WTF is Amazons problem!

[texomakid]

Man I hate hearing these issues. I too never use my bank account or a debit card. I only use a credit card for anything I purchase anywhere - period! My credit card has been hacked a few times and is a PITA to get it swapped out but never did I have to pay for any frivolous charges and my bank account has never been compromised or put on hold. Good luck, I bet if you go to the bank you can get this sorted out pretty quickly.

 

[chef jimmyj]

Thanks for all the feedback. Looks like Amazon Gift Cards for them and Pay to Play Credit Cards for other online purchases.
The 2008 Depression put our income and Credit Rating in the toilet! So no standard credit cards in the near future. But y'all been very helpful....JJ

 

[radioguy]

JJ you can get a "green dot" via a card. You pay cash to load it and use the CD and as usual. The are some fees to start it up and reload it but that's the price you have to pay.

Best wishes
RG

 

[retfr8flyr]

How'd you set that up?

There is an option for it in your Amazon settings.

 

[Norwester55]

How'd you set that up?

https://www.amazon.com/gp/help/customer/display.html?nodeId=201962420

 

[dward51]

I buy stuff on Amazon weekly. I'm on Prime and never had a problem. I do use a real credit card and pay it off once the charge posts (card is at the same bank as my checking, etc... so it's just a click to transfer to pay off).

Were the items "sold and shipped by Amazon" or was it another vendor via Amazon. It could be the vendor data was hacked or even Amazon was hacked and the card info compromised. I would suspect 3rd party first though.

Also if you use the same password on more than one site, it could be another website/account was hacked and once they had the email and the password for that one, if the Amazon one was the same, they can log in as "you". A lot of people are creatures of habit and reuse the same info so they can remember it. Hackers can have a field day with that as once they have the info for one account, they can try it elsewhere like Amazon, eBay and often get lucky.

Try changing the Amazon password and enabling the secondary verification described above.

 

[JJS]

I use my debit card to purchase things from amazon weekly and have never had an issue.

I also use a regional bank not a mega bank, i get alerts on anything over $20 and if they think it is a suspicious purchase I get a text asking if it was me, click yes or no.

I used a mega bank for awhile and that card got shut down for suspicious activity anytime I left the county I usually shop in...

FYI per visa and MasterCard you have the exact same protection on a debit card as a credit card, if the bank is taking weeks to resolve the issue report the bank to them and watch how fast it gets resolved.

 

[johnmeyer]

As others have said, your problem has nothing to do with Amazon, and they are not the problem. Instead, the problem is that someone got your card number, and possibly other parts of your identity.

Have the credit card bank re-issue the cards with a different number. Change passwords on all bank-related accounts. Go to "two-step" authorization, as others have suggested.

You should be able to get everything fixed within a few weeks.

 

[chef jimmyj]

The bank fixes it EVENTUALLY. First time 3 weeks to unlock and issue new card. We had almost $200 in insufficient funds charged because auto pay bills came due and the account was locked. Bank said that was just the way it works. Second time, 10 day lockdown and most recently 5 days. ...JJ

 

[indaswamp]

The bank fixes it EVENTUALLY. First time 3 weeks to unlock and issue new card. We had almost $200 in insufficient funds charged because auto pay bills came due and the account was locked. Bank said that was just the way it works. Second time, 10 day lockdown and most recently 5 days. ...JJ

Had a bank here locally (one of the big 5) that would clear the largest check amount first instead of the order the checks were written. They did not disclose this practice to customers, so customers would think that they would be OK and make it to the next deposit without overdarft charges....but with the largest check clearing first, this really screwed up their accounts. Bank did this to generate profits in overdraft charges....they got caught and it ended up being a class action lawsuit.

 

[dward51]

Yeah, but you are supposed to have the money in the bank at the time the check is issued. Not float them.

It's harder to float now that the checks are actually processed at the bank where the merchant deposits it instead of the old way where it had to make it's way back to the issuing bank system for processing. Hell, in the 60's you could float a check for dang near a month sometimes. And some stores scan them at the register so float is basically impossible.

I think I've used 1 check in the past year and that was to set up the direct deposit on my 2nd retirement. They wanted a cancelled check. For me everything is electronic now days.

 

[Fueling Around]

Yeah, but you are supposed to have the money in the bank at the time the check is issued. Not float them.

Doesn't work that way with debit card transactions. You can have an adequate amount in the account, but if your Bank decides to freeze or lock your account, ALL the money is un-ob-tanium.

If you choose to use debit card, one approach is to use 2 accounts. 1 for debit card and 1 for the bulk of your assets.
Then an issue that causes a freeze on your debit card doesn't hold your money. Yes, takes some of your time every month with transfers, but physical viewing your payments should get you looking at the money you pay out every month. Make it painful, not painless.

Took me almost 2 years to get my debit card cancelled that i refused on initiating my checking account with a regional bank.
No, that isn't their profit motive is it?

i don't use auto bill pay or debit card because of the "legal" bank fraud schemes that chef jimmj experienced as a customer.

It's harder to float now that the checks are actually processed at the bank where the merchant deposits it instead of the old way where it had to make it's way back to the issuing bank system for processing. Hell, in the 60's you could float a check for dang near a month sometimes. And some stores scan them at the register so float is basically impossible.

I think I've used 1 check in the past year and that was to set up the direct deposit on my 2nd retirement. They wanted a cancelled check. For me everything is electronic now days.

Check or E-check debits are almost instant, but yet they hold them under antiquated "may take up to 3 business days" to process a deposit that is mostly an instant process?

 

[indaswamp]

Check or E-check debits are almost instant, but yet they hold them under antiquated "may take up to 3 business days" to process a deposit that is mostly an instant process?

The reason for the hold is so the bank can make interest on your money for a minimum of overnight, but in some cases longer. It's not a lot per transaction, but when billions upon billions in transactions occur monthly, it all adds up.

You should look into a sweep account...

 

[SmokinAl]

Gosh JJ, that is freak'in crazy!!
I use Amazon Prime on a daily basis and have never had a problem.
It sounds to me like somebody has hacked your credit card.
Which by the way has happened to us several times.
It's a PIA to get it straightened out, but we have never had to pay for the hacks.
The biggest one being $4500.00 for some roofing materials & the smallest being $29.00 for a car wash!
It will all work out in the end, but I don't think it is Amazon, it's your credit card that has been compromised.
Al

 

[Marian Starks]

I had same kind of problem 2 months ago, had to contact amazon support to solve the issue.

 

[sigmo]

I use my debit card to purchase things from amazon weekly and have never had an issue.

I also use a regional bank not a mega bank, i get alerts on anything over $20 and if they think it is a suspicious purchase I get a text asking if it was me, click yes or no.

I used a mega bank for awhile and that card got shut down for suspicious activity anytime I left the county I usually shop in...

FYI per visa and MasterCard you have the exact same protection on a debit card as a credit card, if the bank is taking weeks to resolve the issue report the bank to them and watch how fast it gets resolved.

Once you have an Amazon credit card, you'll likely use nothing else for buying on Amazon because you get 5% back on all Amazon purchases.

I'm also with the folks above who have never had any problems using our credit union's debit card for on-line shopping. Any hacking and unauthorized purchases were taken care of by the credit union before I even knew there was a problem!

They send me a text for any suspicious charge, and if I reply one way, the charge goes through, and if I reply the other way, then the charge is stopped and the debit card suspended.

They're very vigilant and also never have held my wife or I responsible for any unauthorized purchases. They take care of it and issue a new card right away when this happens. It's happened to me once, and my wife a few times over the years.

So it must depend on the bank that issues the debit card.

When we've had our debit cards compromised, it was either a major hack of a large retailer, folks skimming cards at a restaurant, or, in one case which got both mine and my wife's cards, a vending machine at an aquarium in Denver! I thought that was pretty odd!

 

[chef jimmyj]

The bank takes care of any charges made but freeze the account until a. New card is issued...7-10 BUSINESS DAYS!!!. If the account is frozen the first or third week. Checks get returned and direct payment accounts get an Insufficient Funds notification. There is a $35 penalty attached to each overdraft so while THE BANK is dragging it's feet, we are getting fined. We called and worked our way through several levels of management getting the same " Company Policy dictates how these things are handled." " There's nothing they can do. "...JJ

 

[JJS]

The bank takes care of any charges made but freeze the account until a. New card is issued...7-10 BUSINESS DAYS!!!. If the account is frozen the first or third week. Checks get returned and direct payment accounts get an Insufficient Funds notification. There is a $35 penalty attached to each overdraft so while THE BANK is dragging it's feet, we are getting fined. We called and worked our way through several levels of management getting the same " Company Policy dictates how these things are handled." " There's nothing they can do. "...JJ

This is the exact reason I left the mega bank, I have had my card info stolen half a dozen times in the past 5 yrs with the new bank and they issue me a temp card and have never froze my account.

Longest I have waited for a new real card was 6 days because of a holiday weekend.