Giving credit card details to Hotels for reservation
Aug 29th, 2015, 03:33 AM
#21
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I use HRS.com and seldom need to give the credit card. It is one of my criteria in picking a hotel. Maybe this works as I seldom stay in large cities in Germany where a credit card is more likely to be demanded.
The businesses that falsely accept a fake card do bear the loss rather than I; but, it can be a hassle going back and changing the card number for those few firms that I allow to keep it on record. Someone already mentioned there are times that it is difficult to be without one while it is being replaced. Plus the card is sometimes (e.g., airline reservations) considered proof of identity.
My card data got compromised in the Target and Home Depot security breakdowns. That hassle has strengthened my intention to be more careful about how often and when I use the card.
The businesses that falsely accept a fake card do bear the loss rather than I; but, it can be a hassle going back and changing the card number for those few firms that I allow to keep it on record. Someone already mentioned there are times that it is difficult to be without one while it is being replaced. Plus the card is sometimes (e.g., airline reservations) considered proof of identity.
My card data got compromised in the Target and Home Depot security breakdowns. That hassle has strengthened my intention to be more careful about how often and when I use the card.
Aug 29th, 2015, 04:13 AM
#22
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<<But if they process it, then wouldn't the card be charged immediately ?>> It would only be charged if the rate is a prepaid or non refundable rate. For other rates, you will be charged when you check out. If you no show or cancel too late, you will also be charged according to the hotel's cancellation policy.
<<I use HRS.com and seldom need to give the credit card. It is one of my criteria in picking a hotel.>> In this case the room is presumably only held until 6pm. If you arrive after this time, you won't have a room.
<<I use HRS.com and seldom need to give the credit card. It is one of my criteria in picking a hotel.>> In this case the room is presumably only held until 6pm. If you arrive after this time, you won't have a room.
Aug 29th, 2015, 04:49 AM
#23
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Sometimes, hotels and booking agencies do a pre authorization on a credit card to check its validity. No money actually comes out of the account on the pre authorization and it is lifted after a certain amount of time although it temporarily is applied against your credit limit. Other booking agencies do charge you up front but will, depending on the policy of the hotel on a particular reservation refund the money if you are within the allowable cancellation period of the hotel. It does vary greatly as to specific policies. Generally when you book directly with a hotel or through the chain's web site if applicable for refundable reservations your card is not actually charged till you check out. This indeed varies from hotel to hotel, from booking agent to booking agent, from chain to chain.
Aug 29th, 2015, 10:19 AM
#24
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I don't understand why people think a fax is secure. How can you be sure that it won't be printed out and left lying around? How can you be sure that it will be shredded before being thrown away? Who is it that checks the fax machine?
When you use a credit card, the underpaid desk clerk doesn't have access to your credit card number. I would much rather use a credit card on a reputable booking site than send a fax, or furnish a credit card number by phone or email, or use an one of the anonymous booking services often used by small hotels.
When you use a credit card, the underpaid desk clerk doesn't have access to your credit card number. I would much rather use a credit card on a reputable booking site than send a fax, or furnish a credit card number by phone or email, or use an one of the anonymous booking services often used by small hotels.
Aug 29th, 2015, 11:16 AM
#25
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Hotels need some guarantee that the customer will turn up. So they expect some sort of reservation. The reservation also helps you guarantee you have a room when you arrive. So the system works both ways.
Like others have said use an online portal if you do not like the idea of send your details by unsecured emails. Apart from a phone you could also fax the details most hotels still have faxes.
Like others have said use an online portal if you do not like the idea of send your details by unsecured emails. Apart from a phone you could also fax the details most hotels still have faxes.
Aug 29th, 2015, 11:39 AM
#26
I do not know what the situation is where the OP is located but in Italy there are many banks etc which offer "carte ricaricabili" or debit cards which can be loaded with whatever amout you want up to a certain limit - generally 3000 or 5000 Euros but sometimes higher.>>
they exist in the UK, nochblad, but here they are reckoned to be poor value with bad exchange rates and, with some of them, punitive conditions when you want to cash it in.
I don't see the problem with using either the facility provided by booking.com [which I have used for years with no problems] or the on-line booking system provided by most hotels for their individual booking system [ditto].
they exist in the UK, nochblad, but here they are reckoned to be poor value with bad exchange rates and, with some of them, punitive conditions when you want to cash it in.
I don't see the problem with using either the facility provided by booking.com [which I have used for years with no problems] or the on-line booking system provided by most hotels for their individual booking system [ditto].
Aug 29th, 2015, 12:00 PM
#27
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I mean this in all due respect to anybody who disagrees and I am certainly not looking for any sort of contentious argument or anything like that. There are certain technological advances we all should enjoy living in the 21st century (and of course there will be more to come). One of them is the total flexibility our credit cards, computers and booking agents give us to make hotel reservations leaving a credit card to guarantee the reservation. Using a credit card at any time can involve a small, very small, amount of risk in terms of having one's card hacked. You simply can't lay awake at night worrying about that possibility. I know there are some who go to all sorts of lengths and say ot to use credit cards for that reason (or even although not applicable to hotels not to use credit cards for small purchases). My philosophy is if it happens it happens. Please understand, credit card fraud in a reality of life today but it is not identity theft and in almost all cases easy to resolve. You tell the credit card company which charges are not yours, they remove them from the account, send you a card with a new number and life returns to normal. Yes it is inconvenient to have to change your automatic billers and I curse to the high heavens whenever that happens. And if your card is compromised while travelling, the solution is dirt simple. Take 2 or 3 different cards. To me, it's simply not worth laying awake at night worrying about it and changing the way I make hotel reservations, theatre reservations, eat in restaurants, pay hotel bills and all sorts of things like that.
Aug 29th, 2015, 12:51 PM
#29
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>>Live dangerously!<<
Frankly, the bad guys can somehow get your CC number and try to use it without ever having physically laid eyes on your card or number previously. Haven't we all received a phone call from a company asking whether or not we made a purchase? It happens. If emailing the hotel with your card number is the only way to make a reservation, so be it.
Take extra cards with you on your trip. Save the old card so you can show the card you made your reservation with.
Frankly, the bad guys can somehow get your CC number and try to use it without ever having physically laid eyes on your card or number previously. Haven't we all received a phone call from a company asking whether or not we made a purchase? It happens. If emailing the hotel with your card number is the only way to make a reservation, so be it.
Take extra cards with you on your trip. Save the old card so you can show the card you made your reservation with.
Aug 29th, 2015, 07:40 PM
#31
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<the HOTEL itself may cheat and charge the card(before the time comes, although their policy is to Receive cash on arrival.>
This is a total misunderstanding. The hotel in question may well charge a deposit to the credit card--this is normal, not a cheat. If you cancel within the free cancellation period, whatever that may be, the charge will be refunded. But unless you work out some sort of cash only arrangement in advance--good luck with that--your card will be charged.
This is a total misunderstanding. The hotel in question may well charge a deposit to the credit card--this is normal, not a cheat. If you cancel within the free cancellation period, whatever that may be, the charge will be refunded. But unless you work out some sort of cash only arrangement in advance--good luck with that--your card will be charged.
Aug 30th, 2015, 06:54 AM
#34
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Pariswat and xyz have it down.
I personally have always worried more about fax transmission. The cleaning team in the hotel can just walk by and pick that puppy up without anyone noticing, especially because of time zone differences.
I did use to worry about cc in an email; now, it's not MY problem; it's my cc company problem.
As far as sharing cc info and worrying about it,I have a funny story. My dear aged mother recently REFUSED to share her one and only card with me. She had been falling a lot, and my sister and I were worried to death. She had finally agreed to a senior fall alert system ONLY IF SHE PAID FOR IT, but she did not know how to order it. So I said, "I can set this up online in two secs, but I will need your credit card."
Her reply? "I don't like to give that number out." This is to her totally trustworthy daughter who pays for her phone, her cable, her mobile, etc.
I said, "Ok, I'll pay for it." I hung up and was just about to proceed and she called me back and said, "Is the credit card the only way?"
Yeaaah, in 2015, yeaaah. GET OVER IT!
Meanwhile, on any form on any type of visit we go to, she fills in her SS# without one pause.
Yes, I always bring a Sharpie.
I personally have always worried more about fax transmission. The cleaning team in the hotel can just walk by and pick that puppy up without anyone noticing, especially because of time zone differences.
I did use to worry about cc in an email; now, it's not MY problem; it's my cc company problem.
As far as sharing cc info and worrying about it,I have a funny story. My dear aged mother recently REFUSED to share her one and only card with me. She had been falling a lot, and my sister and I were worried to death. She had finally agreed to a senior fall alert system ONLY IF SHE PAID FOR IT, but she did not know how to order it. So I said, "I can set this up online in two secs, but I will need your credit card."
Her reply? "I don't like to give that number out." This is to her totally trustworthy daughter who pays for her phone, her cable, her mobile, etc.
I said, "Ok, I'll pay for it." I hung up and was just about to proceed and she called me back and said, "Is the credit card the only way?"
Yeaaah, in 2015, yeaaah. GET OVER IT!
Meanwhile, on any form on any type of visit we go to, she fills in her SS# without one pause.
Yes, I always bring a Sharpie.
Aug 30th, 2015, 07:55 AM
#36
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annhig - my posting was a bit of a teaser.
Italy is behind the curve in many things but way ahead on carte ricaricabili and also, for example, the payment of autostrada tolls via the Telepass system.
You mention that other countries have bad exchange rates and punitive conditions. This can be obviated in part by getting a card in Euros to start with. As for punitive conditions, this is a problem with the country you are from - UK?
However, as I said, if you load the card with what is required to undertake the transaction you do not lose more than what is loaded on the card. Maybe CC offer protection but it is a huge hassle sorting things out when you are travelling as many have already said.
It is possible, in Italy, to have multiple cards from the same provider so if there are problems with one you can transfer funds to another.
Italy is behind the curve in many things but way ahead on carte ricaricabili and also, for example, the payment of autostrada tolls via the Telepass system.
You mention that other countries have bad exchange rates and punitive conditions. This can be obviated in part by getting a card in Euros to start with. As for punitive conditions, this is a problem with the country you are from - UK?
However, as I said, if you load the card with what is required to undertake the transaction you do not lose more than what is loaded on the card. Maybe CC offer protection but it is a huge hassle sorting things out when you are travelling as many have already said.
It is possible, in Italy, to have multiple cards from the same provider so if there are problems with one you can transfer funds to another.
Aug 30th, 2015, 08:31 AM
#37
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I'm surprised that using a masking service hasn't been mentioned yet. I hesitated to do so because, well, technological advances are not always generally accepted here. Or, to put it more baldly, no one is interested. But here goes.
There are free masking services that allow you to store your card once and enter it in a disguised form on any website you wish. Here is an explanation from one such service, Abine:
https://www.abine.com/maskme/features/cards/
I use this and it works. It does not eliminate risk, but storing my card information in one place that is explicitly devoted to protecting it seems safer to me than entering it with multiple merchants who do not devote themselves to safeguarding it. YMMV.
Google "credit card masking" for more information.
This is very useful, too, when on a less-than-secure network, although in that case you should be using a VPN anyway.
There are free masking services that allow you to store your card once and enter it in a disguised form on any website you wish. Here is an explanation from one such service, Abine:
https://www.abine.com/maskme/features/cards/
I use this and it works. It does not eliminate risk, but storing my card information in one place that is explicitly devoted to protecting it seems safer to me than entering it with multiple merchants who do not devote themselves to safeguarding it. YMMV.
Google "credit card masking" for more information.
This is very useful, too, when on a less-than-secure network, although in that case you should be using a VPN anyway.
Aug 30th, 2015, 08:48 AM
#38
You mention that other countries have bad exchange rates and punitive conditions. This can be obviated in part by getting a card in Euros to start with. As for punitive conditions, this is a problem with the country you are from - UK>>
yes, as I said, nochblad, these cards have a very bad reputation in the UK, I can't speak for anywhere else. Although they are indeed available in €, there is a particular problem with some cards is that if you want to cash them in [eg if you have a significant amount in € left on them] the exchange rates/charges are excessive. Some providers have time limits on them and still have the nerve to impose these punitive conditions.
personally I've never had a problem with any merchant having my C/C no; I think that one is far more likely to have a problem with villains hacking your bank account or other personal details. I hope I'm not tempting fate!
yes, as I said, nochblad, these cards have a very bad reputation in the UK, I can't speak for anywhere else. Although they are indeed available in €, there is a particular problem with some cards is that if you want to cash them in [eg if you have a significant amount in € left on them] the exchange rates/charges are excessive. Some providers have time limits on them and still have the nerve to impose these punitive conditions.
personally I've never had a problem with any merchant having my C/C no; I think that one is far more likely to have a problem with villains hacking your bank account or other personal details. I hope I'm not tempting fate!
Aug 30th, 2015, 08:58 AM
#39
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annhig - unfortunately if you are in the UK you are multiply abused by the banks, airlines and others.
you have probably read of newspaper reports where the cost of trips to Disneyworld in Paris and elsewhere are far higher if booked on the UK sites rather than in France or Germany.
Recently I had to book a Ryanair flight from Kos to Milan and the price was substantially lower on the Italian site in comparison with the Engish (UK/Ireland) site.
you have probably read of newspaper reports where the cost of trips to Disneyworld in Paris and elsewhere are far higher if booked on the UK sites rather than in France or Germany.
Recently I had to book a Ryanair flight from Kos to Milan and the price was substantially lower on the Italian site in comparison with the Engish (UK/Ireland) site.
Aug 30th, 2015, 09:14 AM
#40
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I got a "carta ricaricabile" from my Italian bank a few years ago. Maybe I have the wrong bank, but in my little town it's the one that nearly everyone uses and the only one that's not foundering. (Maybe Nochblad has heard of the problems of the Banca delle Marche.)
I wanted this card in order to be able to buy on the internet from smaller vendors with whom I had no experience, and also to use for my automatic Skype refills, because I really don't trust Skype's security procedures.
My first surprise was that I had to pay a substantial fee to get the card. (In the US, you can buy them in a supermarket for a very small fee.) After all, you're in effect lending money to the bank. You put, let's say, €1000 euro on the card, paying it up front to the bank, and they give it back to you in dribs and drabs. It seems to me it should be almost free.
My next surprise was the unbelievable quantity of paperwork I had to sign in order to take possession of the card. After having been asked to sign a great many times, I started to count, and there were still around 20 more signatures required.
Using the card online entailed more security measures than my regular credit card. My notion was that since I put a limited amount of money on the card, it should be usable easily. Instead the Italian idea seems to be that this is the kind of card likely to be used by crooks and tax evaders, so it should be wrapped even tighter in security than a normal card.
Whenever I used it online, I had to use that odious Verified by Visa system. When I forgot my password, I had to <i> call their office during business hours </i> to change my password.
Sometimes the card worked for the automatic Skype payments and sometimes it didn't. I never could understand why, but one of the times it didn't work was extremely inconvenient for me.
After a while, I decided I didn't want the card after all. But there was still money on it, which I thought I should get back. It turned out there was a hefty fee to cancel the card and have my own money back!
Anyway, how should a tourist get a carta ricaricabile with euros on it? My bank won't give one to anyone who doesn't have an account with the bank. I also checked the Post Office bank, at the time I was considering dropping the card, and they also won't give it to anyone who doesn't have a postal account. Even if you find a bank that will give you a carta ricaricabile without an account, currency will have to be exchanged to get the euros on the card, and banks don't usually give good exchange rates.
I wanted this card in order to be able to buy on the internet from smaller vendors with whom I had no experience, and also to use for my automatic Skype refills, because I really don't trust Skype's security procedures.
My first surprise was that I had to pay a substantial fee to get the card. (In the US, you can buy them in a supermarket for a very small fee.) After all, you're in effect lending money to the bank. You put, let's say, €1000 euro on the card, paying it up front to the bank, and they give it back to you in dribs and drabs. It seems to me it should be almost free.
My next surprise was the unbelievable quantity of paperwork I had to sign in order to take possession of the card. After having been asked to sign a great many times, I started to count, and there were still around 20 more signatures required.
Using the card online entailed more security measures than my regular credit card. My notion was that since I put a limited amount of money on the card, it should be usable easily. Instead the Italian idea seems to be that this is the kind of card likely to be used by crooks and tax evaders, so it should be wrapped even tighter in security than a normal card.
Whenever I used it online, I had to use that odious Verified by Visa system. When I forgot my password, I had to <i> call their office during business hours </i> to change my password.
Sometimes the card worked for the automatic Skype payments and sometimes it didn't. I never could understand why, but one of the times it didn't work was extremely inconvenient for me.
After a while, I decided I didn't want the card after all. But there was still money on it, which I thought I should get back. It turned out there was a hefty fee to cancel the card and have my own money back!
Anyway, how should a tourist get a carta ricaricabile with euros on it? My bank won't give one to anyone who doesn't have an account with the bank. I also checked the Post Office bank, at the time I was considering dropping the card, and they also won't give it to anyone who doesn't have a postal account. Even if you find a bank that will give you a carta ricaricabile without an account, currency will have to be exchanged to get the euros on the card, and banks don't usually give good exchange rates.
