I’m not 100% sure it’s legally possible to disable VISA/MC card before expiry date? Isn’t this part of the contract with customer, that bank / payment processor honours expiry date printed on the card? It’s interesting question because this would mean Monzo might cancel access to the mobile app but surely Wirecard has to keep the card it issued working for the full lifecycle of the card?
I’ve been with Monzo almost two years and always knew the goal was a current account, hence me signing up. The “travel card” aspect came after the fact through some, I believe, bad over touting of the no ATM fee abroad.
Whether that was via word of mouth, or other websites reviewing Monzo with “no fees” being the headline grabbing title.
I am 100% sure the bank can cancel a card before the expiration date.
Specifically, clause 12.1 of the T&C’s.
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It’s the execution of the plan and the detail, not just the long term vision…
Becoming a current account isn’t the main issue here - We signed up to something which has basically become obsolete as the goalposts have changed. The consequence of this being appeasement via the current account - You certainly didn’t make it clear at the start that you’d take away the very thing we signed up to / change it so it was pretty much useless compared to how it was…
Yes we can go elsewhere - a bit more transparency in the first place would have saved the aggro…
Yes we can go elsewhere - a bit more transparency in the first place would have saved the aggro…
I think they were very transparent. Transparent that they wanted to be the best Current/Bank Account.
When it became clear that the ATM withdrawal fees abroad from a certain number of users were unsustainable they told us, let us discuss it and then vote on a solution to that problem. I can’t see any other bank doing that and I am sure that if they could have kept the ATM fees at 0 then they would have.
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Yes I think this is correct. I view pre-paid cards in a similar way as top-up-as-you-go SIM cards. It’s less stressful because there is no direct connection to your finances and identity. It gives you ease of mind as you can just load some spending money and go out for drinks or travel. Even if you lose the card are or you lose interest and don’t want to use the card anymore there is no hassle, no need to call anybody and let them know (just like top-up-as-you-go SIMs, just throw them away if not needed, or put them in a cupboard and forget about them).
Could you articulate your reasoning for this? When I question myself rationally on this I don’t see any difference 
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Your pre-paid card was most definitely firmly attached to your identity as much as your current account card would be. That it might not say your name on the front doesn’t affect that I’m afraid 
I have four current account cards doing just that 
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but there is…you have to prove your identity when getting a Mastercard Prepaid card (or Visa Prepaid card). The only card where you do not need to prove your identity is a Mastercard Gift Card or Visa Gift Card, they are anonymous.
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Sure.
When it came out, it was the only card (ignoring Supercard blow-up) which was widely accepted and effectively free to use abroad and which also gave pretty much spot FX. This was the attraction.
Now there are charges and others are offering a better service - they have been overtaken here.
I know that above it says that the current account card can be used the same way as the prepaid card, but looking at the T&Cs it notes that transactions can still go through even if you don’t have the full amount in your account and in that instance the shortfall must be repaid by the end of the day or else you must pay interest.
On the pre-paid card, if there wasn’t money to pay for something, it didn’t get paid, no interest, no bother. That was one of the most appealing features as it gave me control over unauthorised transactions (that can be reversed, sure, but from experience it’s time consuming and can really mess up your cash flow).
I was happy to upgrade until I saw this point. Is there any more information that can put my mind at ease?
An anonymous MC/Visa gift card with a mobile app, instant notifications and good fx rates would be a killer product then I feel. That is what I suspect a lot of people thought they signed up for (the same with Revolut and some other challenger banks).
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Ok, so not related to the current account then but the fees which were announced quite some time ago? Might I recommend Starling as an alternative for you?
It doesn’t support offline transactions yup. I don’t know the case where something like tfl comes along with an unauthorised presentment though
I wonder if Monzo could offer an online only current account card? That would satisfy your use case I think? @simonb any chance of this in the future?
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I’m not quite sure I know the difference between an online and offline transaction, but if it meant that something didn’t get paid if there wasn’t the balance available, then I’d be satisfied, yep!
An offline transaction can be made using your card alone without even talking to monzo. If this happens monzo have to deduct the payment no matter what. They are very rare these days
No - No issues with the current account other than i don’t require another one.
My points have all been regarding how they’ve made a once great travel card very average compared to the competition…
Thank you - will check Starling out.
Barclays Platinum Travel Card also very decent as no fees incl. ATM cash (to 2022) and all the benefits and protection of a proper credit card.
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Monzo was never a travel card, nor was it ever intended to be one, or marketed as one.
From day one Monzo was a bank, it called itself anything else (even before they had a banking license).
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I think you’ll like it. All the nice user interface of Monzo but without the foreign ATM limits
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