The bank card has become the first means of payment in France for many years. The speed of processing payments made us forget the checkbook. Its ease of use has made us forget about money, especially since businesses have accepted cards with no minimum cap, and more recently with the advent of contactless payment.
Today, in an age of increasing Internet purchases, the card remains preferred, but it is not always easy to choose the one that best meets our needs. Here are a few tips.
Financial criteria
The first thing you look at before ordering a bank card is the price. Indeed, banking establishments or online banks offer different ranges of cards at very different rates. To these cards are attached various benefits and services which we will discuss in the second part of the article. Some are only accessible from a certain income threshold because the limits for purchases and withdrawals are higher. Some are known to be real indicators of social position and are chosen for reasons of prestige.
But today, beyond the price, customers are looking for other financial benefits. Some banks offer to offer a sum of cash, a voucher, or a reduction for the purchase of a bank card.
This is what attracts a lot of customers to online banking. These establishments go further by offering several types of credit cards that allow you to accumulate cashback by making purchases from a website or from partner brands. Finally, the possibility of choosing between a cash payment, a deferred payment, or a payment in installments is also a very important criterion.
The services attached to the card
Today, bank cards are no longer just a simple means of withdrawal and payment. Alongside the so-called “classic” cards, there are high-end bank cards to which a certain number of services are attached. In particular, they include many insurance policies. In addition to the guarantee against the theft of the card, there is in particular insurance and assistance for trips abroad. Card insurance can cover cancellations, transport delays, lost luggage, medical costs, hospital costs, or even repatriation, death, or disability.
They can be used to quickly release money in the event of a problem abroad. This is the case in the case of lost luggage where some cards advance the cost of purchasing new clothes. Some cards also provide insurance for car rental abroad and cover the excess in the event of an accident and also the costs of breakdown assistance. The most upscale cards also include a concierge, which allows you to benefit from additional services such as flower delivery, calling a taxi, or ticketing for shows and concerts, for example.
You will understand that choosing a card is not easy and requires comparing different types of cards according to very specific criteria to find the one that best meets our needs.
