Debit Cards Can't Go Everywhere Credit Cards Can
Debit Cards Are No Longer the Perfect Solution
It used to be impossible to tell the difference between a debit card and a credit card. Nowadays, however, hotels and car rental agencies are wise to the difference. If you're thinking about booking a hotel with one of your debit cards or renting a car, you might want to think twice.
Does It Say Debit?
If your debit card says "Debit" or if you have a pre-paid credit card, many hotels and car rental companies won't allow you to use it for guarantee of payment. If they do, you may have to authorize a "security deposit" to be charged to the card, which can sometimes be twice as much as you were planning on charging.
If your debit card doesn't say "Debit" and you try using it as a credit card, you might find yourself in all sorts of trouble. When the company runs your debit card to "authorize" the funds, the amount of the authorization will be held from your account. This amount may not be released back to your card for almost a month.
When you go to pay your bill, the hotel or car rental company will actually charge your card for the amount spent. So let's say your bill was $250, but the hotel or car rental company authorized your debit card for $500, the funds for that authorization were taken out of your debit account.
When you check out of the hotel or return the car, they charge the $250, so a total of $750 was charged to your card. Yes, that $500 will eventually be returned, but that doesn't help you in the meantime.
The Solution?
If you don't have any credit cards, apply for a secured credit card account. This will solve the above problems and will help you re-establish credit. While debit cards are still useful tools in some areas, travel is not really one of them.