www.Netspend.com

Yeah!! Now I don’t need a Credit Card!!

I had been struggling with the notion of getting a secure credit card because my first and only stint with credit cards didn’t go so well and I ended up not only in debt but having my cards cancelled.

I certainly didn’t want to end up in that situation again and with credit cards it was really just to easy especially since they kept raising my credit limit.

But that left me with the dilemma of how to pay for things online which I do. My domains, any webhosting, and yes, I also shop online for tangible items like books, videos and more.

Then I was talking with a good friend one day and he mentioned this service, a Texas based service no less. This service, he said, would enable me to purchase things over the internet like I had a credit card but without having to have a credit card.

I was intrigued and I told him to send me an email with his referral link so he would get the referral bonus which last time I checked was $5.00.

So upon receiving his email referral I went to www.netspend.com and signed up immediately and began to explore. What I found had me wanting to shout for joy.

The service is called NetSpend, www.netspend.com Basically how it works is you first type in your zip code and from there NetSpend will give you a list of stores in your area where you can purchase a NetSpend card.

The cards come in amounts of $25 and $50 dollars. Buy as many or as few as you need of either amount and there is no tax paid on the cards.

When you get home go online and log in to your new NetSpend account. Enter the serial number from the backs of your cards and that amount instantly is added to your NetSpend account.

Now you can spend and here is where the most secure part comes in. This really makes it better than a credit card. When you want to buy something you have to generate a credit card number.

This number will change for each purchase you make. In other words once the old number has been used to make a purchase it is discarded because it becomes invalid.

To buy something else you must return to NetSpend and get another number. This is the ultimate in theft protection and no credit card invented does this good with it yet.

You can use your NetSpend for online shopping at any online merchant that accepts MasterCard. To do this just go to NetSpend and enter the url of the site you wish to make a purchase at.

When the time comes to check out just copy and paste the credit card number they give you when the merchant site asks for it. It is that simple.

You can also use it to send money online. If the other person has a NetSpend account as well you can perform a funds transfer.

If not then you can send them an email notice for them to come pick up their money at the NetSpend website.

You can also use your NetSpend card as a Debit card. You will have a pin number given to you that you can use at ATM’s to withdraw funds from your NetSpend account.

It also works as a debit card in stores that accept cirrus or maestro debit cards.

I cannot see myself using these last two options since I have them already with my bank account but it is still nice to know they are there should I want to use them.

One small sidetrack here, I love NetSpend’s slogan. The slogan is “The End Of No.” and I like the sound of that. *smile*

There is more though. Aside from earning lunch points by referring your friends which can only be done by sending them an invitation email you can also earn free lunch points.

Referring a friend gets you 500 lunch points which is equivalent to $5.00. You can also get lunch points for just logging into your account at the rate of 1 point per day.

Also every time you shop with NetSpend you get 10 points. Once you have at least a 1000 points you can cash them in for $10 dollars added to your account. :0)

Now lets not forget to mention ‘Wild Cards’. Wild Cards are NetSpend cards that can be given to you free by NetSpend promotional partners.

These cards enable you to win NetSpend money instantly in amounts up to $500.00!! I believe you can also get this from retailers where you buy your NetSpend cards if they have them.

Also NetSpend has other contests from time to time like the most recent one they had. I would watch Just Shoot Me for a special promo code and then take that to the NetSpend site and enter to win.

I only entered once and I won a dollar. I could have kept trying for the big money but you had to create a new account for each promo code you entered.

In the end I would have had to put funds in all those extra accounts in order to consolidate them back into one account. I didn’t really want to go to all that trouble. LOL.

So I bet you are thinking this sounds too good to be true right? A credit card that pays you to use it instead of one that charges you?

Well I hate to burst your bubble but there are fees, however mild they may be.

You must log in at least once a year or you will be assessed a small service charge.

Most of the features of NetSpend are free but here are the features where charges are assessed.

Accelerated Deposit with acceptable credit card

$2.00

Account Maintenance, Inactive Account

2% of Balance [$1 minimum], weekly

Refund of Account balance via check

$3.95 per check

Internet purchase fee, non-subscription Account

$1.00 per transaction

Offline purchase fee, non-subscription Account

$1.00 per transaction

Domestic ATM Fee , All Accounts

$1.50 per withdrawal, plus fee to ATM owner

International ATM Fee, All Accounts

$3.00 per withdrawal, plus fee to ATM owner

That is it in a nutshell. The ATM fees do not apply to me so I have no worries there. I doubt I would ask to get my money out in the form of a check since that would most likely mean I cancelled my account with NetSpend.

I also won’t be making any deposits with a credit card since I don’t use them, and it is free to maintain an active account which mine will definitely be. *grin*

Also I shouldn’t have to worry about the fees per transaction because I believe I have a subscription account although I will have to check with them and make sure. It is always good to do that if you are not sure of something.

Even so, one dollar per transaction isn’t a lot to ask and I would rather pay that than interest on a credit card. *grin*

So there you have it. All the reasons why I love the NetSpend website. Hopefully this will get added to Epinions in the same category as PayPal and then I will move this.

I am so confident in this service and the company that if you want me to send you an invitation email I would be more than happy to do so. Just email me and ask. *smile*

In a sense if this review inspired you to go and sign up I already have anyway. *smile*

As always,