Will a bank block my card?

Question

Will a bank block my ability to use my debit card if it notices "too many" charges made within a relatively short period of time?

I am very frustrated because I am abroad, need to pay for my apartment today, and find that my bank won't let me withdraw anything or pay for anything and have also blocked my account. Is this usual for them to do? I am frustrated because as it is July 4th, I cannot reach them via phone... A little frustrating that they don't have a dedicated emergency line.

Answer 1

I had this happen when I was in the military. They saw charges in another country and decided it had to be fraudulent. They blocked it on me. They will block a card if something is out of the ordinary. After I called them they never did it again. It sucks you can't get in contact but yes they likely did it because you used it somewhere they don't expect you to use it.

Answer 2

Generally not a limit on the number of charges, but there is often a limit on how much you can withdrawal or purchase on a daily basis. My bank account used to have a $300/day limit on withdrawals and a $500 limit on purchases. Your bank account likely has some sort of limit like this.



If you're paying rent by check, this should not be affected.

Answer 3

The only "emergency" in a card context is the loss/theft of the card.

Most people consider it common sense to let their bank (or credit card provider) know when they are going abroad so that there will be no problems with withdrawals in unusual locations.

Answer 4

Yes, they often do.

They usually give you a phone call, but you're abroad so yeah

I'm sure they will have an emergency line, I phoned my bank up once about the same thing