Gas, trip expenses, cash and plastic

[ROBERT CROSS]

Originally Posted by cwf

Stow cash in safe place

Call cc Company and tell them to expect irregular charges along route.

Don't worry!

^
X2

It was a PITA when our debit was refused because of unusual usage. But good to know they were on their toe's.

Bob

[Skater]

Originally Posted by wahoonc

I have hit more than one station where it would not let you do a second transaction once you hit the pre-authorization limit due to potential fraud. Those are few and far between, but still a PITA when you are trying to buy around $300 worth of diesel. I know where 3 of them are at in eastern NC and won't purchase from them anymore. The other thing that irritates me is when they want you to pre-pay a set amount prior to pumping... I don't know EXACTLY how much it is going to take...

I haven't had that happen, but one of the advantages of a diesel engine is using pumps for tractor trailers in truck stops: They have higher credit limits. I haven't hit one yet using a truck pump. And the faster flow rate means that I'm done faster, too.

I hate the pre-pay thing. The station I use at home did that to me once, and this is the same station that supplies diesel for the local FedEx fleet, so they should be used to not knowing how much it'll take. This station doesn't have pay-at-the-pump for diesel, so the ritual is that I walk into the station and hand over the credit card before I even touch the pump...so what's the problem? They have my credit card! He claimed it was an "after dark" rule... I said, "We've NEVER had to do that before here." The rule hasn't been enforced since that one incident, although I'm not sure I've been there after dark since then either.

[nsbcpa]

Most banks now have smart phone apps that allow you to check your accounts daily to identify fraudulent activity if it were to occur from the use of credit/debit cards on the road. I tend to check mine often.

[daymonjones]

American Express green card. No interest, paid in full each month, no limit. Pocket cash for minor expenses. Coffee, tolls, etc. It is taken almost everywhere I've tried to use it.

Always have a hidden stash of 2 $100 bills as "emergency money"

[Drathaar]

We never use debit cards. In 2011, while coming back from Iowa, we got a call from US Bank Visa. They wanted to know if we were in London buying hardware. Had it been a debit card, the thief could have cleaned out our account. We always tell Visa when and where we travel.

[Farmer Dan]

Some very good tips on letting cc companies know of travel plans. We have had card accounts frozen because of use in areas away from home. We now alert them before traveling.
Dan

[polarlyse]

If you notify the CC company prior to any overseas trip make sure you call them during their business day. We remembered to call when on the way to the airport for a trip to Spain and it was late on a Friday. Upon arrival I went to the car rentals and was denied. Fortunately my daughters card worked and we were OK. All was OK after monday morning. After getting home I called to complain and they told me I had called after business on Friday and my request was not processed until Monday. So the irregular purchases were denied. So, good that they are watching but you gotta think ahead.

We travel with a couple of cards and some cash. My bank is pretty much all over so I can use the ATM from them pretty easy and others if necessary. I did find a card that does not charge international service charges so when traveling in Canada or overseas that works nicely. I use the cards for all gas and most camping purchases. Have never ran into a gas station that is cash only. Some campgrounds, yes. AND, pay them up when we get home. So far so good.

[moosetags]

We travel in Lucy for as long as ten weeks at a time. We use credit cards whenever possible. We use a AAA Visa through Bank of America and a GM MasterCard through Capital One. We also carry about $1,000 in cash and a check book. We don't carry a balance on our credit cards, so interest rates are irrelevant. We get our statements on-line, and also bank on-line. This allows us to keep up with our bills during extended periods on the road. Campgrounds that don't take credit cards will usually take a personal check. We have found that this is sometimes necessary to get the Passport America rate. We also bank at Wells Fargo which gives us free ATMs pretty much nationwide.

The AAA Visa gives us a 5% cash rebate on at-the-pump fuel purchases. At $4/gal that amounts to 20 cent per gallon discount. Keep in mind that we use a lot of fuel every year, but our total fuel rebate in 2012 was $671.

We also use our GM MasterCard to get the maximum $500 new vehicle rebate every year. We got a $3,500 rebate on the 2011 Silverado that we bought in 2011. We have had this card for 20 years. Over the past 20 years we have redeemed a total of $14,058 on 5 new GM vehicles.

These are the things that work for us. We have set up our lives so that we can stay on the road as long as we care to.

Brian

[Air Cruiser]

I'm going to share a story which happened to us -- consider it "food for thought", it has drastically changed the way we handle our trips.

Five years ago we took a trip out West with five or six other couples from our "old car club" to travel around and end up at the NSRA car show in Pueblo, CO. We had a couple credit cards, a large quantity in traveller's checks and a fair amount in cash. (I'll start out saying we now know the world has changed and don't use traveller's checks!! But, there's more to the story!)

Trip went super and we were having a wonderful time driving our 1936 Ford and spending time with our friends. The next to the last stop before going to Pueblo, CO was Santa Fe, NM and about five miles outside of town we started hearing a noise -- not good. We limped in and got into our hotel's parking lot and found that it was indeed the rearend. DH had decided to change out the fluid there with Amsoil -- we love their oils, but the rearend was from something in the '70's or so and the metal was not ok with this new synthetic oil.

What to do, who do we trust with our baby!? We were members of the NSRA and looked in our "NSRA Fellow Pages Book" for a local, Santa Fe member and wallah, super nice fellow who hooked us up with an excellent shop in Santa Fe. And, since they realized we were on a short time frame, worked us in the next day. The third member had gone out of our rearend.

Story here is, this shop would not take anything but cash! We'd been having a good time, buying some things along, using our cash and paying cash for quite a few things and all of our food, and luckily we had enough cash remaining to pay them and get to Pueblo, CO. No bank in Santa Fe would cash our traveller's checks.

Got to Pueblo, and pretty much the same thing, but the last bank we stopped at, the manager got involved and saw our '36 we were driving. We explained what had happened and he said they'd cash them since he knew the car show was a big deal for the city, etc.

So, the "food for thought" lesson here is -- don't assume the plastic will get you back home or get you out of a jam, because it just might not.
The repair shop didn't want the traveller's checks or the plastic -- refused both, actually what they said was they only wanted cash.

Deb

[AldeanFan]

Originally Posted by MrUKToad

For domestic travel in Canada we use credit, debit and cash. When crossing the border as we do a fair bit, a credit card (or three) is essential as our credit union debit cards won't work in another country. We do carry a little cash as well, but not much. We don't go too far off the beaten track so we've yet to have any issue with cards in either Canada or the US.

My big beef is paying at the pumps for gas; with an non-US credit card, we can't enter a Zip Code into the pump so at most gas stations we end up having to go into the booth and pay before pumping - it's only a minor hassle but a hassle all the same. I'm told that Pilot/Flying J do a card that can solve this problem but I've yet to follow that up.

If I put in the 3 numbers from my postal code followed by 00 the pump will usually accept my card but not always.

I tried to get the Pilot card but they would not process my application because I don't have a valid zip code. I tried to explain that in Canada we don't have 15 digit zip codes, we have 6 digit Postal codes. They advertise that the card is available to Canadians but wouldn't look after me.
When I get aggravated at a US gas pump that won't accept my card I just remind myself how much that tank of fuel would cost in Canada and I instantly feel better. (buying beer is an even better experience!)

[MrUKToad]

Originally Posted by AldeanFan

If I put in the 3 numbers from my postal code followed by 00 the pump will usually accept my card but not always.

I tried to get the Pilot card but they would not process my application because I don't have a valid zip code. I tried to explain that in Canada we don't have 15 digit zip codes, we have 6 digit Postal codes. They advertise that the card is available to Canadians but wouldn't look after me.
When I get aggravated at a US gas pump that won't accept my card I just remind myself how much that tank of fuel would cost in Canada and I instantly feel better. (buying beer is an even better experience!)

I'm beginning to think the use of the Postal Code is a big hoax! I've tried it and it hasn't worked for me yet You would have thought that it wasn't beyond the wit of the credit card company to issue a faux zip code for us Canadians, it's just a check to make sure the card belongs to you. Still, as you say, the cost of the gas makes up for the minor inconvenience.

[Protagonist]

Originally Posted by Air Cruiser

We limped in and got into our hotel's parking lot and found that it was indeed the rearend.

Story here is, this shop would not take anything but cash! We'd been having a good time, buying some things along, using our cash and paying cash for quite a few things and all of our food, and luckily we had enough cash remaining to pay them and get to Pueblo, CO. No bank in Santa Fe would cash our traveller's checks.

Got to Pueblo, and pretty much the same thing, but the last bank we stopped at, the manager got involved and saw our '36 we were driving. We explained what had happened and he said they'd cash them since he knew the car show was a big deal for the city, etc.

So, the "food for thought" lesson here is -- don't assume the plastic will get you back home or get you out of a jam, because it just might not.
The repair shop didn't want the traveller's checks or the plastic -- refused both, actually what they said was they only wanted cash.

Deb

I'm surprised you didn't try to cash the traveler's checks at the hotel. I've never had a problem getting a hotel to cash traveler's checks for their guests. However, I did stay at one hotel in Albuquerque that refused to accept cash, and insisted on either plastic or traveler's checks!

But your point is well taken. For major purchases, ask what forms of payment they take before you buy, not after!

[Lily&Me]

We use our debit card, check or cash for campgrounds, in that order of preference.

We have had a Citibank Visa for 20+ years that we pay off every month and get flier miles per $. We use this for fuel and any other expenses. There is an annual fee with this card, but we get great customer service and they treat us very well. Recently used miles and got our newlyweds round trip, first class tickets to Hawaii for a wedding preent.

We use our debit card for groceries, and cash overage to keep some in our pockets, and other small purchases.

I keep a close watch on the bank and credit card account, and we have had with the Visa only a couple of small misuses over the years. Citibank promptly cancelled and reissued new cards, sending them wherever we were at the time.

FWIW, we have never had a misuse of our debit card, but we also never use this for online purchases or reservations. My son has used his debit card online, and had misuse/theft. Don't know why.

Enjoy your travels, Be sensible and careful, don't let the bad guys win.

Maggie

[Fly at Night]

I think I'll start stuffing my cash into that hard Airstream mattress. It might soften it up a bit.

[Olie]

We just got back from a 4000K mi trip to S Dakota and Wyoming. We were on the road for 26 days. All total the trip fuel cost was about $38 per day for diesel. Obviously we were not towing the AS every day. This may give you some idea how much you will spend on fuel.

To answer your question we put all fuel on plastic and get a few reward points which my wife likes. All camp ground costs are put on another card. We encountered only one campground that took only cash or check. We usually take less than $1000 in cash. Usually if you need more cash you will come across your banks ATM along the way.

[gmw photos]

Again, I don't go far off the beaten track. I see ATM's constantly in my travels, and most of them will accept my Visa debit card to get cash from from my checking account, if I needed cash.
The last time I was in Canada was 1998, and at that time I was told the way to get the best exchange rate on currency was to go to a bank and use my Visa card to get cash from their ATM, so that's what I did.
These days, for instance if I go into a wally world to stock up while out in the camper, then I simply get some extra cash back on the visa transaction. I just don't find all that much use for cash these days. And this coming from a guy that used to pride myself on being a "cash man". I used to always carry $800 to $1000 on me at all times. These days, I keep very little in my pocket.
I love being able to use plastic and online banking !

[MrUKToad]

Originally Posted by gmw photos

Again, I don't go far off the beaten track. I see ATM's constantly in my travels, and most of them will accept my Visa debit card to get cash from from my checking account, if I needed cash.
The last time I was in Canada was 1998, and at that time I was told the way to get the best exchange rate on currency was to go to a bank and use my Visa card to get cash from their ATM, so that's what I did.
These days, for instance if I go into a wally world to stock up while out in the camper, then I simply get some extra cash back on the visa transaction. I just don't find all that much use for cash these days. And this coming from a guy that used to pride myself on being a "cash man". I used to always carry $800 to $1000 on me at all times. These days, I keep very little in my pocket.
I love being able to use plastic and online banking !

We very rarely carry cash these days, it's all cards. When we head to the US, a bit of "wedge" is always handy but I can usually find an ATM if I really need some "folding stuff".

[DavidsonOverlander]

Originally Posted by MrUKToad

I'm beginning to think the use of the Postal Code is a big hoax! I've tried it and it hasn't worked for me yet You would have thought that it wasn't beyond the wit of the credit card company to issue a faux zip code for us Canadians, it's just a check to make sure the card belongs to you. Still, as you say, the cost of the gas makes up for the minor inconvenience.

I've been using that method in NY and MI and have only found one station where it didn't work.

[BAB]

I use AmEx whenever possible as I can use the Membership Miles for just about anything (including paying my bill with them....though I haven't done that). I've had a card for about 45 years and they have always provided terrific service. (Also, I lived in Europe twice -- once for 4 years, once for 3 years.) I used my debit card (M/C) for everything else until a year ago when I found it better to use a credit card. I don't every carry a balance from one month to the next, and I did a one month trip (6,200 miles) a couple of months ago. I took $750 in cash and came back with $350. I feel much safer with plastic than with cash, though I have stayed in a couple of campgrounds that wanted either cash or check...which I thought was very inconvenient though I know they were saving on swipe fees and paying a percentage back. As soon as we can transfer using smartphones (like they do in some parts of Asia), I'll drop the plastic.

[featherbedder]

I only use credit cards some cash, ,I will not give any body my money ahead of time... Besides scammers scamm debit cards more than credit cards also I will use Wallmart prepaid as they give 10 cents off per gallon but I only pur. small amount prepaid,We have had credit cards stolen and scammed did not lose a nickel if they were debit cards we would be out a lot of money. Do over $100,00 per mo on cards pay off every mo. Also pur. travelers checks to use in Fla. in Dec. to attend high end wedding of niece that was on learning channel, banks would not take only place was publix drug store.