Jan 3, 2015, 3:13 am
Last edit by: CWAL
Welcome to Manufactured Spending. If you are new here, please spend some time reading before posting. Most likely your questions have already been answered multiple times. Consider deals that you share. These threads are searchable by Google. A volatile deal may be worth holding close to the vest.
Hints
1) On FT, topics are heavily consolidated. Sometimes the title of the thread and first few posts may not properly reflect the broad range of discussion inside the thread. Be sure to visit any thread relating to the product or service you want to learn more about because you might be surprised by how in depth the discussion really is. High "View Count" and "Replies" are good indicators of active "master threads" on a specific topic.
2) Use Google to search FT. It works a lot better than the built-in search.
Important Rules
1) MSing is very YMMV. It varies by store, manager, and right down to the cashier working at the moment. That being said, always be nice and courteous in the face of rejection. The biggest secret for success is to lay low so you can try again.
2) DO NOT spend more than you can afford. START WITH SMALL AMOUNTS TO TEST THE WATER! As an example.. don't start with a $5000 purchase of VGCs if you can't afford to float that much! Instead, buy one and try it, and scale up once you are comfortable with a new method. It's easy to lose track, or get robbed, when you are handling so much money. Getting a refund is NOT always possible.
3) DO NOT ask employees, cashiers, customer service representatives, etc... about how to MS, or about things you read on this forum. The information you read here are very specific, unknown, legal uses of products or services. Most employees, cashiers, and even managers do not know about them. At best you'll get bad information. At worst you'll create a lot of unnecessary misunderstanding.
4) It bears repeating that there are no guarantees. you could easily buy $10,000 in gift cards or some other instrument, only to discover that your method for liquidating them vanishes the very next day. MS is not "normal" financial activity ("normal" being defined by the banks), and thus is often perceived as "suspicious" even if it is legal.
5) never underestimate the risk of criminal activity. gift cards can easily be stolen, loaded onto a compromised account, loaded in a debit card skimmer, or even fraudulent (e.g., an already used card put back on the rack).
If you have a question that does not seem to fit anywhere, or you have not found an appropriate place for it, post it here.
- A helpful note from seat17D about some of the inherent risks of MS
Hints
1) On FT, topics are heavily consolidated. Sometimes the title of the thread and first few posts may not properly reflect the broad range of discussion inside the thread. Be sure to visit any thread relating to the product or service you want to learn more about because you might be surprised by how in depth the discussion really is. High "View Count" and "Replies" are good indicators of active "master threads" on a specific topic.
2) Use Google to search FT. It works a lot better than the built-in search.
Important Rules
1) MSing is very YMMV. It varies by store, manager, and right down to the cashier working at the moment. That being said, always be nice and courteous in the face of rejection. The biggest secret for success is to lay low so you can try again.
2) DO NOT spend more than you can afford. START WITH SMALL AMOUNTS TO TEST THE WATER! As an example.. don't start with a $5000 purchase of VGCs if you can't afford to float that much! Instead, buy one and try it, and scale up once you are comfortable with a new method. It's easy to lose track, or get robbed, when you are handling so much money. Getting a refund is NOT always possible.
3) DO NOT ask employees, cashiers, customer service representatives, etc... about how to MS, or about things you read on this forum. The information you read here are very specific, unknown, legal uses of products or services. Most employees, cashiers, and even managers do not know about them. At best you'll get bad information. At worst you'll create a lot of unnecessary misunderstanding.
4) It bears repeating that there are no guarantees. you could easily buy $10,000 in gift cards or some other instrument, only to discover that your method for liquidating them vanishes the very next day. MS is not "normal" financial activity ("normal" being defined by the banks), and thus is often perceived as "suspicious" even if it is legal.
5) never underestimate the risk of criminal activity. gift cards can easily be stolen, loaded onto a compromised account, loaded in a debit card skimmer, or even fraudulent (e.g., an already used card put back on the rack).
If you have a question that does not seem to fit anywhere, or you have not found an appropriate place for it, post it here.
- A helpful note from seat17D about some of the inherent risks of MS
New to Manufactured Spending? Start Here (2015)
Apr 27, 2015, 5:08 pm
#421
Join Date: Oct 2006
Location: Arcadia, CA
Programs: Hyatt GP/Platinum, Priority Club Gold, AA Gold, DL Silver, United Premier Gold
Posts: 58
Vanilla VGC not working at WM Money Center Kiosk ATM
Hello All,
I was wondering if anyone here has experienced any problems using a Vanilla VGC (with pin) to load at WM's Money Center Kiosk ATM - I tried several times today to load a test amount of $50 (my V VGC has a balance of $500) and it was rejected each time - I gave up after the third attempt failed. The message on the screen said that the debit transaction was NOT allowed.
Is there a solution or workaround this? One way I can think of solving this which is a little costly is to buy online (at giftmall) another VGC (Silver) using this Vanilla VGC as the payment vehicle. I tried it online and it works - however, it will charge you another $3.95 for processing and $4.99 for standard USPS shipping.
Can anyone help? Thanks for all of your suggestions.
Iloilo
I was wondering if anyone here has experienced any problems using a Vanilla VGC (with pin) to load at WM's Money Center Kiosk ATM - I tried several times today to load a test amount of $50 (my V VGC has a balance of $500) and it was rejected each time - I gave up after the third attempt failed. The message on the screen said that the debit transaction was NOT allowed.
Is there a solution or workaround this? One way I can think of solving this which is a little costly is to buy online (at giftmall) another VGC (Silver) using this Vanilla VGC as the payment vehicle. I tried it online and it works - however, it will charge you another $3.95 for processing and $4.99 for standard USPS shipping.
Can anyone help? Thanks for all of your suggestions.
Iloilo
Last edited by Iloilo; Apr 27, 2015 at 5:09 pm Reason: wrong word used
Apr 28, 2015, 12:37 am
#422
Join Date: Jan 2015
Posts: 1,112
Most of what I've read here is about VGC. I have question about AGCs. I 've closely read the topcashback/bigcrumbs/befrugal post about ordered AGCs and to my surprise one poster said 39K worth was on his front porch all day long so basically FTers are processing some big AGC orders. I've read that 80K monthly is not unusual.
AGCs are basically CCs which I thought were only good for buying VGCs at grocery stores. I've tried to read between the lines to figure out how else to convert AGC back into cash, but I guess I get lost in the details. Is there any other way beside VGCs?
I ask because when I go to Giant these days to buy VGCs with CC to meet min spend, they closely match CC with DL so my guess is that if I show them AGC they'll shut me down even with my name on the AGC. I'm minutes outside of Baltimore.
AGCs are basically CCs which I thought were only good for buying VGCs at grocery stores. I've tried to read between the lines to figure out how else to convert AGC back into cash, but I guess I get lost in the details. Is there any other way beside VGCs?
I ask because when I go to Giant these days to buy VGCs with CC to meet min spend, they closely match CC with DL so my guess is that if I show them AGC they'll shut me down even with my name on the AGC. I'm minutes outside of Baltimore.
Besides using AGC to buy VGC, you could use them to load to REDbird, use Amex for Target (AFT), and a couple of other things. Here's a guide to it. http://frequentmiler.boardingarea.co...gift-cards-qa/
It's a little outdated (since Google Wallet is no longer a liquidation option), but the general advice is sound.
Apr 28, 2015, 4:46 am
#423
Join Date: Dec 2014
Location: VA
Posts: 147
Hello All,
I was wondering if anyone here has experienced any problems using a Vanilla VGC (with pin) to load at WM's Money Center Kiosk ATM - I tried several times today to load a test amount of $50 (my V VGC has a balance of $500) and it was rejected each time - I gave up after the third attempt failed. The message on the screen said that the debit transaction was NOT allowed.
Is there a solution or workaround this? One way I can think of solving this which is a little costly is to buy online (at giftmall) another VGC (Silver) using this Vanilla VGC as the payment vehicle. I tried it online and it works - however, it will charge you another $3.95 for processing and $4.99 for standard USPS shipping.
Can anyone help? Thanks for all of your suggestions.
Iloilo
I was wondering if anyone here has experienced any problems using a Vanilla VGC (with pin) to load at WM's Money Center Kiosk ATM - I tried several times today to load a test amount of $50 (my V VGC has a balance of $500) and it was rejected each time - I gave up after the third attempt failed. The message on the screen said that the debit transaction was NOT allowed.
Is there a solution or workaround this? One way I can think of solving this which is a little costly is to buy online (at giftmall) another VGC (Silver) using this Vanilla VGC as the payment vehicle. I tried it online and it works - however, it will charge you another $3.95 for processing and $4.99 for standard USPS shipping.
Can anyone help? Thanks for all of your suggestions.
Iloilo
Apr 28, 2015, 10:30 am
#424
Join Date: Dec 2014
Posts: 15
Red Card question
I'm not new at MS, but I did just pick up a Redbird didn't want to get flamed over in the RC forum -
I know that the daily limit on Redbird loads is $2500.... but do I have to do loads in separate transactions? For example, do I have to have them swipe my Red Card and credit card three times each ($1000, $1000, $500) or just my credit card three times?
For GCs - Do I need to know the remaining balance on them in order to load them to my Redbird?
Thanks.
I know that the daily limit on Redbird loads is $2500.... but do I have to do loads in separate transactions? For example, do I have to have them swipe my Red Card and credit card three times each ($1000, $1000, $500) or just my credit card three times?
For GCs - Do I need to know the remaining balance on them in order to load them to my Redbird?
Thanks.
Apr 28, 2015, 12:03 pm
#425
Join Date: Nov 2014
Location: NYC
Posts: 158
I'm not new at MS, but I did just pick up a Redbird didn't want to get flamed over in the RC forum -
I know that the daily limit on Redbird loads is $2500.... but do I have to do loads in separate transactions? For example, do I have to have them swipe my Red Card and credit card three times each ($1000, $1000, $500) or just my credit card three times?
For GCs - Do I need to know the remaining balance on them in order to load them to my Redbird?
Thanks.
I know that the daily limit on Redbird loads is $2500.... but do I have to do loads in separate transactions? For example, do I have to have them swipe my Red Card and credit card three times each ($1000, $1000, $500) or just my credit card three times?
For GCs - Do I need to know the remaining balance on them in order to load them to my Redbird?
Thanks.
For GCs, you do not need to know the remaining balance, but you do need to tell the cashier how much you want to load. If the GC doesn't have enough, the system will auto-drain the card, but only if you run it as a credit. (If you choose debit, then you do have to know the balance; the card will simply be declined if it does not have enough on it.)
Apr 28, 2015, 1:13 pm
#426
Join Date: Feb 2015
Posts: 910
In this scenario, if you didn't know what each gift card had, it would be difficult to maximize the load, that is to load them all via the one Redbird transaction.
P.S. You shouldn't fear asking such a question on the Redbird thread, at least I don't think so. I know we get impatient at times with noob questions, but it usually is when it comes across as someone didn't bother to read anything about it and has a "feed it to me with a spoon" attitude.
Last edited by NoonRadar; Apr 28, 2015 at 1:22 pm
Apr 28, 2015, 1:38 pm
#427
Join Date: Dec 2014
Posts: 12
Hi, just approved for AX Business Gold and Delta Business Gold. Is that true If I add money on Serve I won't get hit with cash advance charges, but I will treated as minimum spend but not additional bonus. Any have experience with the above cards?
Apr 28, 2015, 9:25 pm
#428
Join Date: Jul 2014
Posts: 7
For RedCard Question please.
I have purchased some office supply in Staples Store and received some rebate visa cards. Those are issued by MetaBank. Could I able load those rebate visa cards to my redcard?
Thank you.
I have purchased some office supply in Staples Store and received some rebate visa cards. Those are issued by MetaBank. Could I able load those rebate visa cards to my redcard?
Thank you.
Apr 28, 2015, 10:03 pm
#429
Join Date: Feb 2015
Posts: 910
Yes. You can load any gift cards to Redbird (REDcard), except for Target gift cards. That is unless that specific store has made it a policy not to allow gift cards, very few have, a couple in NYC that I know of, from others' reporting.
Apr 29, 2015, 11:53 pm
#430
Join Date: Jan 2015
Location: LAX
Programs: AA, DL, Hyatt, Hilton
Posts: 127
So my goto store just stopped carrying VGC for whatever reason... Can Mastercard GCs be loaded to serve the same way as VGC? How come there is little discussion RE mastercard GCs, do they not work?
May 1, 2015, 2:45 pm
#431
Join Date: Nov 2013
Location: Sacramento, CA
Posts: 437
2) MCGC work almost exactly the same as VGC. They just require a bit of extra work. For example, for all MCGC, you have to call in to set the PIN, this can become really time consuming.
May 1, 2015, 4:19 pm
#432
Join Date: Jan 2015
Location: LAX
Programs: AA, DL, Hyatt, Hilton
Posts: 127
1) If you are using it at a Kate then its the same. If you use a MC at a WM register, it will ring up as a credit purchase unless you hit "Change Payment" quickly. There are several threads that teaches you how to fix this, I am too lazy to find it for you. Sorry.
2) MCGC work almost exactly the same as VGC. They just require a bit of extra work. For example, for all MCGC, you have to call in to set the PIN, this can become really time consuming.
2) MCGC work almost exactly the same as VGC. They just require a bit of extra work. For example, for all MCGC, you have to call in to set the PIN, this can become really time consuming.
Alright, found the info you are referring to in a Wiki. Process is a bit annoying, as Walmart employees were already all over me with VGC (asking to check my ID, canceling tx when I swiped GC instead of Debit card I showed etc). I think this is a significant stick in my wheel, but will give it a try. Unfortunately my goto places stopped carrying VGCs for whatever reason.
May 1, 2015, 6:10 pm
#433
Join Date: May 2014
Posts: 191
Went to a different part of the city and stopped by a MACERICH mall which sells Visa GCs (by Sunrise). So wanted to get a couple but the purchase got declined by CITI because it showed up as Cash Advance and it's above my limit.
Anyone had Mall GC purchases coded as CA as well? I have another MACERICH mall near my house and it is my goto one and never had this issue. Thanks!
Anyone had Mall GC purchases coded as CA as well? I have another MACERICH mall near my house and it is my goto one and never had this issue. Thanks!
May 2, 2015, 11:38 am
#435
Join Date: Oct 2006
Location: Arcadia, CA
Programs: Hyatt GP/Platinum, Priority Club Gold, AA Gold, DL Silver, United Premier Gold
Posts: 58
Mute KATE at WM - is it possible?
Hello All,
Is there a way to Mute KATE at WM or adjust the volume? It's not an issue when you're only using KATE a few times; however, if you need to use it more than 3x, the screaming KATE is annoying and it draws a lot of attention to what you're doing.
Is there a way to mute or decrease the volume on KATE? If so, where are the controls located - or how would you do it?
Thanks again for all of your help!
Iloilo
Is there a way to Mute KATE at WM or adjust the volume? It's not an issue when you're only using KATE a few times; however, if you need to use it more than 3x, the screaming KATE is annoying and it draws a lot of attention to what you're doing.
Is there a way to mute or decrease the volume on KATE? If so, where are the controls located - or how would you do it?
Thanks again for all of your help!
Iloilo