Life in the US

Debit and Credit Cards

Debit Card
A Debit card or Check card as it is commonly called is mailed to you within a few days of opening a bank account. Debit cards typically are used as substitutes for cash and checks, to pay for everyday items, including gasoline, groceries, restaurant, meals and department store purchases. Debit card transactions give you no grace period. They are a quick, pay now deal. With a debit card, you avoid interest charges. Whenever you swipe your card at any supermarket or store the money comes directly out of your checking account (some stores have the option of withdrawing money from the savings account), so you never have an outstanding balance to pay each month. You must be fastidious about keeping receipts and recording transactions in a timely fashion to balance your account. You will not incur interest charges unless you dip into an o your checking account. Your bank may charge an annual, monthly, or per transaction fee for using a debit card. The debit card can also be used for an occasional ATM withdrawal.

For all these transactions you will need to enter a personal four-digit number called the pin. This number should never be disclosed to anyone or stored in your wallet. It should be something you can easily remember. Try to avoid birthdays, anniversaries and last 4 digits of your social security number. The card can also be used as a credit card if you sign for the transaction rather than enter a pin. In this case the money would be deducted from your account within 2 or 3 days rather than immediately but would still accumulate no interest.
It is recommended that you write down the card numbers along with the 1800 number mentioned on the back of the card in case you need to report your card as stolen or lost.