the cards at various locations like convenience stores and pharmacies.

[AndreaInNC]

The ones I've seen do have an activation fee. I'd check with your local bank as I know my kids have gotten some from their Grandmother's bank ..

[labgeek]

The ones I see around here at Food Lion, Radio Shack, Rite-Aid, etc. are Green Dot cards... http://www.greendotcorp.com and they offer reloadable Visa and Mastercards. The problem is it's $9.95 to buy, and $4.95 every reload... I looked at it for presents for younger relatives, but that's a lot of overhead. I think they'd rather I go someplace I know they'd shop and pick up the store's gift card usually with no service charge and place that extra $10 on the gift itself.

 

Call your bank and ask about gift cards... I know Wachovia has them. For $1.95!! But are not reloadable.http://www.wachovia.com/personal/page/0,,11_482_8409,00.html

[Sunshyne]

Here's a link to places you can buy a Visa gift card. Some of them are free through a bank if you have an account.

 

http://usa.visa.com/personal/cards/prepaid/visa_gift_card_order.jsp?it=c|%2Fpersonal%2Fcards%2Fprepaid%2Fgift_card_how%2Ehtml|Purchase%20a%20Visa%20Gift%20card

[fulfam]

Thanks! I called our credit union and they said they do have them and the cost is 5.00 which isn't too bad.

[Kayakmom]

I actually asked about this in Deal Finder forum a few days ago, but didn't really find any useful information. I know that you can buy the American Express gift cards for $4.95 at AAA. I wanted to buy several, including one for my son's teacher who is in a bit of a bind right now. We will be doing the usual class gift collection and thought that this would be the best thing for her right now. I know that Commerce Bank offers Visa gift cards free for customers and Wachovia offers them for $1.95 for customers. I checked with my bank, Bank of America, and the telephone banking center said they have them at the branches but the branches do not have them. Most of the ones you will find at gas stations and other stores have a $9.95 fee. The other thing to remember with most of these cards (and tell the receivers) is that after 6 months, they start to accrue a monthly fee, typically about $3.50. It's wise to use them within the 6 months to avoid the charge that begins on the first day of the seventh month. Be sure to read the fine print on the specific card that you end up buying.

[AndreaInNC]

Walgreens is showing a $100.00 Visa Gift Card with an activation fee of $5.95 with a rebate on the activation.

[RossMAN]

Most banks and retail stores sell these and charge a $2 - $10 fee.

[labgeek]

... The other thing to remember with most of these cards (and tell the receivers) is that after 6 months, they start to accrue a monthly fee, typically about $3.50. It's wise to use them within the 6 months to avoid the charge that begins on the first day of the seventh month. Be sure to read the fine print on the specific card that you end up buying.

 

Do check, but just FYI this is being looked at pretty widespread now. Several states have placed limits on what can/can't be done.

State Gift Card Consumer Protection Laws*

[inluvstill]

Simon malls offer Visa giftcards with $2 fee. If you have a simon mall (check www.simon.com) you can get one from the kiosk there. We do it every year for the nieces and nephews.