Do you know the limits on your cards?

28/07/2020

When you take out a credit or debit card, daily limits are typically set for both your purchases and your cash withdrawals at ATMs.

These limits are not to be confused with your credit limit, which is set when the card is arranged and will depend on the bank’s risk policy and your personal circumstances and credit status.

You can easily ask your bank to increase or decrease your daily limits by visiting a branch, by telephone or via its website or mobile application.

In any event, it is recommended that these daily limits should be in line with your usual spending and that any increase should only be temporary to cover major expenses, such as travel costs, furnishing a home, and so on.

As well as helping to keep your spending under control, setting low limits provides a safeguard against fraudulent use of your card. Thus, if your card is lost, stolen or cloned, any unauthorised transactions will be restricted to the stipulated daily limits. If you use online or mobile banking, set transaction notifications so that you are immediately informed of any unauthorised use and can quickly contact your bank to cancel the card.