"Dave" wrote
Banks don't like to advertise the fact, but you can get an ATM card that
isn't a debit card. I recently did, just for the reasons you cite.


Depending on your relationship with your bank, you can get a lot of
services that aren't on the list.

PayPal has its good points, but has been flakey from time to time.

IMHO PayPal is not worth my time. It may be a great service for some
but I don't use it, don't miss it. Part of keeping life simple.

"Dave" wrote
The trick here is to use AMEX with Paypal. Even if Paypal says they can't
reverse a charge, AMEX will.

Several credit companies have the attitude that the cardholder is
their customer and will back you in purchase disputes. I'm not
surprised that AMEX has this attitude, they are a good company and
I've used a variety of their services for years.

The last time I had a credit card company refuse to issue me a credit
for returned merchandise was the last time I cut up a credit card and
told them "Tough luck." However, you should read the fine print on
your checking and/or savings account because many banks will honor
payment requests from credit companies without your authorization. If
you use a credit card issued by the bank holding your account(s), then
you have no option in such a dispute.

"Capt. JG" wrote:
Interesting... I'll check out both of those!


Another thing to check out is single-use credit card numbers. Utterly
scam proof, since any further charges on that "credit account" are
automatically bounced.

DSK