What Exactly is a Pay as You Go Credit Card?

Well, a pay as you go credit card is a new alternative to a credit card and debit card. This type of card has all the same functions but does not offer a credit facility and can be an option for you if you prefer not to open a checking account.

For people that may have difficulty opening a checking account due to past mistakes, this may be the answer to their problems. Instead of having an established credit line, you will load the amount of cash that you want to use onto your pay as you go credit card.

This also alleviates the issues of high interest charges and overspending your credit limit.This type of card can be used anywhere a debit or credit card can be used such as at retail outlets or paying bills over the phone.

There are a variety of pay as you go credit card offers on the market today; keep an eye out for cards that are free with no application fee. On the other hand, there are also many companies that require a fee to initially set up your account.

The amount varies depending on the company, but you can expect to pay between $5 and $10 to open a pay as you go credit card account. It is also important to consider the fees that you will be required to pay every time you load money onto your card and in some cases, a monthly fee may be assessed by an issuer.

To make applying for a pay as you go credit card easy, many companies have online applications available on their secure websites. You won’t have to be worried about other people getting into your personal information such as your social security card or your birth date.

If you have a poor or non-existent credit score, you may not be able to qualify for a credit card. A pay as you go credit card would be a good fit for you. There is no credit check that is required and online approval for your application can be done in as quickly as a few minutes with verification of identity and address.

Now that I have mentioned the benefits in owning a pay as you go credit card, I must also discuss with you the disadvantages. If you are planning to use the prepaid card for a monthly internet subscription, or to purchase an item where a fixed amount of money is deducted from the card each month, you may be very disappointed to find out that this may not be possible.

The reason for this is that many businesses don’t want to do business with a pay as you go credit card because there is a high risk that there won’t be any money in the account when it comes time to pay the bill. As you can see, a pay as you go credit card may not be the answer to all of your financial constraints, but it can certainly make life a little easier for you.

In order to find the best pay as you go credit card for your needs, take some time to some comparative research and make sure that you actually read all of the fine print! Knowledge is power and the more you know, the better off you are.