My First Visa Debit Card

Using your Card

• Where can I use my Visa Debit Card?

  You can use your Visa Debit Card anywhere that Visa is accepted, in Australia or Overseas. For example: at the shops, in restaurants, at ATMs, etc. Your card can be used in person, online or over the phone.
• How do I use my Visa Debit card?

  When using an EFTPOS machine or an ATM you will need to select between the Cheque, Savings, Visa Debit or Credit options to complete your transaction. When asked, you should do the following:

  • Press Cheque @ ATMs in Australia - when you are withdrawing cash from an ATM in Australia, you should press the Cheque option.
  • Press Credit @ ATMs outside Australia - when you are withdrawing cash from an overseas ATM, you should press the Credit option.
  • Press Visa Debit or Credit @ the Shops - when you are purchasing something from a shop, whether shopping here or overseas. On some terminals, the 'Credit' option may appear as 'Visa Debit'.
  • Visa payWave - Wave to go when you see the contactless symbol on an EFTPOS machine, you will be able to use the payWave option. After the cashier has entered the purchase amount, hold your card over the reader. 4 green lights will appear when your transaction is complete.

  Remember, this is not a credit card even though you might be choosing a button called Credit. When you buy something or withdraw from an ATM, no matter which button you select the money always comes out of your own bank account.
• What is Visa payWave?

  Some places such as McDonalds, 7-Eleven, Coles and Woolworths will let you ‘pay with a wave’ – this is called Visa payWave. Just hold your card close to the reader and wait for the signal letting you know the payment is done. It’s that easy. Plus, for transactions less than $200^* you won’t need to enter a PIN or sign. It’s a safe and fast way to pay.
• How do I use my Visa Debit Card to shop online or over the phone?

  You will always need to give online retailers your card number and expiry date on the card. Some online checkouts might also ask for your CVV or Card Verification Value. You’ll find these 3 digits on your signature panel.

• Make sure there is enough cash in your account

  If there isn’t enough cash in your account to cover what you want to buy or withdraw from the ATM then generally the answer we will send back will be “declined” and you won’t be able to continue. While it’s unlikely, in some instances a transaction may go through even when there may not be enough cash in your account. This causes your balance to drop below $0 and is called ‘overdrawing’ the account. As a result you may be charged Account Overdrawn fees and interest on the debit balance. If your account becomes overdrawn by mistake (possibly due to the shop not checking with us first), give us a call on 13 33 30 and we’ll work with you to make sure your account is put right.
• Keeping track of your cash

  You can check your balance and a record of transactions at any time with Internet or mobile banking. Regular checking of your transaction history or eStatement is a good habit to get into. It helps you keep track of where you’re spending your money (and makes sure no-one else is spending it).

  If something doesn’t look quite right, maybe you were overcharged or you bought something online that never arrived, then let us know straight away and we can help you sort it out. Your Visa Debit Card includes chargeback protection, which lets us reverse transactions, if required. But you need to let us know about the transaction as soon as possible.
• MoneyMeter

  MoneyMeter is the fast and convenient way to check how much cash you have at any time without the need to logon to Mobile Banking. It’s just a simple swipe (iPhone) or tap (Android) from the home screen. Remember you need to be registered for Internet Banking to use the iPhone or Android Mobile Banking app.
• Be alert, not alarmed

  You can register to receive email or SMS alerts, which let you know when cash goes in or out of your account. All email alerts are free, as are the first 10 SMS alerts each month ($0.25 per message after). Please log on to Internet or Mobile banking and activate Alerts (under the Services tab).
• Keeping fees under control

  With careful management, you can keep fees to a minimum, even eliminate them altogether. Make sure you know what fees your account charges and be sure to stay within your limits.

• Report a lost or stolen card

  You should always know where your card is. But things happen at school, work or when out and about. If you lose your card, let us know immediately via:

  • Internet Banking
    1. Logon to Internet Banking
    2. From the ‘Account Servicing’ menu select ‘Report a Lost or Stolen Card’ and complete the online form
    3. Once your request has been confirmed your card will be blocked and may no longer be used for any transactions
  • Call us 24 hours a day, 7 days a week.
    1. Within Australia 1800 028 208
    2. Overseas +61 2 9155 7800
       
  • You can also report the loss or stolen card at any St.George branch during business hours.

  Your card will automatically be blocked as soon as it’s reported.
• Shhhh…. keep your PIN secret

  Select your own PIN but make sure it isn’t obvious like;

  • Your birthday
  • The date printed on your card
  • Consecutive numbers (e.g. 1234)
  • Repeated numbers or numbers forming a pattern (e.g. 4444)
  • Your telephone number.

  Get the picture? So don’t give your PIN (or password) to anyone else: And don’t write it down and store in an obvious place (like in your wallet next to your card).

  TIP: Always cover the number pad when typing your PIN.
• Beware of phishing

  When someone you don’t know sends you an email asking for your personal details or your bank information, it is called ‘phishing’. Sometimes they might pretend to be someone you do know, such as your bank. Remember, your bank will never email you asking for your banking and login details.

  Scammers will try and use any details you give them to rip you off so the best thing to do is to delete their email straight away and make sure you don’t click on any links or reply to them.
• Online purchasing

  Buying stuff online is generally safe and we will always cover you for transactions you did not authorise, but a simple rule to avoid any hassles is to only buy from safe, secure sites that you have chosen to visit.

  If you receive a link or web address from someone you don’t know the safest thing to do is ignore it.
• Phone purchasing

  Only give your card details over the phone if you have arranged for the purchase. Just like email phishing and shopping online, be very careful when it comes to receiving calls from people wanting you to buy something and requesting your card details.