A widely available yet often underused tool, virtual credit card numbers can be a great tool when shopping online. The virtual credit card feature was initially created by American Express under the name of 'Private Payments' in 2000 (now defunct), but Citibank and the other credit card companies soon followed suit (along with some online payment companies such as PayPal). These services are used by either downloading proprietary software or using an online-based tool in order to create one-time use virtual credit card numbers. This takes a little bit of extra time and effort versus just using the card that you have in front of you, but it definitely pays off in some instances. Usually promoted as tools to prevent credit card number theft and financial/identity fraud, these services also have some other beneficial uses:
Here's a new and unique card from American Express, The Clear Card. With this credit card, "…there are no fees of any kind; no annual fees, no late fees, no balance transfer fees, no over-limit fees…". This would be an excellent card for those that have trouble remembering due dates and such. There is also 0% APR for the first 12 months, so you can forget about having to pay off your balance in full for a while (I regularly use this feature as a sort of fee-free loan as anything you buy on the card doesn't have to be paid for until the end of your introductory 12-month term. Just be sure to make your minimum payments and to pay it all off before the intro period is up!).
Frustrated by the endless series of multiple-choice phone menus when you try to call your credit card company's customer support line? Annoyed that the automatic voice menu can't seem to recognize what it is that your saying and keeps taking you through the same menus over and over? Well, thanks to GetHuman.com, you now have the power to skip past those menus and speak directly with a real live human being. Ah, the power of the internet…
Well, I thought we'd start off here with one heck of a deal. You may have seen this offer floating around the web as of late, it's pretty popular. And there's a good reason for this: it's the best credit card sign-up bonus that I've seen…ever! It'll take a few minutes, and in the end you'll be getting something for pretty much nothing. Read on…
- Go
hereand fill out the American Express Gold Rewards Business Card online application. Use your name as the business name. You'll be (hopefully) approved instantly. - The card will show up in a few days via UPS. Use it once to pay for anything, and your account will be credited 25,000 points.
- Use those points to get a $250 gift card, 25,000 miles for your favorite frequent flier program, or a free round-trip airline ticket on Southwest Airlines (currently selling for around $350 on e-Bay).
- Make sure to cancel the card before a year has passed so that you don't have to pay any fees (the first year is free, each year after is $125).
