The number of overall complaints to the financial watchdog increased by 25% last year, with more than 250,000 cases being dealt with.

Complaints over payment protection insurance were top of the list of cases for the FOS, as more and more people tried to claim back money following the high-profile court case last year.

The FOS said it received around 130,000 complaints about payment protection insurance (PPI) last year – the biggest single category of complaints ever received.

But credit cards came second in the list, as the collapse of retailers and budget airlines has seen customers attempting to claim back money.

“The pain of the recession has begun to bite deeply, and this is showing up in our figures,” said Martyn James, a spokesman for the FOS.

There was a 10% rise in the number of credit card complaints to the ombudsman last year, amounting to more than 19,000 cases.

This is the largest number since records began, and pushed credit cards past current accounts as the second-biggest complaint area.

The main reason for the surge is customers claiming refunds with their credit card companies after the collapse of a retailer or travel agency.

Customers can use Section 75 of the Consumer Credit Act, which states that credit card companies are liable if there is something wrong with goods or services paid for with plastic.

More customers are aware of Section 75, but the FOS has said that more credit card companies are making it harder to claim a refund.

“A common misconception is that the customer must first exhaust all other channels of complaint,” added Mr James.

“This is not the case, and issuers have no right to tell consumers to pursue the retailer first. Once asked for a refund, they have a legal liability to respond.”

With the economic downturn continuing to squeeze people’s finances, the FOS is urging customers to know where they stand with their rights.

Natalie Ceeney, chief ombudsman at the FOS stated “as more people are tightening their belts in these difficult financial times, it’s more important than ever that people know their rights if you use credit and something goes wrong.”

“So if you have a complaint and you’re not sure where to turn, speak to the ombudsman,” she added.

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Prepaid Buzz

The Financial Ombudsman Service, the independent watchdog for the finance industry, has said it handles as many as 100 complaints per week from customers who’ve been effectively ignored by their credit card company.

Credit card customers should be protected by Section 75 of the Consumer Credit Act, which is designed to protect card users financially.

Section 75 was once a little-known regulation. But as people’s credit card usage has increased over the years, so has knowledge of its benefits.

“It’s more important than ever that people know their rights if you use credit and something goes wrong,” said Chief Ombudsman Natalie Ceeney.

In the last five years in particular, the use of Section 75 has shot up. But where credit card companies would once payout without question, evidence shows that more and more are taking a stricter line when it comes to refunds.

Many customers have complained of receiving a standard letter from bank staff rejecting their claim outright, while the Financial Ombudsman Service has seen a spike in complaints in the last few years.

Section 75 states that if a consumer pays for something using their credit card, the credit card company is liable if something goes wrong with the purchase.

This can be anything from faulty goods, to the company selling you the goods going out of business. To claim on Section 75, the consumer must have spent a minimum of £100 and a maximum of £30,000.

“Credit cards offer a greater level of protection to consumers than payment by cash or cheques – meaning that purchases can be made with much greater confidence,” said Craig Jones, spokesperson for the UK Cards Association.

The law can be very useful to shoppers and card users, as it prevents them for paying off a debt on something that they either did not receive or was faulty.

Customers are now being urged to know when Section 75 applies, as it does not protect you should you change your mind about a purchase.

“Section 75 gives you great and unique protection,” said Doriena Koldenhof, of the UK Cards Association, the trade body for banks, says:

“But the law in this area can be complex and each claim has to be assessed on a case-by-case basis,” she added.

An alternative to credit cards is a prepaid card. These offer many of the benefits as a credit card, but with added fraud security as they are not tied to a bank account.

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Prepaid Buzz

Analysis of more than 100 million credit card applications in the first three months of last year, by risk management firm ID Analytics, has revealed that credit card fraudsters are using the deceased’s details to establish accounts.

It was found that as many as 2.5 million deceased Americans have had their identities stolen by criminals, including names, dates of birth and Social Security Numbers.

The research compared the data from more than 100 million credit card applications with data from the US database of deceased people – called the Death Master File.

The comparison found that in most cases the use of the deceased’s personal information was used by criminals by mistake.

Around 1.6 million of the fraudulent applications were found to be mistakes made by identity thieves when entering Social Security Numbers.

In addition, the research found that in some cases thieves make up the names, Social Security Numbers and birthdays which coincidently match the information of the deceased.

However, in many cases the use of this information was intentional. It was found that in around 800,000 cases identity thieves were intentionally tapping the Death Master File for information to use on credit card applications.

“This study brings to light a significant problem as we see fraudsters intentionally using identities of the deceased at the rate of more than 2,000 per day,” said Dr. Stephen Coggeshall, chief technology officer at ID Analytics.

“While this is clearly a problem for businesses, surviving family members can also be the victims of this identity fraud as they are left to manage the estates of their deceased loved ones.”

So it appears that anyone can be the victim of credit card fraud, alive or dead. It is a problem that is seen not just in America, but in the UK too.

There are a number of steps you can take to reduce the risk of credit card fraud. These include keeping a close eye on your credit card use, checking your statement regularly, and alerting your card provider immediately should you lose your card.

Another way to avoid becoming the victim of fraud is to invest in a prepaid credit card. These work in the same way as a credit card, with much of the same benefits, but offer much more security.

Prepaid cards are not tied to a bank account, and have a pre-loaded amount on them, so are a lot harder for criminals to target.

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5. Google Re-enable Prepaid Credit Card Feature for New Application

Prepaid Buzz

A shift in the focus of cybercriminals has been detected recently, as they target systems that store details of a higher number of credit cards rather than personal online bank accounts.

The latest attack is aimed at the point-of-sale (PoS) systems in hotels, as hotels generally have a limited knowledge of IT and malware, but handle a large number of credit cards on a daily basis.

The latest malware is a remote access Trojan horse (RAT), which is designed to steal customer credit card and billing information from hotel front desk computers.

The malware was discovered by researchers at security firm Trusteer, and was on the black market for $ 280, or £175.

The RAT has the ability to take screenshots, upload and download files to and from the infected computer, and record keystrokes – making them suitable for a number of operations.

“The strength of RATs is their generic nature – they can be used to attack many different applications in use by many industries,” said Amit Klein, Trusteer’s chief technology officer.

“We’ve seen RATs used against internal applications, banking applications, defence industries,” he added.

The RAT discovered by Trusteer came with an algorithm to prevent it being detected by any antivirus software, meaning it can be delivered to a buyer via email or instant messaging without being detected.

In addition, the malware package also came with instructions on how to trick hotel managers into installing it on a front desk computer.

Trusteer has said that the malware’s focus on hotel PoS systems is typical of cybercriminals these days, who are looking for more lucrative targets than personal bank accounts or consumer machines.

“I think the main reason for this shift, or diversification, is the fact that PoS machines, and some business machines serve as ‘mini repositories’ where information about many victims can be collected at once,” said Mr Klein.

“This is in contrast with consumer machines which typically expose one or two accounts,” he added.

The news is worrying for credit card customers, as there is no way of detecting the Rat on a hotel PoS system. But one way to avoid being the victim of credit card crime is to invest in a prepaid credit card.

These work in much the same way as a credit card but are not tied to a bank account, meaning you only load a specific amount onto the card.

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5. Top Tips for Using Prepaid Travel Money Cards

Prepaid Buzz

All you need to do to be entered into the daily prize draw is to follow a few simple steps

1. Follow @Prepaid365 on Twitter at http://twitter.com/Prepaid365
2. Retweet our Tweet of the Day – “Follow @Prepaid365 & @kalixa_uk & RT to #WIN a #Free Kalixa Card w/ £10 – http://bit.ly/HLi2OS – Win an #iPad2 – http://bit.ly/Aql55w″.
3. That’s it really and your entry for the day is done.
4. Only one entry per day is allowed via twitter but if you want to make another entry – why not like us on Facebook at http://www.facebook.com/Prepaid365UK and post our tweet on your status page. If you already like us on Facebook, that’s fine – simply post to your status page.
5. You have just doubled your chances with the extra entry via Facebook – WOW!
6. Not yet done? Neither are we – why not complete our simple daily survey question to get a 3rd entry into the daily prize draw – http://www.prepaid365.com/awards/2012/dailysurvey.html – all done in under a minute!
7. So that’s 3 entries into the daily prize draw for a Kalixa Prepaid Card with £10 spend money.
8. Get your entries in today but make sure you read the competition rules below – Go, Go, Go!
9. Don’t forget to check out our “Tweet to WIN an iPad 2 competition” here

Love this? Why not check out our Tweet to Win an iPad 2 Competition here

Competition Rules

1. This competition is valid for UK residents only.
2. You need to be 18 or above to enter the competition.
3. The sponsor of this promotion is Emotion Associates, T24Prepaid and Kalixa Prepaid – all being collectively referred to as (“Sponsor”). No other third parties are a sponsor of this competition and are also not responsible for conducting this promotion in any way or form.
4. The promotion will run daily from 12.00am BST to 11.59pm BST from April 4th, 2012 to April 3o, 2012 and 1 winner will be announced each day.
5. The prize package is a Free Kalixa Prepaid MasterCard with £10 spend money.
6. The winner will be announced each day on Twitter and Facebook at 4:00pm BST the next day. The winner is not responsible for any taxes associated with receipt of the Prizes.
   
7. To enter the promotion, the entrant must complete all requirements as defined in the competition steps by following the Sponsor’s Twitter account located at the URL http://twitter.com/Prepaid365 and http://twitter.com/kalixa_uk from their own Twitter account. The entrant must then issue the status update from their Twitter account as shown above. The entrant’s Twitter updates must not be protected during the promotion period. Entrants may sign-up for their own Twitter account at https://twitter.com/signup. All steps must be completed for a valid entry.
8. Additional entries can be made by liking the Sponsor’s Facebook Page at http://www.facebook.com/Prepaid365UK and posting the competition tweet to your Facebook status page (1 additional entry). If you already like us on Facebook, simply post to your Facebook status.
   
9. Additional entries can be made by completing the Daily Survey Question at Grand Prize draw at http://www.prepaid365.com/awards/2012/dailysurvey.html (one additional entry)
10. One winner will be selected randomly from all the valid entries each day. Sponsor will notify the winner via a Twitter direct message from the Sponsor’s Twitter account the next day and results will also be posted on twitter and Facebook. If the winner does not respond within three (3) working days, another direct message will be sent by the sponsor. If no response is received within an additional three (3) working days from them, he or she will forfeit the Prize and another winner will be randomly chosen.
11. The winner will need to complete the application form for a Kalixa Prepaid MasterCard and the card fee and the spend money will be loaded back on to the winners card if their application has been successful. If their application is not successful and they are unable or ineligible to get a card, then the prize is forfeited. No cash alternative is available.
12. No purchase is necessary to enter or win. Void where prohibited or restricted by law. Employees of Sponsor and family members of such employees are not eligible to enter.
13. By participating in this promotion, entrants agree to release and hold harmless Sponsor from any claim or cause of action arising out of participation in the promotion.
14. Sponsor reserves the right to substitute for a suitable alternative of equal or greater value in the event of unavailability due to circumstances beyond their control. No cash alternative is available.

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5. Free Kalixa Card – Limited Time Only!

Prepaid Buzz

There are currently 31 million card users in the UK, and they are set to see a new type of credit card statement for the first time this year.

The new statements are designed to make it easier for credit card customers to see how they have been using their card in the past year.

It has been designed by the UK Cards Association, in a partnership with the Department for Business, Innovation and Skills.

The statement will feature a range of details about the credit card, including the total spend on the card, the amount repaid, and any charges or interest fees incurred.

“Annual credit card statements will help empower customers by giving a clear view of how they’ve each managed their plastic over the past year,” Melanie Johnson, Chair of The UK Cards Association.

“By clearly setting out costs and charges this industry initiative could help customers get a better deal either by being more savvy about how they use their current card, or by changing to another account that’s a better fit.”

Each credit card company’s statement will include the same information, making it easier for customers to compare different cards.

Some credit card companies have already started sending out the new statements, while other customers will see their first annual statement on the anniversary of the date the account was opened.

As well as total spend and amount repaid, the new statements will also show customers exactly how they have used their card in the last 12 months.

This will be done by providing details of point-of-sale spending, and any cash advances or balance transfers. These types of transactions will also come with details of any interest fees or charges incurred.

As well as transactions made in the UK, the new statements will also provide information on any foreign transactions, and the charges they incur.

The new statements will certainly make it easier for cardholders to manage their credit card spending, but using a credit card can still make the debt add up.

Another option is a prepaid card. These work in much the same way as a credit card, but are not tied to a bank account of any kind.

Not only does this make it impossible to build up debt, as you can only spend the amount you load onto the card, but you are in no danger of being the victim of fraud.

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Prepaid Buzz

An investigation has revealed that users of Barclays’s contactless credit and debit cards are in danger of having their card’s data extracted just by waving a smartphone over their wallet.

The electronic data only includes the information seen on the front of a card, and not the PIN or security code. But the data can still be used by the electronic pickpockets to buy things on shopping websites that don’t ask for the security code.

The contactless cards from Barclays have been hailed as the future of payment in the country, making it far easier to pay for things with a credit or debit card.

The technology involves a chip in the card that is held up to a card reader in shops, meaning payments can be made quickly and without having to enter a PIN.

But an investigation by Channel 4 has found that the 15 million customers who use the contactless payment technology could be at risk of electronic pick-pocketing.

“We call on the card issuers to act quickly to address this issue and to cancel and replace cards if necessary,” said a spokesman for the Department for Business, Innovation and Skills.

“We have always emphasised the importance of data security in initiatives such as midata (the government initiative to give individuals access to their personal data on mobile phones and online) and this contactless payment facility clearly has some serious weakness in this regard.”

The investigation found that specially designed, simple software can be installed on a smartphone that allows thieves to simply brush their device past a person’s wallet or bag.

So far, the smartphone software has only been able to access card data for Barclays Visa cards.

“The details obtained should not be sufficient to undertake any fraudulent activity, but we do depend on retailers upholding the same high standards of security when verifying payment details,” said a Barclays spokesman.

“As a matter of urgency we are now engaging with retailers to ensure they are undertaking adequate and robust checks. We remain committed to contactless and firmly believe that it continues to be a safe and viable payment system.”

The findings of the investigation will be worrying for contactless card users with Barclays. Many of them may want to switch to a prepaid credit card, as they are safe from fraud and are not connected to any specific bank account.

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Prepaid Buzz

An official company email stated: “We are happy to announce that you can now add the Google Prepaid Card back to your wallet with the newest version of Google Wallet.

“To add the Google Prepaid Card back, you will first need to update your Google Wallet application to the most recent version.”

It was revealed last month that unauthorised access to prepaid credit card balances could be granted on mobile devices.

This potentially allowed anyone to get hold of (and spend) any existing balances on a prepaid card linked to the Google wallet application.

Digital pick pockets were able to access the cash by tapping into an existing balance on a wallet and simply changing the settings.

The discovery was made by a blogger known as The Smartphone Champ.

The mysterious character demonstrated that by going into the settings on an Android phone and blanking all the settings for a Google Wallet, anybody could conceivably gain access to a prepaid credit card linked with the device.

It was a damaging revelation for an application that the IT giant was particularly proud of.

It is worth noting that this new solution to the problem will only work for customers who are re-initialising Google Wallet on the same phone.

Anybody who wishes to set up their details and cards on a new device will have to contact Google initially to get started.

Additional security issues

Google have also been under scrutiny recently for other issues related to the new application.

One particular security company recently devised a method for cracking a PIN for the wallet.

Zvelo, the web security provider, suggested that the PIN for the wallet WAS NOT stored in its ‘secure element’ within the Android operating system.

Google claims that this can be prevented if the phone owner activates a specific screen lock feature on their phone.

This requires an additional PIN to be entered whenever the phone is activated. If the thief does not know that PIN, then they cannot get into the phone to get access to the prepaid funds.

Prepaid credit cards are generally a safe method of using cash. It is not connected to any bank accounts and, therefore, in the event of theft there is no risk of ID fraud.

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Prepaid Buzz

American Express has predicted that the prepaid travel market will be worth more than $ 1 billion within the next five years.

The prediction comes as the company plans to launch their range of prepaid travel cards within the BRICS market, which is comprised of Brazil, Russia, India, China and South Africa.

The market has been growing rapidly in recent years and, subsequently, has attracted interest from several industries around the globe that are looking to exploit the emerging market.

The countries which comprise the market are all popular travel destinations for globetrotters around the world. Because of this, the idea of using prepaid travel cards could really be set to take off.

Prepaid travel cards have become a very useful alternative to carrying large amounts of cash for travellers all over the planet. For anybody planning an extended trip abroad this Summer, it could be a terrific investment.

The perils of using an ATM abroad

This announcement by American Express follows the recent news that British holidaymakers spent over £391 million in ATM withdrawal fees while travelling abroad in 2011.

According to research carried out by Sainsbury’s, an estimated £14.2 billion was withdrawn by British holidaymakers over the same 12 month period from cash machines outside of the UK.

The average charge for an ATM withdrawal within the Euro-zone was found to be approximately £1.67, with some cash points charging up to £2.66.

David Barrett, Head of Sainsbury’s Travel Money, stated; “As a nation, we spend a huge amount every year on our holidays.”

Prepaid travel cards could be the ideal solution for those who are worried about ATM fees while travelling abroad.

Regardless of whether you are staying in Europe or going overseas, you can preload money onto a prepaid travel card before you leave, ensuring that you don’t have to worry about dealing with large cash sums or unwelcome ATM charges.

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Prepaid Buzz

All you need to do to be entered into the daily prize draw is to follow a few simple steps

1. Follow @Prepaid365 on Twitter at http://twitter.com/Prepaid365
2. Retweet our Tweet of the Day – “Follow @Prepaid365 & RT to #WIN a #Free Prepaid Card w/ £10 thx to http://bit.ly/xYGxcR -Win an #iPad2 & more- http://bit.ly/Aql55w″.
3. That’s it really and your entry for the day is done.
4. Only one entry per day is allowed via twitter but if you want to make another entry – why not like us on Facebook at http://www.facebook.com/Prepaid365UK and post our tweet on your status page. If you already like us on Facebook, that’s fine – simply post to your status page.
5. WOW- now you have an extra entry into the Daily Giveaway Competition. You have just doubled your chances.
6. Feeling Greedy? You want more still – complete our simple daily survey question to get a 3rd entry into the daily prize draw – http://www.prepaid365.com/awards/2012/dailysurvey.html.
7. So now you are three times as likely as the person next to you to win our daily prize and have a chance at the monthly “surprise” prize draw too.
8. Still here? What are you waiting for – get your entries in today but make sure you read the competition rules below.
9. Don’t forget to check out our “Tweet to WIN an iPad 2 competition” here

Love this? Why not check out our Tweet to Win an iPad 2 Competition here

Competition Rules

1. This competition is valid for UK residents only.
2. You need to be 18 or above to enter the competition.
3. The sponsor of this promotion is Emotion Associates and T24Prepaid – all being collectively referred to as  (“Sponsor”). No other third parties are a  sponsor of this competition and are also not responsible for conducting this promotion in any way or form.
4. The promotion will run daily from 12.00am BST to 11.59pm BST from March 1st, 2012 to March 31, 2012 and 1 winner will be announced each day.
5. The prize package is a Free Prepaid MasterCard with £10 spend money.
6. The winner will be announced each day on Twitter and Facebook at 4:00pm BST the next day. The winner is not responsible for any taxes associated with receipt of the Prizes.
   
7. To enter the promotion, the entrant must complete all requirements as defined in the competition steps by following the Sponsor’s Twitter account located at the URL http://twitter.com/Prepaid365 from their own Twitter account. The entrant must then issue the status update from their Twitter account as shown above. The entrant’s Twitter updates must not be protected during the promotion period. Entrants may sign-up for their own Twitter account at https://twitter.com/signup.  All steps must be completed for a valid entry.
8. Additional entries can be made by liking the Sponsor’s Facebook Page at http://www.facebook.com/Prepaid365UK and posting the competition tweet to your Facebook status page (1 additional entry). If you already like  us on Facebook, simply post to your Facebook status.
   
9. Additional entries can be made by completing the Daily Survey Question at Grand Prize draw at http://www.prepaid365.com/awards/2012/dailysurvey.html (one additional entry)
10. One winner will be selected randomly from all the valid entries each day. Sponsor will notify the winner via a Twitter direct message from the Sponsor’s Twitter account the next day and results will also be posted on twitter and Facebook. If the winner does not respond within three (3) working days, another direct message will be sent by the sponsor. If no response is received within an additional three (3) working days from them, he or she will forfeit the Prize and another winner will be randomly chosen.
11. The winner will need to complete the application form for a Prepaid MasterCard  and the card fee and the spend money will be loaded back on to the winners card if their application has been successful. If their application is not successful and they are unable or ineligible to get a card, then the prize is forfeited. No cash alternative is available.
12. No purchase is necessary to enter or win. Void where prohibited or restricted by law. Employees of Sponsor and family members of such employees are not eligible to enter.
13. By participating in this promotion, entrants agree to release and hold harmless Sponsor from any claim or cause of action arising out of participation in the promotion.
14. Sponsor reserves the right to substitute for a suitable alternative of equal or greater value in the event of unavailability due to circumstances beyond their control. No cash alternative is available.

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Prepaid Buzz