Hacker News new | ask | show | jobs
by smsm42 5023 days ago
Online vendors don't accept pre-paid Visa? This is news to me. How do they even know - it's just a regular Visa card. I've used a number of such online (mostly ones I got in all kinds of promotions) and never had a problem - I didn't even think anybody could do that and I doubt Visa would allow you to do that - to reject pre-paid Visa card. Do you have any source to this claim?
3 comments
wmf 5023 days ago
When they ask for a billing address and it doesn't match because the prepaid card doesn't have one?
link
sbierwagen 5023 days ago
Most credit card processors have recently cracked down on pre-paid cards. It's almost impossible to pay for web hosting or VPSes using them now.
link
chimeracoder 5023 days ago
> Do you have any source to this claim?

Paypal, for one, makes no attempt to hide this: https://www.paypal-community.com/t5/About-My-Account/using-p...

While Paypal will accept it if you provide a Visa-verified billing address, not all will, and that would defeat the point of anonymity anyway.

Visa and AmEx also forbid international payments on prepaid cards, and most merchants nowadays require a verified billing address. (This wasn't the case as recently as 2009).

Remember that a prepaid card is not a credit card - there's no risk of you not paying, because they [Visa] already have your money and yet merchants refuse to take it. It's completely ridiculous.

link
wmf 5023 days ago
This sounds more like a problem with the issuing banks. Is there any way for a merchant to know that a card is prepaid? If not, how would they know not to check the billing address?

(Semi-related: Do prepaid cards count as debit for purposes of the regulation on swipe fees?)

link
chimeracoder 5023 days ago
> This sounds more like a problem with the issuing banks.

It's a problem with both parties, since both are known to refuse to process them.

> Is there any way for a merchant to know that a card is prepaid?

Yes

> Is there any way for a merchant to know that a card is prepaid?

No

link
chimeracoder 5022 days ago
Copy and pasted wrong - just noticed. The 'no' is supposed to be in response to the debit card fees question.
link