Jan 7, 2016, 8:18 am
Last edit by: RedSun
This is the 2016 and onwards Bluebird thread.
The original discussion. The previous 2013- 2014 megathread. The previous 2015 megathread.
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Read the wiki before posting a question.
The most recent huge wave of shutdowns occurred in May 2019.
Most accounts used for MS were shut down on Jan 8, 2016. Another wave of shutdowns occurred on March 4, 2016. Using Bluebird for MS is very likely to lead to account closure. There is no clear pattern as to how to avoid the account shut-downs. Some of the dormant accounts were not shut down.
Check your BB load limits BEFORE asking in this thread about "tender not allowed" or any other errors.
Bluebird website. There's no need to buy a Bluebird kit in-store; sign-up free on the website.
For information on switching from BB to Serve, see the Serve thread wiki.
Bluebird Load Limits:
The cash load limit for a temp card is $1,500 total.
*For online debit load, only use of bank-issued cards is allowed. The use of pre-paid debit cards (Netspend, Paypower, Univision, Paypal, etc.) and VGC/MGC/AGCs is not allowed. Your account will be flagged upon first/second attempt. If blocked, call Account Protection Services at 1-800-660-2454 to clear it (9am-8pm EST, Mon-Fri).
The day currently resets around midnight Eastern/11pm Central/10pm Mountain/9pm Pacific.
For online bill pay
Loading with debit card at Walmart
Self checkout does not work for loading.
Many Walmart stores are enforcing a rule against the use of gift cards when loading, even though the register and the MCE do not enforce. Do not make your prepaid debit cards visible. Show them a bank debit card if asked. Otherwise, you may be asked by management to never visit the MC again to load with gift cards.
Loads at register over $500 will sometimes trigger ID requirement. There is a limit of four swipes per transaction; this means your card plus three payments.
If your card doesn't say "debit" on the front, it isn't a debit card.
Please see http://www.flyertalk.com/forum/manuf...bit-cards.html for additional information on using prepaid debit cards.
Training a WM cashier:
Error Messages:
DEBIT NOT AVAILABLE
Received when I used a card I thought I had activated but hadn't.
DEBIT NOT APPROVED
Received when the card's monthly load limit had been reached.
TENDER NOT ALLOWED
Card was incorrectly read, or wrong PIN entered .
HOST TIMEOUT
Connection problems. The GC may be drained but the transaction should reverse itself, and funds will become available again. Try again later.
The original discussion. The previous 2013- 2014 megathread. The previous 2015 megathread.
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Read the wiki before posting a question.
The most recent huge wave of shutdowns occurred in May 2019.
Most accounts used for MS were shut down on Jan 8, 2016. Another wave of shutdowns occurred on March 4, 2016. Using Bluebird for MS is very likely to lead to account closure. There is no clear pattern as to how to avoid the account shut-downs. Some of the dormant accounts were not shut down.
Check your BB load limits BEFORE asking in this thread about "tender not allowed" or any other errors.
Bluebird website. There's no need to buy a Bluebird kit in-store; sign-up free on the website.
For information on switching from BB to Serve, see the Serve thread wiki.
Bluebird Load Limits:
- Cash loading: $2,500 ($1,999.99 at Walmart) per card per day; $9,000 per day all BB cards combined; $5,000 total per calendar month each card; $10,000 calendar month and $100,000 per year all BB cards combined for each SSN.
- Direct Deposit: $100,000 per year
- Online Debit Card Load* - $200/day and $1,000/month
- Checking/Savings Account - $2,000/month
- Mobile Check Capture by Ingo® Money - $5,000/day and $10,000/month
- ATM Withdrawals - $750/day and $2,000/month
The cash load limit for a temp card is $1,500 total.
*For online debit load, only use of bank-issued cards is allowed. The use of pre-paid debit cards (Netspend, Paypower, Univision, Paypal, etc.) and VGC/MGC/AGCs is not allowed. Your account will be flagged upon first/second attempt. If blocked, call Account Protection Services at 1-800-660-2454 to clear it (9am-8pm EST, Mon-Fri).
The day currently resets around midnight Eastern/11pm Central/10pm Mountain/9pm Pacific.
For online bill pay
- You can pay the credit card that you used to buy reloads
- Error 1302 means that you have 1 pending payment the same amount as the one you just submitted. For example, 1000 bill pay to sapphire preferred from Friday and then on Saturday you submit another bill pay for 1000 to sapphire preferred, you will get this error.
- Tip: if using online bill pay to the same place multiple times, vary your amounts by $0.01 to make it easier to track since your confirmation number does not match the tracking number on your credit card statement
Loading with debit card at Walmart
Self checkout does not work for loading.
Many Walmart stores are enforcing a rule against the use of gift cards when loading, even though the register and the MCE do not enforce. Do not make your prepaid debit cards visible. Show them a bank debit card if asked. Otherwise, you may be asked by management to never visit the MC again to load with gift cards.
Loads at register over $500 will sometimes trigger ID requirement. There is a limit of four swipes per transaction; this means your card plus three payments.
If your card doesn't say "debit" on the front, it isn't a debit card.
Please see http://www.flyertalk.com/forum/manuf...bit-cards.html for additional information on using prepaid debit cards.
Training a WM cashier:
- If the WM cashier doesn't know how to load the card, advise them to enter "70" then press "action code".
- If you are using a temp card that doesn't have your name on it, you can swipe the card from your side of the terminal. The WM rep never has to touch any of your cards. The screen will say "enter account." That is your prompt to slide the card.
- The terminal will ask the WM employee if you are loading in multiples of $2000. Advise them to enter "no."
- Avoid saying gift card. Always refer to your card as a debit card.
Error Messages:
DEBIT NOT AVAILABLE
Received when I used a card I thought I had activated but hadn't.
DEBIT NOT APPROVED
Received when the card's monthly load limit had been reached.
TENDER NOT ALLOWED
Card was incorrectly read, or wrong PIN entered .
HOST TIMEOUT
Connection problems. The GC may be drained but the transaction should reverse itself, and funds will become available again. Try again later.
Bluebird master thread (2016 onwards)
Aug 25, 2016, 8:09 pm
#496
Join Date: Oct 2010
Location: Santa Barbara, CA
Posts: 1,277
What kind of load patterns do people who are getting shut down have?
I don't do significant MS anymore, but I still buy the $200 cards at Staples or OD when there's a deal on them to cover the fees. I also load my Staples rebate cards, which might help because they end up having values that aren't just big round numbers. My last two "withdrawals" were paying credit card bills.
What about other people who have not been shut down? What kind of usage pattern?
I don't do significant MS anymore, but I still buy the $200 cards at Staples or OD when there's a deal on them to cover the fees. I also load my Staples rebate cards, which might help because they end up having values that aren't just big round numbers. My last two "withdrawals" were paying credit card bills.
What about other people who have not been shut down? What kind of usage pattern?
Aug 26, 2016, 8:36 pm
#498
Join Date: Jun 2004
Location: IAD
Programs: All of them to one degree or another
Posts: 447
Aug 26, 2016, 8:57 pm
#499
Join Date: Oct 2013
Location: USA
Programs: Amex Plat, AA Exec, CITI Prestige, Hilton Gold, Marriot Gold and all ever changing
Posts: 218
My last one shutdown yesterday. Another mark against Amex for me as I'm losing interest in their cc too.
Aug 29, 2016, 12:07 pm
#501
Join Date: Oct 2014
Posts: 827
I love the constant speculations as to what causes the shutdowns. At the end of the day, the Serve and its brethren are dead to volume MS.
Use the card the way someone without a bank account would use it and you'll probably be safe. I'd expect that most uses of the card that cause a "No" answer to the question "Would someone making $10 an hour do this?" will cause an eventual shutdown.
Use the card the way someone without a bank account would use it and you'll probably be safe. I'd expect that most uses of the card that cause a "No" answer to the question "Would someone making $10 an hour do this?" will cause an eventual shutdown.
Sep 2, 2016, 8:35 pm
#502
Join Date: May 2016
Location: Northeast
Programs: Marriott, Chase Sapphire, JetBlue
Posts: 3
I have had success loading $5K /month on BB but to show a low income spend pattern, I buy a case of natural light and a pack of camel reds each month with my BB. Then take to CSR and return for store credit. It seems to work thus far and I haven't been shut down....yet.
Sep 6, 2016, 8:40 pm
#503
Join Date: May 2015
Programs: All the programs!
Posts: 1,006
I have had success loading $5K /month on BB but to show a low income spend pattern, I buy a case of natural light and a pack of camel reds each month with my BB. Then take to CSR and return for store credit. It seems to work thus far and I haven't been shut down....yet.
Sep 6, 2016, 9:38 pm
#504
Join Date: Jun 2015
Posts: 1,727
Camel reds are not the typical.. U need the American spirit cigs
Sep 15, 2016, 8:10 pm
#505
Join Date: Jun 2004
Location: IAD
Programs: All of them to one degree or another
Posts: 447
Dec 24, 2016, 5:44 pm
#506
Join Date: Oct 2010
Posts: 99
I was shutdown on Serve early this year and despite several attempts could not get another new serve a/c. I was able to open a BB a/c today and could really use to MS for the minimum spend on a few cards I got. I imagine BB will get shutdown as well eventually, but hopefully I can get the minimum spend done.
Jan 1, 2017, 10:52 pm
#507
Join Date: May 2015
Location: DCA
Programs: AA EXP, DL FO, Marriott Titanium
Posts: 6,712
I have had success loading $5K /month on BB but to show a low income spend pattern, I buy a case of natural light and a pack of camel reds each month with my BB. Then take to CSR and return for store credit. It seems to work thus far and I haven't been shut down....yet.
I was doing a paltry $2K per month, and stopped once the January shutdowns hit. My card is still alive, and I'm probably going to dust it off and start again.
I need to hit the DL $25K waiver, so I'm tempted to just load it into the ground.
Jan 5, 2017, 8:09 pm
#508
Join Date: Jan 2012
Location: Georgia
Programs: Delta Platinum, Bonvoy Titanium Elite, Hertz President's Circle
Posts: 105
I wonder if this person's BB is still alive.
I was doing a paltry $2K per month, and stopped once the January shutdowns hit. My card is still alive, and I'm probably going to dust it off and start again.
I need to hit the DL $25K waiver, so I'm tempted to just load it into the ground.
I was doing a paltry $2K per month, and stopped once the January shutdowns hit. My card is still alive, and I'm probably going to dust it off and start again.
I need to hit the DL $25K waiver, so I'm tempted to just load it into the ground.
Jan 8, 2017, 3:45 pm
#509
Join Date: Jan 2016
Posts: 10
Wife and I want to open 2 Chase Sapphire Reserve Accounts before they nix the 100K point offer in a few days. We'll need to MS 8K and were planning to kill a BB acct that's never been used, ever, to do so.
Question; Will we be able to load 8K in SM GCs if we do it last day of month 1/first day of month 2, or do SM GCs no longer work for loading at Walmart MCE terminals?
Thanks.
Question; Will we be able to load 8K in SM GCs if we do it last day of month 1/first day of month 2, or do SM GCs no longer work for loading at Walmart MCE terminals?
Thanks.
Jan 8, 2017, 5:57 pm
#510
Join Date: Jan 2012
Location: Georgia
Programs: Delta Platinum, Bonvoy Titanium Elite, Hertz President's Circle
Posts: 105
Wife and I want to open 2 Chase Sapphire Reserve Accounts before they nix the 100K point offer in a few days. We'll need to MS 8K and were planning to kill a BB acct that's never been used, ever, to do so.
Question; Will we be able to load 8K in SM GCs if we do it last day of month 1/first day of month 2, or do SM GCs no longer work for loading at Walmart MCE terminals?
Thanks.
Question; Will we be able to load 8K in SM GCs if we do it last day of month 1/first day of month 2, or do SM GCs no longer work for loading at Walmart MCE terminals?
Thanks.