credit cards

Bank of America has an online option where you can tell them where you are when you change states. Be grateful for the extra security you are getting from your card company. Identity theft and stolen cards can be a real pain in the neck to get straightened out. Just find the place on your account online to update your location or give them a call.

I appreciate my CC company (Navy Federal CU) watches my cards for me. A few times, we're had 'invalid' when we travel. We call, get instant fix, and on our way.

It doesn't bother me that NFCU tracks what my card charges. It's a safety feature I'd choose if given the option. Now, we sometimes (when I remember) call and tell they ahead of time we're traveling - give the dates - and then, no hassle.

Make sure you have "world credit cards" .... not all companies issue them. Then, dump those that don't understand that you are a traveler.

You are using them because they provide a service, if they can't deal with your travels, dump them.

As you can see from the answers to your original posts, get rid of that card because there are tons out there that will get used to your traveling habits and never question your movements again. We use two different ones (Visa, MasterCard) plus 3 different fuel cards. We never, never, never have to worry about telling them what states we are visiting.

Francesca Knowles wrote:
Sixteen (recent) pages on this very subject at this link.

Then ignore these 2 pages and get on with your life!!!

rwbradley wrote:
I have heard that many Banks use a formula (the exact details are somewhat like Area 51). But I have heard their formulas for determining if they should block your card are quite complex and based on dozens or even hundreds of weighted variables, and everyone's formula is different. The ones I have heard of most often are:
1) previous travel history, if you never travelled before and than start full timing, that can be a big red flag
2) size of the transaction seems to always be a big one
3) time and distance between transactions ie gas in LA than 15 minutes later gas in New York
If this is more than urban myth, that would mean that you can train the bank to not flag you (very much or at all) simply by being predictable. This is probably also why one person may get flagged and another wont.

x2
Really depends on the protocol of the card you are using. Cabela's Visa card has a really strict checkup or maybe it's just I so rarely use the card. Actually in retrospect it's just that Cabela's card is silly which is my definition of any card that wont let you dispute a charge over the phone or online. Snail mail disputes are well slow.
AMEX on the other hand has a different credit usage model and never questions my whereabouts as long as it's consistent.

Just finished a 4700 mile trip from the Midwest through the Canadian Maritimes and back using a Capital One card with 1.5% rebate. No problems on any purchases on either side of the border but was sometimes ask for home postal zip code at a fuel pump.

We primarily use Amex, Navy FCU, and USAA cards. Never a hold on any whether stateside or overseas. All 3 are set up to send me text alerts on unusual transactions. I'd dump Citi if they won't work with you better than that.

I call, tell the person that I don't want to yell at them so get me a supervisor, then proceed to ask supervisor if they want to keep our business. If not, other companies do. That usually gets a "we're sorry, let me get this corrected". That said, we know that going through California I have to call before we enter and start getting $200+ worth of diesel every other day - - California has a real problem with fuel and people using stolen cards.

It is irritating but I suppose with everything getting hacked it is something we have to learn to live with.

Barb

just keep calling them to update. BOA will list multiple states. I also tell them what type of charges to expect such as campgrounds and fuel.