Traveling with a credit card.

[Cfbrand3rd]

Originally Posted by AlanKilian

We're getting worked up for a 1 or 2 month trip this fall, and are getting finances setup and I have a question.

We're getting as much as possible set to auto-pay, and we can pay other things remotely through our banks, so that's going well.

However, a month ago, my credit card number escaped into the wild and I had to cancel it and get a new one shipped to me.

What happens if that occurs again while we're on the road?
I doubt the credit card company is going to be willing to ship a card to a random campground address for us.

Have any of you experienced this and what did you do?

We'll probably get 1 or 2 more cards that we don't use and keep those in case this happens I guess.

Do you long-time-travel people have any other tips for finances while traveling?

If your main card is on your primary bank account and your significant other has a card from them as well, that 2nd card usually has a different card # and PIN; you can usually stop one & still use the other.

2nd card, just for emergencies, has been my backup for years. But, if you have a phone/watch with Apple Pay or other NFC payment equivalent, use that where possible! Much less likely to have your info be stolen as there is no exposure to card skimmers…😉

[Kjetil]

I guess I am lucky to have never had anything stolen from my person.

We have everything we can– which is almost everything– on auto-pay, and travel with two credit cards (same accounts) and a debit card each. We use a primary Visa card (Alaska Airlines) for everything, both here at home in Alaska and on the road and have never had any problems with our credit line.

We have had problems with the physical card though. Got an updated AA Visa at first of the year, and used it daily, both at home and on our most recent Four Corners trip. Down in the CONUS though, my card failed about 15% of the time, but only at gas pumps. I would insert it and it would be rejected out of hand. My wife’s card on the same account worked fine, so it was not a big deal, but it is just another example of how these cards we depend on are undependable.

But almost no one here has mentioned the obvious adjunct to credit cards: cash. If we are out for a month or more, I carry $1K in cash in a secure location in my truck and a few $100 bills on my person. We travel off the beaten path as much as possible– often on old, narrow, cracked blacktop or gravel roads– through dying towns whose residents don’t seem to get out much. These little hamlets apparently run on a cash-only economy. These are places where they have signs at the edge of town saying things like: “Next Services 75 Miles”. If you want to buy gas, you need to pay cash– and sometimes even that seems to be taken reluctantly.

You can run into CC problems even on major thoroughfares. Two months or so ago, we were passing through Bluff, Utah and no business could process CCs– my guess is because of a comms problem. Buying gas on a credit card meant detouring 25 miles up US 191 to Blanding UT. And back.

And finally, you can usually buy gas from farmers/ranchers along your route, if you have cash. Most of them have big gravity feed fuel tanks– both gas and diesel. If you are polite in the asking, and patient in the waiting, most of them seem glad to help out, especially if you tell them your travel story. It’s not even all that unusual to get a supper invite after the transaction has been completed. I still get a card from the Aarøys of Wyoming every May 17 (Norwegian Independence Day) wishing me and my family well, ending with a “it takes a dam Swede to run low on gas way out here."

So, take your credit cards… and several hundred dollars as well, when you go out for a longer trip.

[BradleyCrandall]

My card number was stolen.
When I went to my bank they changed the card and numbers right then.
There is no more waiting.

[Sammy Joe]

I traveled throughout my career in the marine industry and luckily I never had any problems . I always carry a front pocket wallet, no Jewelry ,money clip with small bills ( always a$ 1.00 bill on outside and if paying cash have it ready before going to register . I always tip in cash and have it on table when they pick up my CC so they can see. I hide cash in toiletries ( in plain site out of there mind) who steals them . Now the wife and I travel she has one CC and I have another one . She has a backpack purse ( that can go on her back but in crowds in front.) and if we are going in the water or on boat a waterproof pouch holds the least we might need ( no wallet, phone or keys ) . At campgrounds I installed a keyless lock and her purse, my wallet ,cash ,keys and a few other things are hidden behind a panel I modified just for that reason. I’m not paranoid but just cautious . Street smarts and common sense always help you out. Just my $.02 worth .

[BradleyCrandall]

One other thing you can do is cover your cards in a little aluminum wallet that you can make easily.
It will protect you from the card readers.

[Bigfoot 0995]

We had to get a card replaced once when traveling as we were on the move and staying in State parks we had the replacement card to a UPS store in a convenient location.

[Judi in NC]

Up until COVID, I traveled for work between 2-4 weeks each month. I've had both my work credit card and my personal credit card numbers stolen multiple times and each time (AND I'm very careful), even when I was in travel status, my new ones were waiting for me the next day at the hotel desk. It is a pain in the patootie if you are on the way to the airport when you discover your CC stolen, but I too always have one spare one that is always used in case of an emergency. I also recommend putting a credit freeze on just to be double safe too.

[Nealster]

Originally Posted by Kjetil

I guess I am lucky to have never had anything stolen from my person.


But almost no one here has mentioned the obvious adjunct to credit cards: cash. If we are out for a month or more, I carry $1K in cash in a secure location in my truck and a few $100 bills on my person. We travel off the beaten path as much as possible– often on old, narrow, cracked blacktop or gravel roads– through dying towns whose residents don’t seem to get out much. These little hamlets apparently run on a cash-only economy. These are places where they have signs at the edge of town saying things like: “Next Services 75 Miles”. If you want to buy gas, you need to pay cash– and sometimes even that seems to be taken reluctantly.

So, take your credit cards… and several hundred dollars as well, when you go out for a longer trip.

That works well until you are stopped by some Govt. agency and they decide to pull the Civil Asset Forfeiture game on you. You don't even have to be charge with a crime. Best bet if you to decide carry that cash is to have any large amounts of cash VERY VERY VERY well hidden away from eyes and NOSES (woof!).

[AlanKilian]

Originally Posted by Nealster

That works well until you are stopped by some Govt. agency and they decide to pull the Civil Asset Forfeiture game on you..

That seems like an EXTREMELY remote possibility and not worth the stress worrying about it.

[cpaharley2008]

Believe me if I can say that working for the IRS for close to 35 years, the only time I was aware of any civil asset forfeitures occurring was with illegal drug activities where the rules are expedited. But normally it would take months to try to seize an asset and both parties would be informed.

[AC0GV]

Originally Posted by AlanKilian

However, a month ago, my credit card number escaped into the wild and I had to cancel it and get a new one shipped to me.

What happens if that occurs again while we're on the road?
I doubt the credit card company is going to be willing to ship a card to a random campground address for us.

Have any of you experienced this and what did you do?

I also use auto pay for anything that will take it. On the road I carry TWO cards from TWO different institutions, then try not to use them. I like cash, it keeps me on a budget, but it is getting harder to use it. Some Walmart self checks will not take cash, and many gas stations require you to pay before pumping. I need to go in, hand over a 100$ bill, go back out and fill the tank, then go back in and look for the person that I gave the money to. I also try to know where the no fee ATMs are. In western and west central Wisconsin, that's Kwik trip.

[Alex Adams]

Read this:
https://www.cashseizurelaw.com/what-...il-forfeiture/
And this:
https://www.usatoday.com/story/opini...re/7903000002/

[Nealster]

Originally Posted by cpaharley2008

Believe me if I can say that working for the IRS for close to 35 years, the only time I was aware of any civil asset forfeitures occurring was with illegal drug activities where the rules are expedited. But normally it would take months to try to seize an asset and both parties would be informed.

You might want to watch the YouTube channel from Steve Letho called Lehto's Law. He is a Michigan Lawyer that has many instances of civil asset forfeiture and how the people are pretty much powerless. These are not the IRS but mostly state entities. The latest was over safety deposit boxes that were seized in California because the owner of the facility was doing illegal things on the side. He has also spoke about people carying large amounts of cash to buy a vehicle in another state having "lost" cash to this Govt. Sham.

[Jann Todd]

Originally Posted by AlanKilian

We're getting worked up for a 1 or 2 month trip this fall, and are getting finances setup and I have a question.

We're getting as much as possible set to auto-pay, and we can pay other things remotely through our banks, so that's going well.

However, a month ago, my credit card number escaped into the wild and I had to cancel it and get a new one shipped to me.

What happens if that occurs again while we're on the road?
I doubt the credit card company is going to be willing to ship a card to a random campground address for us.

Have any of you experienced this and what did you do?

We'll probably get 1 or 2 more cards that we don't use and keep those in case this happens I guess.

Do you long-time-travel people have any other tips for finances while traveling?

First have at least 2 credit cards. Do not keep them on you. Hide one in RV, one on you and one in vehicle in safe place. We keep a gun case that locks into a loop in our vehicle and keep some things in it. It is also in a hidden place. With cash do the same thing. Hide it in several places. The cool thing about that is after a 3 month trip you may forget where it all is and you find it when cleaning out the vehicle. I found $1,000 like that once. We had taken several thousand $ when we went to Alaska as not all outback places take cards. We also have a small safe in our RV screwed to the floor as it is not fiberglass and is behind a panel that we can remove easily. Make sure your significant other has their own cards also. Good Sam has credit cards linked to each other for points but have different numbers. Get you some credit card protectors made of aluminum. Ours are great shield RFID card holders. I got them on ebay 2 years ago and they work we know. Men keep your wallets in your front pocket. If you want to keep a small wallet in your back pocket with a few bucks and a couple of store discount cards in it in case of robbery. Don't post anything about your trip on any website including this one until you get home. Thieves monitor websites for info. So far we have never been robbed, lost any credit card, etc while traveling.

[parmm]

Just now got a call from the Security Dept of my Credit Card Company. It seems someone was using my card on various "Go Fund Me" accounts. They turned the bad activity over to their fraud dept and shut down our credit cards on that account. New cards in the mail, being overnight-ed to us. Have had this happen before. Once at a gas station in Florida. PenFed Credit Union is fantastic looking out for us.

[Jann Todd]

Originally Posted by parmm

Just now got a call from the Security Dept of my Credit Card Company. It seems someone was using my card on various "Go Fund Me" accounts. They turned the bad activity over to their fraud dept and shut down our credit cards on that account. New cards in the mail, being overnight-ed to us. Have had this happen before. Once at a gas station in Florida. PenFed Credit Union is fantastic looking out for us.

Good service credit union. Good Sam did the same for us once. We knew instantly where our card number was stolen from and called the cops. When we went back to the restaurant a couple of months later it was closed.

[parmm]

Originally Posted by Jann Todd

Good service credit union. Good Sam did the same for us once. We knew instantly where our card number was stolen from and called the cops. When we went back to the restaurant a couple of months later it was closed.

With PenFed Credit Union (Pentagon Federal Credit Union), I can go online access every statement back til Nov 2011 when we opened the account. They have been fantastic. I one time made a reservation at a motel in which was closed down by the local county for lack of tax payment. Had no idea when I booked it. Penfed took care of it with no problems. They saved my butt several times.


But avoid a debit card cause they offer no where near as much legal protection as a credit card!!

[Deva]

This happened to me about 3 years ago after my camper was broken into. I canceled all the cards of course, but after talking to my bank, they were able to mail me a replacement debit card via general delivery at a local post office. Same with my BoA credit card. The difficulty was picking it up, because you have to show identification and my DL was stolen along with everything else. I did keep a current passport in a separate spot, so luckily that saved me a big headache. It delayed me a few days, but both my personal bank and BoA helped me out. I also now keep a bit of cash hidden in a separate location.

[jgilliam1955]

I have my cards set up to notify when my card is used for any amount. I was driving to work and got an alert my card had just been used in a 7-11 20 miles away for $6. I called and canceled my card right away. While talking to the card folks the person had gone across the street & charged $9. Today you can't be too careful.
I wonder how they can use my card on a card reader?

[jgilliam1955]

Originally Posted by Jon in AZ

You can prevent surprises by calling your card issuer before a trip and letting them know your plans. Did that before an East Coast trip to the Maritimes in 2019. No problems with our cards.

We did this also. Works great.