Are debit cards the same as credit cards?

[lust]

I have a savings account with Kasikorn. My ATM card says “Credit Card”, but I was under the impression all Kasikorn ATM cards all said that. Ive always used it to withdraw cash from ATMs when I want to pay. 
 

I went for dinner at a popular restaurant just now and asked where the nearest ATM is, and they said I can pay with my ATM card. I was expecting her to swipe my card and ask me to enter my 4 digit number to confirm my identity. She swiped my card, entered my expiry date, and it was instantly improved. 
 

I had no idea this was possible. I wasn’t asked to show ID or anything. 
 

If I lose my card, it can be used by anyone to make purchases?

[Greyhat]

2 minutes ago, lust said:

If I lose my card, it can be used by anyone to make purchases?

Yes, it's stupid that we're not even in the age of chip and pin yet, if you lose your card cancel it immediately.

[lust]

4 minutes ago, Greyhat said:

Yes, it's stupid that we're not even in the age of chip and pin yet, if you lose your card cancel it immediately.

Dang... I had no idea the card alone held any value. Okay, noted. 

[Lacessit]

No. A debit card can only be used up to the balance present in the account. A credit card can be used up to the credit limit, which may be more than the net worth of the individual..

One does not pay interest on a debit card. The interest rate on a credit card is set by the bank.

 

[saengd]

1 minute ago, Lacessit said:

No. A debit card can only be used up to the balance present in the account. A credit card can be used up to the credit limit, which may be more than the net worth of the individual..

One does not pay interest on a debit card. The interest rate on a credit card is set by the bank.

 

A debit card can be used up to the daily value set by the bank or by the customer and this can be changed, daily values of as low as 20,000 or as high as several hundred thousand are possible, based on the bank and the customer.

[wgdanson]

17 minutes ago, lust said:

If I lose my card, it can be used by anyone

Yes I know, a Mr M Mouse signed for my card to be used for a Toyota service.

[sirineou]

7 minutes ago, Greyhat said:

Yes, it's stupid that we're not even in the age of chip and pin yet, if you lose your card cancel it immediately.

Same as with a credit card.

I only use a debit card. No need to use revolving credit, i don't need it ,I have enough cash. 

Simply have two accounts, a Savings account, and a Checking account  with a debit card. 

Only keep a small amount ($1,000-$2000) in checking to cover expenses,  DO NOT HAVE OVERDRAFT PROTECTION linked to your savings account.  

   That way if you are hit, they can only hit you for the amount in the checking account. If you need to make a purchase larger than the funds in your checking account, you can transfer funds from your savings account in seconds over the internet.

Ask your bank about it and see if the have these capabilities.

 

[4MyEgo]

24 minutes ago, lust said:

I have a savings account with Kasikorn. My ATM card says “Credit Card”

I have a savings account with SCB and my ATM card says Debit Card at the bottom left corner.

 

I would be making enquiries if you didn't request one, because Credit Cards usually have a 5% surcharge on purchases and have other charges like interest on cash withdrawals and annual fees for most.

 

The Debit Card has no charges except for an annual fee of around 200 baht or so, that said, you have to check with some retailers as staff will try to add 5% because to them they can't tell the difference until you challenge them.

[allane]

I have a credit card. It too can be used for purchases, with no requirement for either a signature or a PIN. (Up to a certain limit, which I can't remember). This is not progress. I am old enough to remember when one of the selling points for credit cards was that they were safer than cash.

[scubascuba3]

7 minutes ago, wgdanson said:

Yes I know, a Mr M Mouse signed for my card to be used for a Toyota service.

easy to track the fraudster in your example i.e. number plate

[ExpatOilWorker]

9 minutes ago, sirineou said:

Same as with a credit card.

I only use a debit card. No need to use revolving credit, i don't need it ,I have enough cash. 

Simply have two accounts, a Savings account, and a Checking account  with a debit card. 

Only keep a small amount ($1,000-$2000) in checking to cover expenses,  DO NOT HAVE OVERDRAFT PROTECTION linked to your savings account.  

   That way if you are hit, they can only hit you for the amount in the checking account. If you need to make a purchase larger than the funds in your checking account, you can transfer funds from your savings account in seconds over the internet.

Ask your bank about it and see if the have these capabilities.

 

In the Kasikorn app setting you can set your transaction limit. Set it to zero and just increase it when you need to make a transaction.

[Lungstib]

A note on what can happen with the difference between credit and debit cards. I was working as a tour manager for an upmarket US company and checked them in to the Metropole Hotel in Hanoi. Reception asked for my credit card and wanted to charge me $75 for a room to cover any services the customers enjoyed but maybe wouldn't pay for. I told them I only had a debit card, "thats O.K." was the answer. $600 went onto my card. But unlike a credit card with a debit card they cant quickly swipe that off when the customers checked out. It took me 6 weeks to get that money back to my account. 

[CharlieH]

In all the years I have been here, I have never ever seen anyone anywhere check or even look at the name on a card or look at the reverse or compare signatures etc. I dont think the staff are even trained in this.

The ridiculous thing is that the cards dont even carry a name ! just "member" etc

[lopburi3]

1 hour ago, saengd said:

A debit card can be used up to the daily value set by the bank or by the customer and this can be changed, daily values of as low as 20,000 or as high as several hundred thousand are possible, based on the bank and the customer.

Actually the last debit card I obtained from Bangkok Bank was set for 5,000 baht by bank - I had to use phone banking to change it (many menu and number inputs so best to download example first).  

[sirineou]

2 minutes ago, lopburi3 said:

Actually the last debit card I obtained from Bangkok Bank was set for 5,000 baht by bank - I had to use phone banking to change it (many menu and number inputs so best to download example first).  

I am not sure, but i think the limit is for withdrawals  not not transactions. 

[TallGuyJohninBKK]

1 hour ago, saengd said:

A debit card can be used up to the daily value set by the bank or by the customer and this can be changed, daily values of as low as 20,000 or as high as several hundred thousand are possible, based on the bank and the customer.

 

But only up to whatever balance of cash is actually present in the linked bank account.

 

That's the fundamental difference between debit cards and credit cards:

 

--debit card use is deducted from your actual cash balance in the linked bank account. Don't have enough money for the purchase in your account. The purchase won't be accepted.

 

--credit card use is deducted from the card's credit line, and must be repaid by the cardholder with his own cash to the card issuing bank. The credit card use can be up to the maximum amount of credit line on the account.

 

 

[lopburi3]

4 minutes ago, sirineou said:

I am not sure, but i think the limit is for withdrawals  not not transactions. 

That was for transactions - paying even small hospital bill we being rejected.  Had never heard of such a low limit.  

[sirineou]

1 minute ago, lopburi3 said:

That was for transactions - paying even small hospital bill we being rejected.  Had never heard of such a low limit.  

will check with my bank.

We have used debit cards for large transactions, but I am not sure if we did that with our US based cards. Most likely we did, because we have a lot more cash in our US banks.

In Thailand I let the wife deal with money.she is much better with money than I am.(not only in Thailand LOL)

[Thomas J]

Lust I am a former banker and my wife has worked in the credit/debit card industry for 40 years.  Debit and Credit cards are not the same.  A debit cart draws money directly from your bank account.  A credit card is a loan and you use the credit cards money to pay for goods and services.  At the end of the month you get a statement from the credit card company and you pay off the balance either in total or in monthly payments.  With a debit card your exposure is your entire bank account balance.  With a credit card your exposure is limited to your credit limit.  Even then there are some marked differences.  Since you are "borrowing" the money from the credit card company they go after fraudulent transactions much harder.  It is far more difficult to recover money on a fraudulent transaction with a debit card.  If you have a choice, use a credit card.  In Thailand, they typically have a "secured" credit card.  They open a second savings account and lets say you deposit 100,000 thb.  Your credit limit would be the same and the savings account is used to pay off your credit card balance if you don't pay. 

[Inn Between]

I suppose a debit card can work like a credit card if you have overdraft protection on the account it's tied to and dip into it. Otherwise, as explained, they're different and a debit card would be rejected if the funds aren't in the account to cover it. 

 

I never used my SCB debit card for transactions -- only ATM withdraws. For things like airfares booked online, I used my overseas bank visa card. I felt that was the most secure way to do things.  

 

 

[Lacessit]

11 minutes ago, Thomas J said:

Lust I am a former banker and my wife has worked in the credit/debit card industry for 40 years.  Debit and Credit cards are not the same.  A debit cart draws money directly from your bank account.  A credit card is a loan and you use the credit cards money to pay for goods and services.  At the end of the month you get a statement from the credit card company and you pay off the balance either in total or in monthly payments.  With a debit card your exposure is your entire bank account balance.  With a credit card your exposure is limited to your credit limit.  Even then there are some marked differences.  Since you are "borrowing" the money from the credit card company they go after fraudulent transactions much harder.  It is far more difficult to recover money on a fraudulent transaction with a debit card.  If you have a choice, use a credit card.  In Thailand, they typically have a "secured" credit card.  They open a second savings account and lets say you deposit 100,000 thb.  Your credit limit would be the same and the savings account is used to pay off your credit card balance if you don't pay. 

As a former banker, you should know better than to post misinformation. Credit limits are usually much higher than the debit balance. My niece, with no income apart from a disability pension, has been offered credit cards with a $25,000 limit.

With my credit union in Australia I have three linked accounts, debit cards on two of them as backup in case one is lost or stolen. The debit cards each have a daily limit of $1250.

I can assure you my credit union goes after any transactions I report as fraudulent like the wrath of God.

The one debit card I have here is again for backup only. It has a six-digit PIN. Credit cards are for people who want to live beyond their means.

Check out the Royal Commission into banking in Australia to get the general idea of what people think of the banking "profession".

 

 

[lust]

Reading through the comments I’m even more confused than before. 
 

in Canada, we have 2 different cards. One is your debit card, which you can access your savings. To use this card for transactions, you must first enter your PIN number which proves you are you.

 

The credit card (visa, master card, etc) are linked to your credit. For example, my savings account is empty, I can use credit card to buy fuel, food, clothes, whatever, which I’m essentially promising to pay this money back within 30 days before I’m charged interest. To use the card, you must show your identification to prove you are you. We are given a Limit to what we can spend which is pretty much determined by your income. 

 

So my confusion is that I opened a Kasikorn savings account, issued a card that says Credit Card, and I can use this card without entering a PIN number or even showing an ID. 
 

My account has 400,000baht in it which is concerning for me if I ever lose my card and someone finds it and decides to go shopping.

 

i was under the impression that my account was better protected than this. Thanks for all the reply’s btw.

 

 

[Lacessit]

5 minutes ago, lust said:

Reading through the comments I’m even more confused than before. 
 

in Canada, we have 2 different cards. One is your debit card, which you can access your savings. To use this card for transactions, you must first enter your PIN number which proves you are you.

 

The credit card (visa, master card, etc) are linked to your credit. For example, my savings account is empty, I can use credit card to buy fuel, food, clothes, whatever, which I’m essentially promising to pay this money back within 30 days before I’m charged interest. To use the card, you must show your identification to prove you are you. We are given a Limit to what we can spend which is pretty much determined by your income. 

 

So my confusion is that I opened a Kasikorn savings account, issued a card that says Credit Card, and I can use this card without entering a PIN number or even showing an ID. 
 

My account has 400,000baht in it which is concerning for me if I ever lose my card and someone finds it and decides to go shopping.

 

i was under the impression that my account was better protected than this. Thanks for all the reply’s btw.

 

 

You should ask Kasikorn for a debit card, 200 baht/year. Put scissors through the credit card, it's dangerous.

Not a bad idea to ensure your savings account is never empty.

[Pib]

Just speaking Bangkok Bank and Krungsri Bank "debit" cards you can change the ATM withdrawal limits and purchases limits at the ATM and/or phone.  Bangkok Bank you can do over the phone; for Krungsri Bank you use their ATM.   Usually the lowest limit for ATM withdrawal is Bt50K/day, but the purchase limit can be set all the way to zero if desired. 

 

I have all of my Bangkok Bank and Krungsri Bank debit cards purchase limits set to zero and ATM withdrawal to Bt50K/day as I only want to use them for ATM withdrawals as I use my US credit cards for all purchases....US credit cards that do not charge any foreign transaction fee, pay up to 2% cash back on every purchase....more on some purchases, and have superior customer protection laws.  

 

So, if I lose my Thai debit cards unless the bad guy who tries to use them knows my PIN they can't get money from an ATM....and they can't use them for a buying spree at Big C, Lotus, etc.  

[Pib]

And when it comes to whether you must enter you PIN to complete a purchase that will depend on how the card-issuing bank has setup your card....that is, set to a "Chip & PIN default mode" where PIN is "preferred" or "Chip & Signature default mode" where only signature is desired AND what transaction mode the merchant wants to use.  

 

Even if your card is set to Chip & PIN mode the merchant can usually override/bypass that in how they have their Point of Service (POS) machines setup....a POS machine is what they insert/swipe you card with. 

 

What ends up happening is when your Chip & PIN card is inserted into the merchant's POS machine the card tells the POS machine I really prefer this be a PIN entry transaction.  If the merchant POS machine agrees...has no issue in doing it that way... then you must enter your PIN.  And many times even still have to provide a signature.   

 

But if that merchant just don't want to do PIN entry transactions....the merchant is perfectly satisfied with signature only transactions....then he can set his POS machine to reply back to the card that the merchant only wants to do a signature transaction.....does not want to do a PIN entry transaction.  If the card is OK with that the card replies, OK, I'm OK in doing a signature only transaction although I would have preferred to do a PIN entry transaction.

 

In closing, Thailand merchants generally prefer the Chip & Signature mode....many countries do like the US.  But many countries like in Europe prefer the Chip & PIN mode.

 

 

[Inn Between]

1 hour ago, lust said:

I can use credit card to buy fuel, food, clothes, whatever, which I’m essentially promising to pay this money back within 30 days before I’m charged interest.

It was 30 days for many years, but I noticed recently the terms of my Canadian bank issued Visa card now states only a 21-day period before interest is charged on purchases, and as always, cash advances through Visa begin to accumulate interest immediately, so you may want to see if your card and/or bank has changed your terms as well.  At a rate of 19.99%, I don't want to make any mistakes. 

 

[Moonlover]

Get down to your bank @lust and have your debit card (which it surely is) replaced. These old magnetic strip, 4 digit PIN cards are all being withdrawn and you need to have it replaced with a chip and pin 6 digit PIN card very soon. I think it's January, but check on your bank's website.

 

I'm surprised that your card was instantly improved by her swiping it! ????

 

[CharlieH]

Just now, Moonlover said:

Get down to your bank @lust and have your debit card (which it surely is) replaced. These old magnetic strip, 4 digit PIN cards are all being withdrawn and you need to have it replaced with a chip and pin 6 digit PIN card very soon. I think it's January, but check on your bank's website.

 

I'm surprised that your card was instantly improved by her swiping it! ????

 

I actually received a letter from Kasikorn advising to call in and have it changed to the chip n pin version. All mine are chip n pin now. Havnt seen the old type for awhile.

[billd766]

3 hours ago, saengd said:

A debit card can be used up to the daily value set by the bank or by the customer and this can be changed, daily values of as low as 20,000 or as high as several hundred thousand are possible, based on the bank and the customer.

A debit card can only be used to the amount you have in your bank account.

 

A credit card can be used up to the limit of the card regardless of the amount you have in the bank.

 

For example if you have 10,000 baht in your bank account and the bill you want to pay is 20,000 baht your debit card will reject the bill and you will have to find another way to pay the bill.

 

For example if you have 10,000 baht in your bank account and the bill you want to pay is 20,000 baht and your credit limit is 100,000 baht it will be accepted, UNLESS you have spent more than 81,000 baht on your credit card and the bill will breach the 100,000 limit, in which case your credit card will reject the bill and you will have to find another way to pay the bill.

[billd766]

2 hours ago, CharlieH said:

In all the years I have been here, I have never ever seen anyone anywhere check or even look at the name on a card or look at the reverse or compare signatures etc. I dont think the staff are even trained in this.

The ridiculous thing is that the cards dont even carry a name ! just "member" etc

However, at least at Kasikorn Bank you can pay extra and get your name put on the card for a fee.