I often, but not always, have the same problem. But I am not ready to fork over more than $100 (for a US passport anyway) just to get a magnetic stripe that works (i.e. the only way I know of to fix it is to apply for a new passport). This passport will be full in a year or two, well before the expiration date and I will get it replaced. Already had additional pages put in (fortunately when they were still free) and the passport is not even 5 years old.