Using your charge on the cruise (please read!)

[sillysmom]

Just thought I'd give everyone a heads up. I remember reading on an old thread that you should call your credit card company before you leave to let them know you would be using your card out of the country and from locations not typical of your normal charging pattern. THANK GOODNESS I CALLED MINE. She told me that MOST credit card companies (without prior knowledge of your trip), will NOT allow charges out of the country or even from the ship. She asked when I was leaving, what places I would be visiting, and how I would be traveling. She was very thorough and made notes on my account. She said, she doubted that they would have allowed the charges to go through without my call. WOW that would have been a problem.

 

[Roemama1]

We never called our cc company and we never had a problem this Feb. But if I had known to call ahead a of time I probably wound have just to be safe.

 

[CAMICKEY]

I have traveled out of country for the past 25 years and have never done this. Is it something new??? - Mike

 

[wdwmom2]

I have heard of this and am planning on contacting my cc company so that I can use my card if needed without any problems!!!

 

[CRB#33]

I've been out of the counrty also for three years in a row and this was never an issue. These were all trips to the Caribbean. Never even thought to call.

Of course, my plane tickets and hotel deposits were on the same credit card, so maybe that has something to do with it.

 

[CAMICKEY]

I had to call my Norwegian Cruise Lines MasterCard to verify this since it troubled me a little. SillysMom is correct if this will be your first time out of country or do not typically travel overseas or do not make "large" charges often (the kind you would make to settle your on board account). It was explained to me that since I have a "history" of charges overseas, that there is no reason for me to call them. Just wanted to clarify for everyone what was just stated to me. If you think that your credit card would be refused, then by all means call them and let them know. As far as me, it is one detail that I can overlook thankfully. - Mike

 

[piglet33]

I never had a problem with this either travelling out of the US or within the US. Maybe it just depends on the credit card company.

 

[din]

A few year ago when we moved from Ohio to California we decided to drive across and we got a call from the credit company about charges from the different states. Like sillymon, thankfully we made a change of phone number to our cell phone that we had with us.

Credit card company, have fraud detection, and it looks for spending patterns and when it see odd charges it raises a flag.

So if you travel often, spend on hotels and food on a regular basis it will not flag it. If you do not travel much and suddenly there are charges from outside US, it will be flagged.

 

[Rock'n Robin]

I think by now when my CC sees "DISNEY" anywhere on the charge they just sigh and let it go through! In port would be a different story though; I will call before we leave.
Robin M.

 

[hydster]

We went to Cancun last year and our CC denied the hotel reservations we had made because of this reason! Now we call and alert them everytime we go! If we hadn't been on top of the situation we would have arrived in Cancun with no hotel to go to! I do it just to be safe!! I also call the other card's that I'm not planning on using and telling them we are going out of town and that if any charges go through on that card to deny them. My friends parents had their house broke into while they were gone and the thief used their credit statements they found around to charge a ton while they were gone. At least this way they know that we arent around. I dont know if they honestly do something with the information but at least I know I called.

Heidi

 

[figment52]

Originally posted by CAMICKEY
I have traveled out of country for the past 25 years and have never done this. Is it something new??? - Mike

Yes and no - credit card companies have advised for years to alert them if you are travelling outside the US and will be using your card outside of your normal "zone". Now with the advances in software and tracking they are aware of where the charge is coming from immediately. We live right across the river from Canada and our salesmen can't use the card twice in the same day without someone calling and telling the credit card company that they are in Canada and to expect charges. We are talking 15 miles from our office.

Some card companies watch this more than others. Even with the call ahead of time I take second card just in case I need it. It is awful to be stranded without any access to cash or credit.

Debit cards carry and additional concern because they often carry a daily "limits" for transaction and when you have reached that limit all other transactions will be decline even if there are funds available. The next day everything will be fine again because you are working on a new daily limit.

Fraud Control departments have become very proactive.

 

[CRB#33]

Originally posted by Rock'n Robin
I think by now when my CC sees "DISNEY" anywhere on the charge they just sigh and let it go through! Robin M.

 

[Lilo5]

I will remember to call our credit card company when we go. One time I was shopping at one store in my hometown, and I used the same cc about 3 times (I thought I was done in the women's dept, then I saw something at the shoes, then at the kids...etc, well you know what I mean...) Well, when I used the cc the 4th time, my cc was denied. The cc company had to be called, and I had to talk to them personally and get my authorization. They thought that my card had been stolen, and the person was having a shopping spree. Good to know that the cc company is looking out for that.

 

[webray]

I called our bankcard company before hand..she said, there is nothing they can do...and she didn't forsee us having any problems using the card out of the country.

We didn't have any problems!

 

[goin2disneyagain]

Thanks for reminding me about this. I have had my CC company call me about purchases even from merchants I have not purchased from in the past just to make sure every thing was legit....

 

[jiminyC_fan]

My CC was denied on board after a certain amount. On the last night I was given a letter telling me that and to settle up at Guest Services. Thank goodness the remaining balance was for only 5.00 but if it was a lot more I could have been in trouble. I now call the CC company and carry a spare card.

 

[DreaminDisney]

Thanks for the info. I plan to call CC company prior to cruise.

 

[Tay N Evie's Mom]

When I booked our first DCL in 2001 I didn't know it but our credit card had a hold placed on it. I didn't know until I tried to use it the day after I booked the ressie. When I called the credit card I had to verify that I had booked the cruise in order for the hold to be taken off. I'm glad they were looking out for me, but I wish they would have called me instead of me finding out the hard way.

 

[ThreeCircles]

Originally posted by CAMICKEY
SillysMom is correct if this will be your first time out of country or do not typically travel overseas or do not make "large" charges often (the kind you would make to settle your on board account).

I don't think this is true for all cards and all banks. I've used multiple cards on the four cruises I've taken over the past two years and have never called in advance. Never encountered any problems either.

And, it just so happens, that my boyfriend's Disney Visa card number was lifted during one of these cruises. (St. Maarten car rental company.) As we found out several statements later, over $2000 dollars had been charged in various places. Never once were these transactions questioned by Bank One until we found out about them and alerted the company.

 

[minniemouse1]

We have never had a problem using our cards out of the US over the past 5 years except for when we purchased a car in Canada on our Visa. The credit card company, I believe it was Citibank, called the next morning to confirm that we had made a large purchase in Canada. She said it alerted the card company because of the amount. Probably if your cards are not used on a regular basis that alot of transactions in a clump or esp a large transaction may catch someones attention. I think this is why some people who are frequent card users have not encountered a problem and others have. Not positive about this or anything, just my theory.