PIN or Swipe Credit Card?

[prairiesarah]

I have heard that it is uncommon to find credit card machines that require you to use PINs in the U.S. and that they still use the swipe and sign method. Is this true at Disneyworld/Orlando in general. Just wondering because we're not 100% sure what I set as the PINs for our U.S. credit cards. I'm about 80% sure, but was able to re-set mine at the bank today. It is my husbands that is the issue as he wont have time to get to the bank before we leave. If it is all swipe and sign then there is no issue. We'll be together most of the time so it's not really a big problem but we curious.

 

[starvenger]

The only place I could use chip and pin was at Wal Mart, and you could probably swipe there as well. So you'll probably be ok.

 

[prairiesarah]

Thanks! That is good to know. I am sure most of the time we will be together and we do have US cash as well, but just was really curious about this. We'll have to make a point of re-setting the PIN at some point once we're back *AND* remembering what it is for our next trip!

 

[lizzyb]

I believe the US is now starting to get the PIN technology.. not sure about Disney though.

 

[starvenger]

Probably a relevant article: http://arstechnica.com/business/201...-should-accept-chip-and-pin-cards-yeah-right/

 

[richmo]

Yeah, the article in the previous post pretty well sums it up. Here in the US, we were supposed to have our cards replaced with chip cards in October. Of the four credit cards I have, I think only one has been replaced so far and I've only used the chip reader once or twice out of hundreds of transactions. I can't say whether Disney has the capability to read the chip cards yet, but I'm quite sure they'll be accepting the swipe cards for some time to come.

 

[starvenger]

To be honest I'd settle for RFID tap payments, although I'd assume that might cost since they'd also have to integrate magic bands into it - I've seen the headaches firsthand with the PRESTO readers here in Toronto. Which I love (big fan of the Octopus cards in HK as well) but integrating a proprietary system AND PayPass/Wave tech seems to be an issue.

 

[bankr63]

There is almost no RFID tap technology in the US. Chip and PIN technology is rapidly coming up now in the states, and if you have a chipped card you pretty much have to use the Chip/PIN combo. Many US cards don't have Chips yet, I doubt there are any Canadian cards that don't have Chip; almost all our cards have RFID too now. I was shocked at how sudden the change over was on our trip to Upper NYS in September where we used Chip and PIN almost everywhere. Complete 180 in just a couple of months since our prior trip to Watertown NY two months earlier.

The PIN you use is the same PIN you use in Canada, I didn't have a failure once.

I would be prepared for this, and make sure you know what your PIN code is for the cards you are taking.

 

[Blackadder337]

I was in Myrtle Beach last year, and I was quite shocked to discover that in some of the souvenir shops, no pin or signature was required for using my visa or mastercard, but when I tried to use my debit card, they required photo id and a signature. I thought that was sort of backwards, but the one store owner informed me that the U.S. banking system is pretty behind the times technologically speaking

 

[bcwife76]

It's so odd to me that they are still rolling out the chip and pin technology and we are already using tap here.
Lately when I've shopped in the states (which isn't much since our $ is tanking) they only place I've been able to use chip and pin is at Trader Joes. And that's only been the past couple of months.

 

[wilkeliza]

Some places I go recognize my card is a chip card and won't take the swip. I am not sure how the system knows but at Best Buy I swipe and then it says insert card. I don't think it has ever needed the pin but I still have to insert the chip into the machine.

 

[starvenger]

The weirdest thing for me (and I've mentioned this in other posts) is people not saying "I'll get the Machine" at restaurants and having them bring the portable reader to the table.

 

[kiford]

I never used the pin number on my card for any of my purchases in early December at WDW stores. For those purchases under, I think, $50, they don't even require a signature (which I find very weird). They just swipe it.

 

[starvenger]

It's their version of the tap and go, basically.

 

[dis_guy]

We were on a tour in Europe in 2013 and we were eating with an American couple. When I took out my chip-enabled credit card to pay they asked about it. When I explained it, you'd have thought I was Captain Kirk taking out a tricorder or something. They'd never heard of such a thing. Fast forward to now and even the lowly WDW mugs have the same technology!

 

[ottawamom]

I was in the States doing Black Friday shopping at an outlet Mall and I used all three methods. Swipe, signature on paper, signature on a machine and chip. We also couldn't remember our PINS but we ran to the bank before we went and changed them so we knew what they were when needed. The thing I found most odd when shopping in the States was getting pennies back in change. It hasn't been that long since we lost ours but it seemed really odd to use them again.