Bento For Business

What is a reloadable Visa debit card?

Using a reloadable Visa debit card has increased in popularity over the last decade. The number of transactions completed with reloadable cards increased at an average annual rate of 19 percent. In the U.S., the prepaid card market exceeds $67.5 billion, and Visa estimates that the market will exceed $3.5 trillion for these cards worldwide.

What is a reloadable Visa debit card? A Visa reloadable debit cards are Visas. Purchasing goods and services with these credit or debit cards is possible from all merchants that accept Visa. Sometimes the cards are referred to as reloadable Visa credit cards. They are not credit cards. Instead, you can decide how much money to fund the card with, and the amount that you choose serves as the card’s balance.

How do reloadable Visa debit cards work?

Purchasing a reloadable prepaid Visa card in the amount that you want is easy. The amount of your purchase will serve as the card’s limit minus the fees. These cards have 16-digit card numbers and CVV codes, and they can be used to purchase items from any retailer or merchant that accepts Visa.

Some people use reloadable Visa debit cards to shop, pay bills, receive direct deposits, and to make purchases or payments online. When the balance gets low, you can choose to load more money on your card so that you can continue to use it.

How much do reloadable Visa debit cards cost?

Reloadable cards are not free. When you purchase a card, you will pay a fee on top of the balance that you want to place on the card. The fees charged depend on the issuer. Some card issuers charge fees that are more affordable than others.

Some of the common types of fees that you could be charged include the following:

  • Monthly fee subtracted from your balance
  • Transaction fee
  • Balance inquiry fee
  • Out of network ATM fee
  • Cash reload fee
  • Inactivity fee
  • Bill payment fee
  • Card-to-card fee

Not every reloadable prepaid Visa debit card charges all of these fees. It is important for you to review the disclosures for different card offers before you choose a card so that you can get one with the lowest fees.

How can I refill my reloadable Visa debit card?

The way in which you can reload a Visa reloadable prepaid debit card will depend on your card issuer. You might be able to reload it through a direct deposit of your paycheck, tax refund, or government checks. Some issuers let you load money at bank branches, ATMs, or retail locations.

Some card issuers allow you to transfer money electronically using their mobile card apps from your smartphone. Finally, you might be able to transfer money from your deposit account onto your card.

Why do people use reloadable Visa debit cards?

Consumers and businesses both use reloadable cards. Consumers might use them instead of checking accounts to receive direct deposits, withdraw cash from ATMs, shop at stores, shop online, or pay their bills.

Others use them to complement their checking accounts rather than to replace them. People may use these cards to keep themselves from overspending, avoid overdraft charges, and to gain control of their finances.

Businesses may choose to use reloadable cards for different reasons. They might give them to their employees to use so that their employees have access to funds without having to submit requisition forms for routine purchases for the businesses.

The cards can help to manage the business’s expenses since the companies can determine how much to make available on each of the cards. This can help the businesses to keep different expense categories within their budgets.

Where can I use my reloadable Visa debit card?

Retailers and other merchants that accept Visa cards will also accept reloadable Visa debit cards as well. That means you can use your reloadable Visa at more than 40 million merchant locations around the world.

You can also use a reloadable debit card online. A majority of online merchants, vendors, and suppliers accept Visa. You can input the card number and the CVV code on the payment pages of sites that you visit online in the same manner that you would input a regular debit or credit card number. The purchase will then be charged to your card and subtracted from its balance.

What are the pros and cons of using reloadable small business debit cards?

There are several pros and cons of using reloadable debit cards for small businesses. Some of the advantages of using these types of cards include the following:

  • Offers more flexibility than other payment systems
  • Can help businesses to rein in spending
  • Don’t require credit checks
  • Will not incur interest or add to your company’s debt
  • Can avoid overdraft fees
  • Allow you to limit how much your employees can spend

Some of the disadvantages of using reloadable business debit cards include the following:

  • Won’t give you access to financing during cash shortages
  • Will not build your business’s credit score
  • Some may charge high fees

How secure are Visa reloadable debit cards?

Visa cards that are reloadable have multiple features that make them a secure form of payment. Many card issuers use highly secure Digicert technology to encrypt your information with 256-bit SSL encryption technology. With some cards, if you have a deposit account that you have linked to the card, your deposits in the account will be FDIC-insured up to $250,000.

Visa offers other security features that are specific to businesses. It offers zero liability protection to businesses for unauthorized purchases. However, you must notify the financial institution that issued your card immediately to notify it of the unauthorized transaction.

How using Visa reloadable debit cards helps minimize micromanagement

When you switch your payment systems to reloadable debit cards from Visa, it can streamline your expense management and payments processes and allow you to put an end to reimbursements and petty cash systems.

You can use the cards to set limits on how much each of your employees can spend. You can also have them take pictures of their receipts to submit them electronically so that you don’t have to worry about trying to track them down. Some reloadable Visas can be integrated with your existing software so that the transaction information is imported automatically in real time.

Your employees benefit because they do not have to spend their own money and wait for you to repay them. They also will not have to submit requisition forms for every single purchase that they need to buy so that your business can continue operating smoothly.

Reloadable Visa debit cards vs. business debit cards

Consumer reloadable Visa debit cards work in a similar way to business debit cards with a few important differences. Consumer prepaid cards have funds directly added to the cards as opposed to business bank accounts. When making a purchase the funds instead subtract from the balance on the card.

Business debit cards have deposit accounts to which they are linked. When you use the cards to make a purchase the purchase subtracts from the deposit account’s balance. Some business debit cards offer additional controls that are not available on regular prepaid cards that offer greater security to business owners.

How using business debit cards can positively impact expense management

Some business debit cards have controls that can positively impact your expense management. These cards come with expense management software that allows you to control how much money each employee can spend and where he or she can use the card. You can also control when the cards will work and the categories of purchases that are authorized.

These cards allow the transaction data to flow automatically into your accounting software. You can see the transactions that have happened in real time from a dashboard on your smartphone. If you see a problem, you can turn off an individual card instantly by tapping a button. These cards let you get rid of systems that are targets for internal fraud, including petty cash systems, reimbursements, and checks.

Benefits of expense controls on business debit cards

Bento for Business offers Visa business debit cards that boast robust expense management features to companies. You set controls that restrict when and where the cards are accepted. You limit the cards to certain purchase categories of your choosing. The cards allow you to set individual spending limits by the day or by an interval of your choice.

There are also virtual card solutions that are available so that you can have a secure method of making purchases or payments remotely. There is a free 60-day trial that allows you to take the cards on a test-drive to see if they will work for your business. If you would like more information about how the cards work, you can request a free demo or call a customer service representative at 866.220.8455.