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Byron of Atlanta writes (3/29/03):
A fancy debit card called Wired Plastic is claiming, through affiliate websites and emails, that it builds credit and reports to credit bureaus. It does not and cannot.
I'm just concerned about others who are trying to rebuild credit and pay the absurd fees associated with this card and then learn -- nothing reported to the bureaus.
Byron's right -- it's just a debit card which won't do a thing for anyone's credit. Better to save your money and avoid the fees, which may very well be substantial, as the folks below will tell you.
Davishire of Greensboro NC (05/05/08)
I have had this card for years and I look at these complaints for the first time and I didn't know I had somewhere to vent, what bank charges you to call them What bank don't have a 800# You have to pay your long distance company and pay them for calling. What!
Then I wanted to send money to my stock account how about they told me no How can you tell me where I can send my money and meant no too, I still was unable to get that money in the account from them.
Michelle of Mesquite NV (04/02/08)
I have had a wired plastic card for over five years. Had some minor problems with recieving new cards on time, but nothing major. My paychecks have been direct deposited everyweek for the past three years. However, I decided to direct deposit my income tax refund to my account. Their website advertises instant access to government funds and paychecks. I have had no issues with my paychecks, so felt safe to have my IRS refund deposited. The IRS deposited my funds, but they have not showed up in my account. I am now being told it takes 8 to 15 business days for government deposits.
Had I known this I would have never done this. I would have gotten a check faster. I requested to speak to a supervisor about this. I explained to her had I known this I would have never done direct deposit. Of course there was nothing she could do. When I told her I was going to cancel my account with Wiredplastic, she said we will be sorry to lose you. I am not a valued customer after all the years I have been with them. DO NOT USE Direct Deposit for your REFUND if you want it quickly, because you will not get quickly. I don't even know if I will get it now.
Carroll of Provo UT (03/16/08)
I called in on March 17th with a problem with my card. I could not get it to read at POS. I called into customer service, and the girl that answered me asked, 'In order to ensure your privacy, can I have your credit visacard number?' I asked, 'How does me giving you my credit card number ensure my privacy?' She said, 'Sir, do you want help or not?' I asked to speak with her supervisor, then she hung up on me. I called back and another girl answered. I asked the same question. She too, hung up on me.
I called back and got to speak with a supervisor. I told her what happened, after she, too, asked me for my card number to ensure my privacy. She asked, "Did you need help with your card?" I asked her if this was standard procedure to treat their customers this way. She said no. But, I know nothing will be done. So I cut my card up and mailed it back to them. Please, do yourself a favor, and destroy yours, too.
Just extremely frustrating.
Miguel of Longwood, FL (09/09/07)
I have an acct with wired plastic. On 08/29/07 I went to PR and rented a car from Enterprise. They made a mistake and charged my acct twice. The branch manger in PR issued a refund and sent in a letter with the company letterhead. She also called and spoke to the general manager at wired plastic. WP has refused to issue the refund in the amount of $414.
All the supervisors and personnel that I have spoken to at wired plastic have been rude and unhelpful. I also found out that every time you call WP they charge you 95 cents!
Sabrina of Keams Canyon AZ (04/13/07)
Nobody hasheard of this bank, I cannot get direct deposit like they said would work, but I have not yet deposit any cash yet I would like to cancel. I'm always told Bank Unknown.
Lauri of Raleigh, NC (12/11/06)
I've spent the last 45 mins or so reading this page of complaints and one good comment. I've personally had a Wired Plastic card now for over 3 years. Yes, there have been a couple of snags but I've always been able to get them fixed or at least questions answered promptly anytime I've called.
I really feel for these people but the website says it's a prepaid debit card and tells you exactly what the fees are, mine are $3.95 a month. They tell you they do not report to any credit companies to help fix your credit.
My advice to anyone getting any credit type card is to be very sure to read all the fine print and if it doesn't fit what you want then don't get it.
Stephen of Oakland, CA (10/02/06)
I purchased 2 cell phones, under the promise of a rebate and after carefully following all instructions, had the rebates denied.
Out $400 and required to complete a Cingular contract. Plus the phone sent broke and is not covered under warrenty.
Craig of Santa Monica, CA (10/01/06)
I have been unable to access statements, and or verify any and all transactions. C/R refuses to acknowledge inquiries including E-mail communications. In addition, credit card fails to include my middle initial.
Cheryl of Hoosick Falls, NY (10/01/06)
I have had a wired plastic card for over 2 years and used it many times to rent a car with no problem. All the sudden today I rent a van from Enterprise who put through a sales transaction on my card for $200. Then I find out that Wired Plastic had taken it upon themselves to add $30 to the authorization.
When I called customer service they said they had changed the terms and conditions of my card. They now put a 15% surcharge on your card when you rent a vehicle. Now call me irrational if you will, but Enterprise charged me $200 even though my rental will only cost me around $100 to make sure they had enough money to cover incidentals, so who the heck is Wired Plastic to charge me an extra $30 for the same thing!
They told me the $30 would be return after I return the rental car. Even though they only hit me for $30, multiply that by a couple of thousand of other customers per day and figure how much interest this company must be earning on our hard earned cash.
Grace of Conway AR (09/18/06)
i foolishly sent $780 for two wired plastic cards via money gram. they sent the wrong amounts to each card. money gram kept telling me to call wired plastic, and vice-versa. the money finally showed up. in addition, p hut had charged my card then put the money back. a wired plastic csr told me to have them call so i'd have access to the money. when the p hut rep called, they hassled her about an authorization number, etc.; the wp csr said the woman just needed to give my name
wired plastic and money gram caused me all sorts of grief. and do you know they had the nerve to charge me for the csr calls? if they hadn't been so busy shuffling me around, i wouldn't have had to spend so much time on the phone. NEVER AGAIN. i told both i'd never do business with them again, and i'd make it my plan in life to expose them 4 the lousy businesses they are.
Melissa of Chula Vista CA (08/03/06)
There was an international transaction in the amount of $480 debited from my Wired Plastic account. Two months later, I disputed the transaction and the Dispute department returned my money. Three months after I received my money back, the money was again TAKEN! I disputed the charge but got no where. I sent certified letters, threatened legal action...I even sent a complaint to the Utah BBB for their bad business! Finally I'm fed up with it, I retained an attorney and have a small claims case against them.
I have two children to care for. Although $480 is not A LOT OF MONEY, it is still money I worked for. It caused me financial hardship, I'm late on some of my bills because of this!!!
Tracey of Bellflower, CA (06/28/06)
This company is just too much!! How can you send an express payment through moneygram, and wired plastic NEVER receive it. I had a reference number, store location, and moneygram telling me that Wired Plastic received the money but Wired Plastic would not credit my card.
Kris of St Petersburg FL (04/06/06)
I have been using wiredplastic for over 6 years now and deposited well over $300,000.00 in that time through direct deposit and western union. In that time I have only had two problems. A hotel clerk not knowing what she was doing and charged my card twice. I had called wiredplastic and the hotel and wired plastic took care of my problem within 1 day! The other was my PIN did not work at an ATM, again called wiredplastic and that issue was taken care of within 20 minutes! I feel for these people and their experiences. But I only haved to say that wired plastic is great!
Unrika of Fontana CA (03/18/06)
I had closed my account on a Tuesday night and the next morning my direct deposit from my work went through. I called wired plastic and they told me that they would send a check for the amount in my account. I still haven't received anything and they have been telling me that they sent it out in Feb and now they say that they sent it out on March 1st. I still haven't received anything. I DON'T KNOW WHAT TO DO AND I REALLY NEED THAT MONEY SINCE I AM 9 MONTHS PREGNANT AND MY BABY IS ALMOST DUE.
Ellen of Grand Ronde, OR (02/20/06)
I just had $120 come up missing on my Wired Plastic account from an internet purchase.
When I made the purchase, the card was decline. I called for the balance and there was only $15 in the account - it should have $120. I have the Western Union receipts but I don't know what happen to that $120.
You can't call them - no one is there.
Janet of Bloomington, MN (12/17/05)
I cannot get a monthly statements without paying a fee and my account has been deactivated.
Ida of Rayne, LA (12/05/05)
I think this company is a scam because they owe me $123.97. They have all kinds of excuses.
I don't want to deal with this card, I just want my money.
Frankie of Detroit, MI (11/30/05)
I tried to pay a fee to post a bond using two of my credit cards. A transcation was processed on my Wired Plastic card, but not for the full amount of the bond. Government Payment Services never acquired my funds, but Wired Plastic is holding my funds for thirty days.
It is too close to the holidays for my funds to be held, and when I contacted the customer service hotline they were not sympathetic or helpful.
Nancy of Oak Harbor, WA (11/30/05)
I have just figured out why my balance totals and theirs are different. It is because they doubled a withdrawl I made. It took me awhile to figure out what the heck was going on and this is it.
I tried over and over to reach someone in customer support and have gotten nowhere. The support number is long distance call and they keep you on hold forever before you accidently get cut off.
I lost a lot of money because I did not understand that they were taking out withdrawls twice, from the same place and for the same amount.
Janet of Irmo, SC (11/14/05)
I think this is the biggest scam or whatever you want to call it. You try to get to them by telephone and you are sent to some 801 number and then it cuts you off.
They advertised that I was approved for $1500, that I desperately needed for medical bills, but when I called the woman said they have not gotten it set up with the bank yet. This has been at least 3 weeks and no results.
She told me to go on the website and there would be a link there to get the $1500 put on my card. NOT THERE EITHER.
I needed this money to pay some medical bills, plus I thought this would help me clear my credit rating.
Glenn of Mesa, AZ (10/21/05)
I went to a Bank of America ATM to withdraw $500 with my Wired Plastic card. I heard a noise from the ATM, the money jammed,and I recieved a receipt but no money!
I immediately reported this to a bank employee who told me unless I have an account this is not their problem and that I should go to my credit card company.
I called Wired Plastic and they told me to fax them a dispute. Approximately 6 weeks later the money was put back in my account, I paid a bill and withdrew $200. The next day B of A took the $500 out again, leaving a negative balance in my account. I called wired plastic and they told me to fax them another dispute.
Two weeks later their dispute department emailed me and said B of A reported that I RECEIVED THIS MONEY. Wired Plastic put an authorization of $320 back in my account which was held by them for 6 months. I paid in the remaining negative amount but I am still out $500.
Bank of America or Wired Plastic will not help me and unless I go to an attorney it seems I am out of luck.
Nick of Matawan, NJ (08/31/05)
My daughter, who was under 18 at the time, signed up for this bogus credit card. All we want to do at this point is close the account. They said we had to send the card back which we did, but they still keep drawing money from my credit card.
There is a credit balance due us, but at this point they can keep it all!
All we want to do is close the account.
Summer of Henderson, NV (08/25/05)
Wired Plastic switched from a MasterCard to Visa. After the switch I began to notice many charges double and triple posted to my account.
I immediately called a supervisor who told me that it had not posted that many times. The supervisor refused to listen to his own automated system to hear for himself.
I advised the supervisor that my rental car had posted twice leaving me with no money. He blamed the rental agency for the mistake. I advised that in a conference call with the rental agency and the Wired Plastic service rep, the rental agency confirmed no duplicate withdrawal came from them.
It is almost two months later and my account is still not fixed. Not only did they withdraw the authorization for the rental, but they also withdrew the final charges from the account. And now they have charged me the difference between the authorization and the final payment. That is a total of three charges.
Wired Plastic contends that I had received an undue credit to my card. I have explained to them that even the internet system showing my offical settlements does not have any such credits.
Wired Plastic refuses to let me talk to anyone in the disputes department. They refuse to tell me what goverment agency regulates their transactions. They owe me money and I cannot do anything about it.
Joseph of Syracuse NY (08/05/05)
I don't even know where to begin!
I've had serious trouble with Wired Plastic since the day I signed up with them. First, this is a Debt Card NOT a Credit Card which limits alot of purchases. Half the time a charge won't go through and if I try to get money at an ATM I am told to "contact my bank."
When I try to contact them, I am told my code and password weren't any good. They have so much "user protection" ,which they seemed to update monthly, but the only people locked out of the account are the account USERS!
Because of these "security updates" I was supposed to receive a new card but never received it. When I finally reached them they said it was sent and if I wanted "another" card I would have to pay another $15 for it.
Well guess what, Wired Plastic, I'VE HAD IT WITH YOU!
Sheena of Castleberry, AL (07/19/05)
I never received a card from Wired Plastic, even after I made several attempts to contact them.
I no longer want this card, and am canceling my request.
This company should really work on its customer satisfaction program.
Jerome of Saint Stephen ,SC (06/29/05)
I loaded over $3,000 onto my card, but was never able to access my account online and check my transaction history.
Everytime I got an account balance from an ATM the results was always less and less, and I wasn't making any purchases. When I tried to reach customer service I could never get through.
I'm still in the dark.
Jerome of Saint Stephen SC (06/29/05)
I've loaded over $ 3,000.00 onto my card, but was never able to access my account online. Unabling me to access any transaction history. Everytime I got an account balance from an ATM the results were allways less and less, and I wasn't making any purchases. When I try to reach costomer service I never got through. Not even now, so I'm still in the dark.
Roger of Clarksville, IN (05/13/05)
I have had nothing but trouble from this company. Now, I can't even access my account info - I just get a blank page.
They have kept my annuity payments, beyond my due dates. They charge for calls into their company. And now they have sent out new cards, changing from MASTERCARD to VISA but when you call to activate you're asked for a "phone password", which I was never received. Then the phone just hangs up on you!
Joan of Carmichael, CA (04/17/05)
I paid $49.95 for a Wired Plastic prepaid credit card, but they never sent the card to me. So I called them and they told me that for some reason their computer could not prove who I was, so I needed to fax them a copy of my social security card and driver's license!
I told them to cancel my card and send me a refund. The customer service rep. said that he would put a note on his supervisor's desk. I very seriously doubt that they will ever refund my money but I am more concerned that I paid for the credit card out of my checking account and they now have my checking account information.
Salvatore of Gainesville, GA (03/01/05)
WIRED PLASTIC - One Global Finance - BANKFIRST all the same.
I had made a deposit transation via western union and received my reciept signed by the store management. Now the store is saying I never gave them the cash, even though my Wired Plastic got the transaction (money) and I started to use it.
Several days later I'm cut off from my Wired Plastic account. I needed that money to pay my bills.
Kirk of Long Beach CA (9/17/04):
My Wired Plastic debit card was stolen and, although immediately reported, was charged to limit. Company unresponsive in sending a replacement card to the correct address and has locked me out of the site (www.mywiredplastic.com) so I have no way to get feedback.
This card is useless. If I am going to lose everything, I might as well carry cash. The bank this goes through is specified on the site I can not reach: "wiredplastic" is apparently not a bank at all but a referral service to other institutions, as best I can figure.
This card was access to all the money I had. I am eating at a homeless shelter awaiting a new card (which still should have some cash value on it). I can not access my account on the internet because "your card has not been activated". How can I activate a card I do not have?
Cicley of Tucker GA (8/15/04):
I have $1500 in my debit account and can not access it. The merchants keep getting a "call center" message. Their toll free number says "an error has occurred" when I call and enter my info. It is the 15th of the month and I cannot pay bills and will now have late fees. The 1-800 number is closed because it is Sunday. I need help. This is all the money I have. I get my paychecks deposited into this account.
Cecilia of Portland OR (3/12/04):
I went to an ATM Machine to withdraw $400.00 cash. The ATM screen said "transaction has been cancelled due to insufficient funds." I called and asked them what was going on. My account had been charged $401.50 and I never received the cash or a receipt. I was told that I had to wait 48 hours and the money would be credited back to my card. I called the ATM machine people and they told me that they found my transaction and it had been reversed 2 seconds after it was declined. They even gave me the sequence numbers.
I then called Wired Plastic back and was told in 48 hours I would have my money. 48 hours later, no money. I called and they told me to write what happened and my acct number and fax it to them. I did that. Still no money. They told me that they would dispute the charge. I called the ATM machine people and was assured they had never recieved payment, that the charge was reversed and they sent that information to Wired Plastic.
Something needs to be done about this. I am a diabetic and have no money for my insulin. I was going to pay for that on March 8th but now I can't. I have had to go to the hospital twice because I have no medication to lower my blood sugar. What can I do? I could go into a diabetic coma. I have no one to borrow the money from.
Ruby of Washington DC (12/14/03):
Signed up for this card in Sept, being led to believe they report activity to Credit Bureaus. After a few weeks I received my online access details and saw that I have been charged for 49.95 sign-up fee when I thought it was only 29.95. Emailed them to correct the situation, no response.
Emailed them two more times about not being able to access my account for days. No response, Customer service 801 is dead line (just discovered). Emailed them last week to cancel, and to request to refund the monthly fees, sign up fees, return what balance I have on the card (it is a secured card). No reply. I have no idea if they are still operating or not.
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