When travel, not needed to let CC know if you already have CHIP...

[ddemari]

I travel a lot of never let the CC companies know ahead of time unless I am going to like Europe. Ive never had problems in Mexcio. I was recently in Montreal and then New york city and never had any issues. 

[Scupra]

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@Anonymous wrote:

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@Scupra wrote:

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@Anonymous wrote:

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@Anonymous wrote:

Hi all!

I'm going on my first ever out of country trip (Mexico via cruise) for our Honeymoon next week.

I called a couple credit card companies the one I will use the cards to to let them know I will be traveling to this and that ports, etc...I was surprised to learn that you do not need to let them know IF you have chip in your card!

Nonetheless, I told them, still! I want to let them know regardless cuz I would have hard time calling back LOL!

Cheers!

CAMailman

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The catch is, this only really works if at least one of the places you will be using the card has a chip reader to allow the CCC to confirm the physical presence of the card and you.  This is not a problem in Europe, but I'm not sure if Mexico has upgraded to chip readers as thoroughly yet...It would be interesting to find out! (please post your findings!)

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When I was in Cancun a year ago most places were changed over. Will probably depend on where you are though

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Interesting...the Mexican ports are Cabo San Lucas and Puerto Vallarta. See what happens if these 2 ports communities have chip enabled devices.

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That is a good cruise! Enjoy and have fun. Congrats by the way

[Anonymous]

Last year I drove to Vegas from SF Bay Area California and getting gas in the middle of nowhere California AMEX stopped my card.. in the SAME state.

[Anonymous]

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@Scupra wrote:

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That is a good cruise! Enjoy and have fun. Congrats by the way

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Thank you, Scupra

[Anonymous]

Citi DC I would 100% always report if you are traveling out of state or out of the country.  I have had 2 separate cases where it was frozen because of this, until I learned my lesson.

Especially if you are flying and have connections in different states always include the added states for the trip.

BOA I have had no problems with ever.

[Anonymous]

Confirming first hand that major cities and ports in Mexico are all chip enabled. Enjoy your cruise.

[Anonymous]

That;s crazy that they use the chip as a reason to not need to know about travel. Here in Florida I would say probably 50% or more of the stores still don't have the readers active. They have them, but they don't work yet. Besides, what happens if you lose the card in port and don't realize it right away? If they know you are only there for the day, they know to cut off charges after that day. But when I cruise, I mostly use cash in ports but have cards for emergency use, or if I ever find some jewels I can't resist.  

Speaking of cash, be sure to take some small bills. It doesn't go well when you haggle down to $5 for an item then bust out a 20 to pay. "No change" 

[Anonymous]

I travel... A Lot.....
I use my Amex Plat on every trip, never once been declined or had a problem. I might be old school but I think that Amex is the best travel option. I do understand that some places do not accept Amex but truth be known... If it's worth shopping there , they take American Express

[Fleuriste]

Okay - so in Puerto Vallarta, the best tacos al pastor can be had at Pancho's Takos.  It is on Basilio Badillo in the Zona Romantica.  Opens at 6 pm, line starts forming at 5:30pm.  Each taco is less than a dollar and the Coronas are cheaper than soda. Seriously, ever since our trip in February we have been craving these tacos ever since.  

And, if you have time and want to hold baby lions, tigers, jaguars and a variety of small primates, you can pay $85 at the Puerto Vallarta Zoo.  The zoo itself is pretty depressing, but my children will never forget holding the baby cats.

Have a great trip!

Edited to add: I let Chase know that I would be traveling to Mexico and using the card.  First time I tried to swipe my CSP, it was denied.  Had I checked my cell phone, I would have noticed that they had sent me a text verification.  (I was probably in airplane mode at the time anyway.)  But I was annoyed that even after forewarning them, I was denied.  It only happened once and I had pesos so it was no big deal.  

[Anonymous]

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@Anonymous wrote:

That;s crazy that they use the chip as a reason to not need to know about travel. Here in Florida I would say probably 50% or more of the stores still don't have the readers active. They have them, but they don't work yet. Besides, what happens if you lose the card in port and don't realize it right away? If they know you are only there for the day, they know to cut off charges after that day. But when I cruise, I mostly use cash in ports but have cards for emergency use, or if I ever find some jewels I can't resist.  

Speaking of cash, be sure to take some small bills. It doesn't go well when you haggle down to $5 for an item then bust out a 20 to pay. "No change" 

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Banks trust the chips enough to know it's probably you using the card and not a clone. Wait til we get PINs, we might not even have to do travel notifications anymore. Magnetic stripes alone with a signature is wasted and fraud prone technology these days, honestly.