Jan 2, 2019, 9:51 am
Last edit by: danpeake
As of Nov 11, 2020, Meta gebits are getting declined when used for MO/BP purchases at MC/SD. New limit appears to be $99 per swipe with some metas at some stores. READ the posts below and add a data point with details. USB and GD gift cards do not seem to be affected.
This is the thread for 2019. The previous discussion can be found here: https://www.flyertalk.com/forum/manu...rt-2018-a.html
New to MO: Read this entire Wiki (Click to open) and all posts for some tips before asking common questions. It is best to know what you are doing before you try.
Note: The policy for allowing gift cards as payment for money orders can be more restrictive with certain stores or certain clerks. Just because an employee says there's a new restrictive policy "for all Walmarts" means nothing. There are plenty of cases where the employee is incorrect and the new policy is only regional or store specific.
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Tested Gebit (gift debit) cards:
1. DO NOT WORK - Any Vanilla product affiliated with InComm or ITC Financial Services will not work for swipes over $49.99.
2. See above on Visas issued by MetaBank. New limit appears to be $99 per swipe with some metas at some stores. Follow the posts below for the latest information.
3. MC issued by US bank OR Metabank MC (Giftcards.com) can work, but you need to change payment type to debit before they enter the amount in the register. See below for details.
4. Gdot/sun work but take about an hour to activate.(VGC issued by Sunrise also limited to $99/swipe, same as Metabank issued cards, and Sunrise was available immediately).
5. USB work
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NEW Limits as of 11/18 - 8K with ID every 24 hours. ID required for MO over 1K.Some tips for starting out:
All WM registers allow 4 debit swipes per transaction, but YMMV per store and cashier. Refer to cards as Debit cards.
Start slow and buy one MO with one Gebit to see how it works. Refer to cards as Debit, only this community calls them Gebits. Your store or cashier may have rules that other stores do not have, only allowing one swipe per trans or up to 4 swipes per trans. Read all the tips below and all the posts below before trying more advanced transactions. NO variety or design of VISA or MC Gebit's will ever auto-drain at Walmart so always tell them the amount you want to pay per card. Fee: 1K MO or less is usually 88 cents each, but ask or check the wall. Subtract the fee from the total or pay in cash. If a store says "no", thank them and try again another day with a different clerk.
Helpful details and tips for advanced transactions:
1. Cost: 1K MO fee is usually $1 each(Some states limit MO total to 750 or 950 and may have a different fee). Subtract fee from your total or pay in cash. Can buy two 1K MO in one transaction with 4 swipes for $1 x 2 in most states. NO variety or design of VISA or MC Gebit's will ever auto-drain at Walmart so always tell them the amount you want to pay per card.
2. Split payment transactions: You cannot successfully swipe more than 4 cards in a single transaction. If the cashier screws up and enters $50.00 instead of $500.00 (thus making it impossible for 4 swipes to complete the transaction), the transaction will need to be canceled. The funds should return to your cards right away but may take 24 hours, so note the time and person helping you. When a transaction is canceled during the trans, the money returns to the cards. If canceled after, the cash reg drawer opens and they pay you back in cash.
3. Split payment: The amount of each swipe needs to be entered by the cashier. Ask to "split the payment by $$$". The Gebit must have current balance of that amount or more otherwise slip with Error 51 will print out. Warning: (YMMV) It appears (my experience on 3 occasions during prepaid card load and buying MO in 2 different WMs) that after the debit card was charged no cash could be credited back to the card. Cashier should issue cash back. Keep the slip and contact manager if in doubt. Remember date, time and register if no slip.
4. Bad Printer: IF, by chance, you've swiped your GCs successfully, a receipt prints but the MO doesn't, make sure to ask to see the receipt and check near the bottom IF it says CHANGE/REFUND with a negative sign before the amount of GCs you swiped, that means the cashier must give you cash refund. Cashier may have to call for the cash dept manager to verify the refund. Some stores may outright give your cash refund immediately while there are others that will ask you to come back. Think twice before you buy MOs while on vacation or when you're in unknown to you territories for issues like this.
6. MCGC liquidation- The cashier should not enter the amount first. Technically they just can't hit enter after entering the amount. Let the CSR know you need to swipe first and switch the payment type to debit, then swipe and hit "Cancel" or "Change Payment" to select "Debit" on the screen, enter the pin and have them enter the amount.
7. SSN/ID entry - Any MO purchases in one transaction at or over $3K requires you to input your SSN. Any MO at or over $1K requires ID input (and ID requirement can also be forced by cashier at any amount).
Debit codes PDF
http://www.flyertalk.com/forum/attac...0&d=1461170080
Buying Money Orders at Walmart (2019 - 2022)
Dec 9, 2020, 3:37 pm
#2956
Join Date: Oct 2014
Programs: All of them
Posts: 1,664
Wait, you used 4x 200, to buy 2x $395.12 MO? You didn't discover anything new, the $99 swipe has worked all along.
Dec 9, 2020, 4:00 pm
#2957
Join Date: Sep 2005
Location: CVG
Programs: AAdvantage, Delta Skymiles, CapOne Venture, Citi ThankYou
Posts: 486
I
All that said, you could be right that it is MB, but the question then becomes why is MB only imposing this restriction on WM transactions, and would that be a violation of MB's agreement with Visa. The other reason why I don't think it's MB is because it took a while for all WM registers to be affected. I don't see the reasoning behind that bifurcation. I also don't know how that bifurcation would be technically implemented if it was solely MB that is imposing this restriction.
All that said, you could be right that it is MB, but the question then becomes why is MB only imposing this restriction on WM transactions, and would that be a violation of MB's agreement with Visa. The other reason why I don't think it's MB is because it took a while for all WM registers to be affected. I don't see the reasoning behind that bifurcation. I also don't know how that bifurcation would be technically implemented if it was solely MB that is imposing this restriction.
Dec 9, 2020, 4:03 pm
#2958
Join Date: Mar 2009
Posts: 2,295
I'm talking about the swipes where card information is not read and transmitted (i.e. swipe errors). This is *before* people started getting the errors related to swipes > $99 (or whatever that number actually is).
WM has (or should have) this information on swipes not reading the magnetic stripe. They (and the processor) would then see that these non-read swipes occurred around the same time as the usage of a MB card. That would lead to the conclusion that the non-read swipes are somehow related to the MB cards. That could result in WM imposing limitations on that/those BINs.
Not sure exactly what you mean by card networks having to accept all cards. The card network is V/MC/Disc/Amex, etc. There are definitely situations where merchants (through their processor) can choose to reject and/or place limitations on usage of certain types of cards, even if they bear the network logo. While banks like Chase, when they issue a Visa card, have agreements with Visa that would require merchants who accept Visa credit cards (or debit cards, as applicable) to accept that Chase card, it doesn't always work the same way with issuers of open-loop gift cards (i.e., MB Visa cards). In the same way that merchants can decide to only take Visa debit cards, and can reject Visa credit cards, they can also choose to reject Visa prepaid cards. Depending on Visa's agreements with MB, USB, etc., merchants could potentially be permitted to discriminate against certain issuers of prepaid cards. The only thing I'm aware of that would stop that would be Visa's agreement with MB (a restriction that would effectively be placed on WM by WM's processor in accordance with the agreement between Visa and WM's processor (directly or indirectly through other entities between WM's processor and Visa), and/or some discretionary controls placed by the processor (but I imagine the latter would not apply in the case of WM since WM likely has the power to negotiate out of any such restriction).
All that said, you could be right that it is MB, but the question then becomes why is MB only imposing this restriction on WM transactions, and would that be a violation of MB's agreement with Visa. The other reason why I don't think it's MB is because it took a while for all WM registers to be affected. I don't see the reasoning behind that bifurcation. I also don't know how that bifurcation would be technically implemented if it was solely MB that is imposing this restriction.
WM has (or should have) this information on swipes not reading the magnetic stripe. They (and the processor) would then see that these non-read swipes occurred around the same time as the usage of a MB card. That would lead to the conclusion that the non-read swipes are somehow related to the MB cards. That could result in WM imposing limitations on that/those BINs.
Not sure exactly what you mean by card networks having to accept all cards. The card network is V/MC/Disc/Amex, etc. There are definitely situations where merchants (through their processor) can choose to reject and/or place limitations on usage of certain types of cards, even if they bear the network logo. While banks like Chase, when they issue a Visa card, have agreements with Visa that would require merchants who accept Visa credit cards (or debit cards, as applicable) to accept that Chase card, it doesn't always work the same way with issuers of open-loop gift cards (i.e., MB Visa cards). In the same way that merchants can decide to only take Visa debit cards, and can reject Visa credit cards, they can also choose to reject Visa prepaid cards. Depending on Visa's agreements with MB, USB, etc., merchants could potentially be permitted to discriminate against certain issuers of prepaid cards. The only thing I'm aware of that would stop that would be Visa's agreement with MB (a restriction that would effectively be placed on WM by WM's processor in accordance with the agreement between Visa and WM's processor (directly or indirectly through other entities between WM's processor and Visa), and/or some discretionary controls placed by the processor (but I imagine the latter would not apply in the case of WM since WM likely has the power to negotiate out of any such restriction).
All that said, you could be right that it is MB, but the question then becomes why is MB only imposing this restriction on WM transactions, and would that be a violation of MB's agreement with Visa. The other reason why I don't think it's MB is because it took a while for all WM registers to be affected. I don't see the reasoning behind that bifurcation. I also don't know how that bifurcation would be technically implemented if it was solely MB that is imposing this restriction.
They know what has been going on with these for sometime. The logic you're applying doesn't past muster to me.
The "accept all cards policy" says that if a merchant accepts a card type (Visa, MC, etc.) they have to accept all "flavors" of that card. IE, if they accept Visa, they have to accept Visa gold cards AND Visa signature cards. The "higher" the Visa card type, generally the more expensive the swipe fee. https://www.paymentssource.com/news/...the-microscope
Dec 9, 2020, 6:44 pm
#2959
Join Date: May 2008
Location: PHL (kinda, no airport is really close)
Programs: AA Exp, but not sure for how long. Enterprise Platinum woo-hoo!
Posts: 4,550
I have not had any 10/28 expiration GC's. All 10/25 or 10/27 I think. Plus, Simon is aware that there's an issue. I don't think it's a manufacturing issue.
Dec 9, 2020, 9:01 pm
#2960
Join Date: Feb 2012
Location: DEN
Programs: Hilton Diamond Hyatt Globalist Marriott Gold AA EXP
Posts: 1,012
Dec 10, 2020, 2:26 pm
#2961
Join Date: Mar 2013
Location: PHX
Programs: AA Lifetime PLT, UA Gold, HH Lifetime DIA, WoH Globalist
Posts: 57
Previous purchases always required double swipes of initial card. New DP - Liquidated a GE $200 VGC for a $198 MO in a single swipe this morning.
Dec 10, 2020, 2:59 pm
#2962
Join Date: May 2019
Programs: AA EXP, UA 1K, Hilton Diamond, Bonvoy Lifetime Titanium Elite, Hyatt Lifetime Globalist
Posts: 453
Where did you get the GE card/what chains carry them? The only convenient chain near me is Jewel and they only sell Metas. I'd jump on a source for $500s that worked in a single swipe at WM.
Dec 10, 2020, 3:22 pm
#2963
Join Date: Oct 2014
Programs: All of them
Posts: 1,664
He's talking about Grocery Everywhere style of $200 VGCs that OM/OD sell, and those have worked fine for single swipe through this whole ordeal....so far.
Dec 10, 2020, 3:31 pm
#2964
Join Date: May 2019
Programs: AA EXP, UA 1K, Hilton Diamond, Bonvoy Lifetime Titanium Elite, Hyatt Lifetime Globalist
Posts: 453
Thank you. Didn't realize the OM/OD ones still worked. $200, though...ugh. Really needs to be $500 to get me motivated right now.
Dec 10, 2020, 3:37 pm
#2965
Join Date: Oct 2014
Programs: All of them
Posts: 1,664
Only get them when they're fee-free during promos, but $500s at office stores will require a time machine. That ship has sailed back in 2015 or 2016.
Dec 10, 2020, 5:26 pm
#2966
Join Date: Mar 2013
Location: PHX
Programs: AA Lifetime PLT, UA Gold, HH Lifetime DIA, WoH Globalist
Posts: 57
Dec 11, 2020, 9:54 am
#2967
Join Date: Mar 2005
Programs: Continental Onepass, Hilton, Marriott, USAir and now UA
Posts: 6,438
However, I did do a test on Staples Visa meta $200 at WM and failed at $200 but succeeded at $99 x 2 with residual spent on groceries.
I think that unless one has a unicorn exception, $99 for Metas is the new norm for WM MOs
Dec 11, 2020, 10:09 am
#2968
Join Date: May 2019
Programs: AA EXP, UA 1K, Hilton Diamond, Bonvoy Lifetime Titanium Elite, Hyatt Lifetime Globalist
Posts: 453
is right. 4 swipe $396 money orders are just not worth it, at least for me. It'd take 5 trips to liquidate 2 SMGCs. Too much attention, too much work for too little return. I've still got one $500 option for metas left, but just the one. Was easy with 2 WMs within 20 minutes to do $25k/mo with not much effort. Going to ramp down to something like $5k/mo now.
Dec 11, 2020, 12:34 pm
#2969
Join Date: Aug 2014
Location: BOS
Posts: 550
is right. 4 swipe $396 money orders are just not worth it, at least for me. It'd take 5 trips to liquidate 2 SMGCs. Too much attention, too much work for too little return. I've still got one $500 option for metas left, but just the one. Was easy with 2 WMs within 20 minutes to do $25k/mo with not much effort. Going to ramp down to something like $5k/mo now.
Dec 11, 2020, 4:19 pm
#2970
Join Date: Feb 2015
Posts: 595
is right. 4 swipe $396 money orders are just not worth it, at least for me. It'd take 5 trips to liquidate 2 SMGCs. Too much attention, too much work for too little return. I've still got one $500 option for metas left, but just the one. Was easy with 2 WMs within 20 minutes to do $25k/mo with not much effort. Going to ramp down to something like $5k/mo now.