Do Debit cards ever just stop working - even with money in account?

[politicat]

I just got off the phone with the bank - after an hour on the phone with them - trying to figure out why our cards went ker-phooey. Neither one works for no readily apparent reason - accounts are in good shape, nothing outstanding, no odd pings....

It's like Visa decided to hand the numbers over to the interns to play with or something. The cards aren't associated with anything else that we can think of.

Both cards have been cancelled, just to be on the safe side, and new ones will be here... eventually.

Anyone else ever have this happen?

[KitchenWitch]

1. magnetic strip wear off?

[politicat]

5. It wasn't just the mag-strip. Number, too.

Went to buy a replacement battery for my laptop and the number's dead, too.

That's what's so weird about the whole thing. Poof. I used it at 1:40 yesterday (we both got paid yesterday, too) and now... nuthin.

[AlienGirl]

2. Do you carry magnets in your pockets?

Have you had them near any strong magnetic fields recently?

If the machines are still able to read the number and it's not a physical problem with the card, somebody may have screwed up your files.

Tucker

[DanCa]

3. no but i dont have visa

but what irks me about debits is that you never know when your charge is going to be put on the card. I think my banks a week behind.

[qnr]

4. You were both abducted by electro-magnetic aliens that wiped out

your magnetic strip without you knowing? Missing an hour or two?
:)

[politicat]

6. No, all time is present and accounted for.

Admittedly, I'd like the two hours I spent in meetings this morning back, but I was there...
Sigh.

Thanks for the comment- it made me smile.

[Kali]

7. Too late now, but I wonder

if you could have used them to pay over the phone or online for something? Just by telling someone the numbers and exp. date and them putting them in manually - or did the bank try that?

[politicat]

8. Yep.

We tried everything except sending it by IP over Passenger Pigeon.

[Syncronaut Seven]

9. Large hold due to gas purchase?

Magnets, motors, electrical surges?

[politicat]

10. Nope.

Tiny little car, tiny little commute, tiny little tank. Last time I got gas was nearly a week ago, and I have 75% of a tank now (which is good, since gas stations don't take checks.)

It's weird... if I didn't know better, I'd say Agent Mike had finally gotten pissy with me.

[radwriter0555]

11. bank error. don't let them tell you it's anything else...

Just get new ones then.

[Kali]

12. I wonder if someone with a similar number

had their cards canceled for some reason and a bank person entered the wrong numer - yours - in the cancellation order...Seems like the bank would have access to the WHY of your number being no good anymore - sure is strange - I would recommend getting your credit report pretty soon to make sure something wierd doesn't happen there too.