You know that feeling you get when you think you lost your wallet? First, the realization that it’s missing. Then, the slow, agonizing mental calculus trying to figure out where it could be. Followed by the panicked searching and re-searching of the same places you just looked. Finally concluding with the depressing determination that it’s gone… or the ecstatic sensation of actually finding it. Well, take all of those feelings and forget them—nothing compares to having your debit card declined when you are traveling overseas alone.
For pure, heart-stopping fear, go to another continent, spend the last of your cash, and go to an ATM. Then have your card rejected. With the possible exception of situations involving diseases or deadly weapons, I can’t think of anything scarier than what I went through in the last 24 hours. It started last night when my bank card didn’t work at Starbucks. I knew I had sufficient funds, so I chalked it up to technical difficulties and paid cash. Then, this morning, at a different Starbucks, my card was declined again—and I started to get nervous. I spent my last 2 pounds on my coffee, and headed to an ATM.
When the machine spit out my card without any cash, full on panic set in. My mind started to race: did I do something to the strip on the card? If I needed a new card, could they send it to me overseas? How long would that take? How would I get cash in the meantime? What if it wasn’t a technical issue? What if my account had been wiped out? My head was spinning. It wasn’t even 8:00am yet so I couldn’t go talk to anyone at the bank, and it was the middle of the night in the States so I couldn’t call my fiancé. So I did my best to pull myself together and headed into the office.
I guess the caffeine finally kicked in, because once I sat down at my desk I started to think clearer. I called my bank and explained the situation. The representative grilled me on my Social Security number, mother’s maiden name, and recent transaction history, and finally transferred me to the Fraud department. Things were looking up! Apparently my overseas transactions triggered HSBC's suspicious activity filters and my account was frozen. But after I cleared the security check they lifted the freeze. I wish I could say that everything was fine after that, but truthfully the whole experience was so rattling I was pretty shook up for the rest of the day.
For pure, heart-stopping fear, go to another continent, spend the last of your cash, and go to an ATM. Then have your card rejected. With the possible exception of situations involving diseases or deadly weapons, I can’t think of anything scarier than what I went through in the last 24 hours. It started last night when my bank card didn’t work at Starbucks. I knew I had sufficient funds, so I chalked it up to technical difficulties and paid cash. Then, this morning, at a different Starbucks, my card was declined again—and I started to get nervous. I spent my last 2 pounds on my coffee, and headed to an ATM.
When the machine spit out my card without any cash, full on panic set in. My mind started to race: did I do something to the strip on the card? If I needed a new card, could they send it to me overseas? How long would that take? How would I get cash in the meantime? What if it wasn’t a technical issue? What if my account had been wiped out? My head was spinning. It wasn’t even 8:00am yet so I couldn’t go talk to anyone at the bank, and it was the middle of the night in the States so I couldn’t call my fiancé. So I did my best to pull myself together and headed into the office.
I guess the caffeine finally kicked in, because once I sat down at my desk I started to think clearer. I called my bank and explained the situation. The representative grilled me on my Social Security number, mother’s maiden name, and recent transaction history, and finally transferred me to the Fraud department. Things were looking up! Apparently my overseas transactions triggered HSBC's suspicious activity filters and my account was frozen. But after I cleared the security check they lifted the freeze. I wish I could say that everything was fine after that, but truthfully the whole experience was so rattling I was pretty shook up for the rest of the day.
1 comment:
OMG!!! Don't you ever even for one minute think of the time if you're in trouble . . that's what Mimlet's are for!!! Chrys, you are so funny in your writing. I am enjoying this site tremendously. Mimlet
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