My recently issued charge/debit card with a chip (Maestro) has no
issue number. I is issued by Bank of Ireland (Northern Ireland),
hence sterling and, AFAIK, normal UK rules apply.

So, it cannot be used for online purchases.

I rang the bank to complain. They agreed that it had no issue number;
they suggested that some online retailers would accept an order with
issue number unspecified; others would accept '1'.

The bank person then went on to gibe me a short lecture on the folly
of using a charge card online or for telephone order ... others could
get access to your bank account, etc. ... Always use a credit card ...

On reflection, though I was initially unimpressed with the cautionary
lecture, maybe they are correct; I am aware of the protections one has
when using credit card.

The specific case that prompted the complaint was we making a small
purchase, over the phone, from a small local retailer; I figured that
they could benefit from the x% that a credit card would charge them.
Sillyness on my part? Probably.

Are other UK bank charge cards like this?

Best regards,

Jon C.

wrote:
My recently issued charge/debit card with a chip (Maestro) has no
issue number. I is issued by Bank of Ireland (Northern Ireland),
hence sterling and, AFAIK, normal UK rules apply.

So, it cannot be used for online purchases.

I rang the bank to complain. They agreed that it had no issue number;
they suggested that some online retailers would accept an order with
issue number unspecified; others would accept '1'.

The bank person then went on to gibe me a short lecture on the folly
of using a charge card online or for telephone order ... others could
get access to your bank account, etc. ... Always use a credit card ...

On reflection, though I was initially unimpressed with the cautionary
lecture, maybe they are correct; I am aware of the protections one has
when using credit card.

The specific case that prompted the complaint was we making a small
purchase, over the phone, from a small local retailer; I figured that
they could benefit from the x% that a credit card would charge them.
Sillyness on my part? Probably.

Are other UK bank charge cards like this?

Best regards,

Jon C.

Did you mean to post this to a consumer newsgroup?

yped

Are other UK bank charge cards like this?


My RBS Maestro does not have an issue number either, but does have a
'valid from' date.

I have used it for many successful online purchases.

--
Helen D. Vecht:
Edgware.

On Sat, 24 Feb 2007, wrote:

My recently issued charge/debit card with a chip (Maestro) has no
issue number. I is issued by Bank of Ireland (Northern Ireland),
hence sterling and, AFAIK, normal UK rules apply.

So, it cannot be used for online purchases.

I rang the bank to complain. They agreed that it had no issue number;
they suggested that some online retailers would accept an order with
issue number unspecified; others would accept '1'.

The bank person then went on to gibe me a short lecture on the folly
of using a charge card online or for telephone order ... others could
get access to your bank account, etc. ... Always use a credit card ...

On reflection, though I was initially unimpressed with the cautionary
lecture, maybe they are correct; I am aware of the protections one has
when using credit card.

The specific case that prompted the complaint was we making a small
purchase, over the phone, from a small local retailer; I figured that
they could benefit from the x% that a credit card would charge them.
Sillyness on my part? Probably.

Are other UK bank charge cards like this?

Royal Bank of Scotland Maestro cards do not bear an issue number either.
Online retailers should accept all domestic Maestro cards whether they
bear an issue number or not - when an issue number is not present then the
start date on the card is normally required instead.

HTH

--
Alistair Riddell - BOFH
Microsoft - because god hates us

On Feb 24, 12:56 pm, Alistair Riddell wrote:
On Sat, 24 Feb 2007, wrote:
My recently issued charge/debit card with a chip (Maestro) has no
issue number. I is issued by Bank of Ireland (Northern Ireland),
hence sterling and, AFAIK, normal UK rules apply.

So, it cannot be used for online purchases.

I rang the bank to complain. They agreed that it had no issue number;
they suggested that some online retailers would accept an order with
issue number unspecified; others would accept '1'.

The bank person then went on to gibe me a short lecture on the folly
of using a charge card online or for telephone order ... others could
get access to your bank account, etc. ... Always use a credit card ...

On reflection, though I was initially unimpressed with the cautionary
lecture, maybe they are correct; I am aware of the protections one has
when using credit card.

The specific case that prompted the complaint was we making a small
purchase, over the phone, from a small local retailer; I figured that
they could benefit from the x% that a credit card would charge them.
Sillyness on my part? Probably.

Are other UK bank charge cards like this?

Royal Bank of Scotland Maestro cards do not bear an issue number either.
Online retailers should accept all domestic Maestro cards whether they
bear an issue number or not - when an issue number is not present then the
start date on the card is normally required instead.


Ah, okay, that clarifies.

Probably a non-problem, for retailers will soon catch on; and , there
a plenty of reasons to prefer a credit-card.

Many thanks everyone,

Jon C.

wrote:

The bank person then went on to gibe me a short lecture on the folly
of using a charge card online or for telephone order ... others could
get access to your bank account, etc. ... Always use a credit card ...

Yup, good advice.

Not only that, if it is used fraudulently, the money is gone from your
account before you notice, at least with a CC you have the chance to
dispute it before you pay it.

The specific case that prompted the complaint was we making a small
purchase, over the phone, from a small local retailer; I figured that
they could benefit from the x% that a credit card would charge them.
Sillyness on my part? Probably.

For small purchases you may have actually cost them more. CC
transactions normally cost the retailer a percentage cost of the price.
Many debit cards cost a fixed fee per transaction - so a proportionately
more expensive on smaller transactions.

Are other UK bank charge cards like this?

What without issue numbers, or less desirable for use online? (no, and yes)


--
Cheers,

John.

/================================================== ===============\
| Internode Ltd - http://www.internode.co.uk |
|-----------------------------------------------------------------|
| John Rumm - john(at)internode(dot)co(dot)uk |
\================================================= ================/

Alistair Riddell wrote:
On Sat, 24 Feb 2007, wrote:

My recently issued charge/debit card with a chip (Maestro) has no
issue number. I is issued by Bank of Ireland (Northern Ireland),
hence sterling and, AFAIK, normal UK rules apply.

So, it cannot be used for online purchases.

I rang the bank to complain. They agreed that it had no issue number;
they suggested that some online retailers would accept an order with
issue number unspecified; others would accept '1'.

The bank person then went on to gibe me a short lecture on the folly
of using a charge card online or for telephone order ... others could
get access to your bank account, etc. ... Always use a credit card ...

On reflection, though I was initially unimpressed with the cautionary
lecture, maybe they are correct; I am aware of the protections one has
when using credit card.

The specific case that prompted the complaint was we making a small
purchase, over the phone, from a small local retailer; I figured that
they could benefit from the x% that a credit card would charge them.
Sillyness on my part? Probably.

Are other UK bank charge cards like this?

Royal Bank of Scotland Maestro cards do not bear an issue number either.
Online retailers should accept all domestic Maestro cards whether they
bear an issue number or not - when an issue number is not present then
the start date on the card is normally required instead.

HTH

As far as I know none of the credit/debit cards issued by banks and
building societies have issue numbers. In fact if you look at the form
to purchase on line they always point out that issue numbers are for
switch cards only.

Broadback wrote:
As far as I know none of the credit/debit cards issued by banks and
building societies have issue numbers. In fact if you look at the form
to purchase on line they always point out that issue numbers are for
switch cards only.

Erm,Switch (well, Maestro) cards *are* debit cards issued by banks, and
most of them do have issue numbers. Mine certainly does anyway.

Alex

My recently issued charge/debit card with a chip (Maestro) has no
issue number. I is issued by Bank of Ireland (Northern Ireland),
hence sterling and, AFAIK, normal UK rules apply.

So, it cannot be used for online purchases.

I rang the bank to complain. They agreed that it had no issue
number; they suggested that some online retailers would accept an
order with issue number unspecified; others would accept '1'.

The bank person then went on to gibe me a short lecture on the folly
of using a charge card online or for telephone order ... others
could get access to your bank account, etc. ... Always use a credit
card ... On reflection, though I was initially unimpressed with the
cautionary lecture, maybe they are correct; I am aware of the
protections one has when using credit card.

The specific case that prompted the complaint was we making a small
purchase, over the phone, from a small local retailer; I figured
that they could benefit from the x% that a credit card would charge
them. Sillyness on my part? Probably.

Are other UK bank charge cards like this?

Royal Bank of Scotland Maestro cards do not bear an issue number
either. Online retailers should accept all domestic Maestro cards
whether they bear an issue number or not - when an issue number is
not present then the start date on the card is normally required
instead. HTH

As far as I know none of the credit/debit cards issued by banks and
building societies have issue numbers. In fact if you look at the form
to purchase on line they always point out that issue numbers are for
switch cards only.

I have to disagree. My HSBC debit card that bears the Maestro and Cirrus
logos has an issue number and expiry date but no start date. My Nationwide
debit card with Link and VISA symbols has an expiry date but no issue
number. I wonder where your information came from?


Peter Crosland

wrote in message
oups.com...
My recently issued charge/debit card with a chip (Maestro) has no
issue number. I is issued by Bank of Ireland (Northern Ireland),
hence sterling and, AFAIK, normal UK rules apply.

So, it cannot be used for online purchases.

Older Switch / Maestro cards which had 18 or 19 digit numbers need an issue
number. They are being replaced with cards that have 16 digit numbers, which
do not have or need an issue number.

I rang the bank to complain. They agreed that it had no issue number;
they suggested that some online retailers would accept an order with
issue number unspecified; others would accept '1'.

Using an issue number with a 16 digit number card will result in the
transaction being rejected.

The bank person then went on to gibe me a short lecture on the folly
of using a charge card online or for telephone order ... others could
get access to your bank account, etc. ... Always use a credit card ...

Better advice would be to only use online retailers who work through a
secure third party card processor, such as Protx. The retailer never gets to
see your card details that way. From the middle of this year, there will be
additional protection, when Maestro insists upon 3D protection, which
requires you to give a password to validate your card use, similar to the
'Verified by VISA' system, which is currently optional.

The specific case that prompted the complaint was we making a small
purchase, over the phone, from a small local retailer; I figured that
they could benefit from the x% that a credit card would charge them.
Sillyness on my part? Probably.

Telephone orders have quite different rules from online sales. The retailer
should be able to process the card with the number, the start date, the
expiry date, the security code on the signature strip, your post code and
house number.

Colin Bignell

Maestro virtually useless in Eire surprisingly though works in ATM's.

I thought idea of dumping "Switch" branding was to make it
International.

On Feb 24, 4:48 pm, "nightjar" nightjar@insert my surname
here.uk.com wrote:
wrote in message

oups.com...

My recently issued charge/debit card with a chip (Maestro) has no
issue number. I is issued by Bank of Ireland (Northern Ireland),
hence sterling and, AFAIK, normal UK rules apply.

So, it cannot be used for online purchases.

Older Switch / Maestro cards which had 18 or 19 digit numbers need an issue
number. They are being replaced with cards that have 16 digit numbers, which
do not have or need an issue number.

I rang the bank to complain. They agreed that it had no issue number;
they suggested that some online retailers would accept an order with
issue number unspecified; others would accept '1'.

Using an issue number with a 16 digit number card will result in the
transaction being rejected.

The bank person then went on to gibe me a short lecture on the folly
of using a charge card online or for telephone order ... others could
get access to your bank account, etc. ... Always use a credit card ...

Better advice would be to only use online retailers who work through a
secure third party card processor, such as Protx. The retailer never gets to
see your card details that way. From the middle of this year, there will be
additional protection, when Maestro insists upon 3D protection, which
requires you to give a password to validate your card use, similar to the
'Verified by VISA' system, which is currently optional.

The specific case that prompted the complaint was we making a small
purchase, over the phone, from a small local retailer; I figured that
they could benefit from the x% that a credit card would charge them.
Sillyness on my part? Probably.

Telephone orders have quite different rules from online sales. The retailer
should be able to process the card with the number, the start date, the
expiry date, the security code on the signature strip, your post code and
house number.

Colin Bignell

In article . com,
"Gel" writes:
Maestro virtually useless in Eire surprisingly though works in ATM's.

Is that just Maestro, or all Mastercard products?

--
Andrew Gabriel
[email address is not usable -- followup in the newsgroup]

On Feb 24, 4:48 pm, "nightjar" nightjar@insert my surname
here.uk.com wrote:
wrote in message

oups.com...

My recently issued charge/debit card with a chip (Maestro) has no
issue number. I is issued by Bank of Ireland (Northern Ireland),
hence sterling and, AFAIK, normal UK rules apply.

So, it cannot be used for online purchases.

Older Switch / Maestro cards which had 18 or 19 digit numbers need an issue
number. They are being replaced with cards that have 16 digit numbers, which
do not have or need an issue number.

I rang the bank to complain. They agreed that it had no issue number;
they suggested that some online retailers would accept an order with
issue number unspecified; others would accept '1'.

Using an issue number with a 16 digit number card will result in the
transaction being rejected.

The bank person then went on to gibe me a short lecture on the folly
of using a charge card online or for telephone order ... others could
get access to your bank account, etc. ... Always use a credit card ...

Better advice would be to only use online retailers who work through a
secure third party card processor, such as Protx. The retailer never gets to
see your card details that way. From the middle of this year, there will be
additional protection, when Maestro insists upon 3D protection, which
requires you to give a password to validate your card use, similar to the
'Verified by VISA' system, which is currently optional.

The specific case that prompted the complaint was we making a small
purchase, over the phone, from a small local retailer; I figured that
they could benefit from the x% that a credit card would charge them.
Sillyness on my part? Probably.

Telephone orders have quite different rules from online sales. The retailer
should be able to process the card with the number, the start date, the
expiry date, the security code on the signature strip, your post code and
house number.

Okay, I see that my card does have a security code. My retailer
confirmed my house number and post code, but whatever 'system' he was
using still demanded an issue number -- just like in an attempted
online purchase. But I accept that systems will be updated and that I
should use a credit card.

Many thanks,

Jon C.

On Feb 25, 8:31 am, (Andrew Gabriel)
wrote:
In article . com,
"Gel" writes:

Maestro virtually useless in Eire surprisingly though works in ATM's.

Is that just Maestro, or all Mastercard products?

I'm pretty certain that Irish retailers accept only 'Laser' branded
charge cards. I never thought deeply about it -- assuming it was yet
another currency incompatibility issue.

To be honest, my use of charge card has recently increased only
because my credit card PIN doesn't easily spring to mind. I use the
charge cards as ATM cards all the time and so know their PINs well.

I live in N. Ireland (U.K.) but, for the past few years, earn my
living in southern Ireland. For bank related matters we need two of
everything (*), including bank accounts. And when I exchange Euro for
£, the bank takes at least 2% ... grrr... (*) Except for rugby teams,
gladly

I would very much like Mr. Blair to join the Euro, but I doubt that
this suggestion would find much favour in this n.g.

Best regards,

Jon C.

On Sat, 24 Feb 2007, Broadback wrote:

As far as I know none of the credit/debit cards issued by banks and building
societies have issue numbers. In fact if you look at the form to purchase on
line they always point out that issue numbers are for switch cards only.

au contraire...

There is no such thing as Switch any more. The Switch brand was dropped in
favour of Maestro a few years ago. I don't think there are any cards
bearing the Switch logo which are still valid; online merchants are
supposed to remove the Switch logo by June of this year at the latest.

At least HSBC are currently using Maestro debit cards bearing issue
numbers. Online transactions will not be authorised without this number.

--
Alistair Riddell - BOFH
Microsoft - because god hates us

On 2007-02-25 10:14:36 +0000, said:

On Feb 25, 8:31 am, (Andrew Gabriel)
wrote:
In article . com,
"Gel" writes:

Maestro virtually useless in Eire surprisingly though works in ATM's.

Is that just Maestro, or all Mastercard products?

I'm pretty certain that Irish retailers accept only 'Laser' branded
charge cards. I never thought deeply about it -- assuming it was yet
another currency incompatibility issue.

To be honest, my use of charge card has recently increased only
because my credit card PIN doesn't easily spring to mind. I use the
charge cards as ATM cards all the time and so know their PINs well.

It wouldn't make sense to use credit cards as ATM card anyway because
of being hit with a cash advance fee.

If you are obtaining sterling in the north, have you thought about
having that account on
a different bank, not connected to the south one?

I've found that for the opposite way around (i.e. obtaining Euros from
an ATM in the Euro zone) depending on
the bank used, the charges can be different, as can the time between
when the ATM transaction is made and it
hitting the account. This seems to be more effective if said bank is
in a third country. If said account is interest bearing or topped up
from an interest bearing account, this does
at least offset some of the cost.


I live in N. Ireland (U.K.) but, for the past few years, earn my
living in southern Ireland. For bank related matters we need two of
everything (*), including bank accounts. And when I exchange Euro for
£, the bank takes at least 2% ... grrr... (*) Except for rugby teams,
gladly

Had you looked at putting major monthly expenditures in Euros?



I would very much like Mr. Blair to join the Euro, but I doubt that
this suggestion would find much favour in this n.g.

I'd very much like Mr. Blair to join the dole queue along with his finance
minister, although that doesn't seem imminently likely either.

I do a lot of traveling, and prior to the Euro, my record in a month
was transactions
in 11 different currencies. Nowadays it's typically 3 and I never
bother to change
Euros into sterling. As you say, though, there is a 2-3% hit for
the transactions.
It would be more convenient as well for business if the UK were in the
Euro zone -
however, each time I visit Brussels I am reminded as to why this would
be a bad idea.

In other countries that are outside the Euro zone but which have
borders close to it
and a migrant work population (e.g. Switzerland), businesses and stores
close to the
border tend to accept Euros, while those in France and Germany close to
the Swiss border will
accept Swiss francs. This is at slightly worse than the prevailing
rate, but normally
only about 1% from what I've seen.

I haven't visited Northern Ireland for a few years now, but is there
not something similar, or are
you too far from the border to make that intersting?





Best regards,

Jon C.

wrote in message
oups.com...
On Feb 24, 4:48 pm, "nightjar" nightjar@insert my surname
here.uk.com wrote:
.....
Telephone orders have quite different rules from online sales. The
retailer
should be able to process the card with the number, the start date, the
expiry date, the security code on the signature strip, your post code and
house number.

Okay, I see that my card does have a security code. My retailer
confirmed my house number and post code, but whatever 'system' he was
using still demanded an issue number -- just like in an attempted
online purchase. But I accept that systems will be updated and that I
should use a credit card.

As I said, if your card has a 16 digit number, it does not need an issue
number to work online. Neither should a telephoned order, although that may
be a software issue. HSBC machines automatically check for updates every
night, but the machine I had before that only updated card details
automatically and needed to be logged on specifically to update its
software. Having said that, there are cards that cannot be used for any
customer not present transactions because of restrictions imposed by the
issuing bank.

Colin Bignell

"Broadback" wrote in message
...
....
As far as I know none of the credit/debit cards issued by banks and
building societies have issue numbers. In fact if you look at the form to
purchase on line they always point out that issue numbers are for switch
cards only.

Cards with 16 digit numbers do not have issue numbers. Cards with 18 or 19
digit numbers - Solo or some Switch/Maestro - do have an issue number.

Colin Bignell

In article , Helen Deborah
Vecht writes


Are other UK bank charge cards like this?

My RBS Maestro does not have an issue number either, but does have a
'valid from' date.

My Gnat Wurst Maestro card has a security number and there is normally a
box for this to be entered.
I have used it for many successful online purchases.

What's it like for transferring money to other accounts. Do you want to
try it out?
--
Roger Hunt

On Feb 25, 11:38 am, Andy Hall wrote:
On 2007-02-25 10:14:36 +0000, said:


If you are obtaining sterling in the north, have you thought about
having that account on
a different bank, not connected to the south one?

They are different.


I've found that for the opposite way around (i.e. obtaining Euros from
an ATM in the Euro zone) depending on
the bank used, the charges can be different, as can the time between
when the ATM transaction is made and it
hitting the account. This seems to be more effective if said bank is
in a third country. If said account is interest bearing or topped up
from an interest bearing account, this does
at least offset some of the cost.



I live in N. Ireland (U.K.) but, for the past few years, earn my
living in southern Ireland. For bank related matters we need two of
everything (*), including bank accounts. And when I exchange Euro for
£, the bank takes at least 2% ... grrr... (*) Except for rugby teams,
gladly

Had you looked at putting major monthly expenditures in Euros?


Yes. Mostly is except for rates, electricity, telecom related. For
those, I typically lob a 1-2K Euro checque into my sterling account
every few months; that costs me 2%.

Some local retailers give a decent exchange rate; e.g. Sainsbury ---
approx. current interbank rate, e.g. currently 65.9p per Euro, where
a bank would give 65p. B&Q, presumably because they are suffering, and
others, give 70p. Petrol is much cheaper in the south. On reflection,
I may not have too much reason to grumble.


I would very much like Mr. Blair to join the Euro, but I doubt that
this suggestion would find much favour in this n.g.

I'd very much like Mr. Blair to join the dole queue along with his finance
minister, although that doesn't seem imminently likely either.


I do a lot of traveling, and prior to the Euro, my record in a month
was transactions
in 11 different currencies. Nowadays it's typically 3 and I never
bother to change
Euros into sterling. As you say, though, there is a 2-3% hit for
the transactions.
It would be more convenient as well for business if the UK were in the
Euro zone -
however, each time I visit Brussels I am reminded as to why this would
be a bad idea.

In other countries that are outside the Euro zone but which have
borders close to it
and a migrant work population (e.g. Switzerland), businesses and stores
close to the
border tend to accept Euros, while those in France and Germany close to
the Swiss border will
accept Swiss francs. This is at slightly worse than the prevailing
rate, but normally
only about 1% from what I've seen.


Yes, see above.

I haven't visited Northern Ireland for a few years now, but is there
not something similar, or are
you too far from the border to make that intersting?



Four miles from the border.

Best regards,

Jon C.

Roger Hunt typed


In article , Helen Deborah
Vecht writes


Are other UK bank charge cards like this?

My RBS Maestro does not have an issue number either, but does have a
'valid from' date.

My Gnat Wurst Maestro card has a security number and there is normally a
box for this to be entered.
I have used it for many successful online purchases.

What's it like for transferring money to other accounts. Do you want to
try it out?

No. I do not do any internet banking and use credit and debit cards for
(mainly trivial) online purchases.

--
Helen D. Vecht:
Edgware.

In article , Helen Deborah
Vecht writes

No. I do not do any internet banking and use credit and debit cards for
(mainly trivial) online purchases.

Being able to buy little things from the other side of the Wurld, so
easily, is a treat. The last thing here was Gold leaf from Thailand,
which I could not resist.
--
Roger Hunt

Roger Hunt typed


In article , Helen Deborah
Vecht writes

No. I do not do any internet banking and use credit and debit cards for
(mainly trivial) online purchases.

Being able to buy little things from the other side of the Wurld, so
easily, is a treat. The last thing here was Gold leaf from Thailand,
which I could not resist.

Buying just the right 'coin' type battery (of which the chap at Maplin
had never heard) and getting it in the post 36 hours later was
wonderful...

--
Helen D. Vecht:
Edgware.

In article , Helen Deborah
Vecht writes
Roger Hunt typed


In article , Helen Deborah
Vecht writes

No. I do not do any internet banking and use credit and debit cards for
(mainly trivial) online purchases.

Being able to buy little things from the other side of the Wurld, so
easily, is a treat. The last thing here was Gold leaf from Thailand,
which I could not resist.

Buying just the right 'coin' type battery (of which the chap at Maplin
had never heard) and getting it in the post 36 hours later was
wonderful...

It is. And it is even better when the local post-droid is brilliant and
I can warn him when something's due and I won't be in etc, so don't
bother bringing the parcel out, I'll collect it, and so on.
(I couldn't remember why I was subscribed here until I remembered that
I'd already done the fix some time ago, with a bit of coat-hanger wire.)
--
Roger Hunt

On 2007-02-25 20:32:46 +0000, Owain said:

Helen Deborah Vecht wrote:
Roger Hunt typed
Being able to buy little things from the other side of the Wurld, so
easily, is a treat.

It's difficult to remember what life was like Before Internet

Buying just the right 'coin' type battery (of which the chap at Maplin
had never heard) and getting it in the post 36 hours later was
wonderful...

I used to think posting an order to Maplin on Monday and getting the
goods on Friday or Saturday was wonderful...


It has certainly had the effect in many cases of improving customers'
expectations of service and suppliers having to do something in order
to compete.

Considering the traditional UK apathy to good service, this is long
overdue. The bricks and mortare retailers are really trading on the
borrowed time of people coming up to speed with using computers and the
internet and their expectations taking time to change. Give it
another 10 years, and I expect that we will have seen a huge shake up
in the retail and service industries.

Owain typed


Helen Deborah Vecht wrote:
Roger Hunt typed
Being able to buy little things from the other side of the Wurld, so
easily, is a treat.

It's difficult to remember what life was like Before Internet

Buying just the right 'coin' type battery (of which the chap at Maplin
had never heard) and getting it in the post 36 hours later was
wonderful...

I used to think posting an order to Maplin on Monday and getting the
goods on Friday or Saturday was wonderful...

Owain


I remember that. Maplin has a shop which I can reach in less than 10
minutes on my cripmobile (which has a maximum speed of 4mph). Their
website is good for checking if the item I want is in stock before I
venture out though.

--
Helen D. Vecht:
Edgware.

On 2007-02-25 22:09:36 +0000, Helen Deborah Vecht
said:


I remember that. Maplin has a shop which I can reach in less than 10
minutes on my cripmobile (which has a maximum speed of 4mph). Their
website is good for checking if the item I want is in stock before I
venture out though.

You could always get one of their orange flashing lights and pretend
it's one of
the 8mph ones..... :-)

On Feb 25, 10:24 am, Alistair Riddell wrote:
On Sat, 24 Feb 2007, Broadback wrote:
As far as I know none of the credit/debit cards issued by banks and building
societies have issue numbers. In fact if you look at the form to purchase on
line they always point out that issue numbers are for switch cards only.

au contraire...

There is no such thing as Switch any more. The Switch brand was dropped in
favour of Maestro a few years ago. I don't think there are any cards
bearing the Switch logo which are still valid; online merchants are
supposed to remove the Switch logo by June of this year at the latest.

At least HSBC are currently using Maestro debit cards bearing issue
numbers. Online transactions will not be authorised without this number.

Rubbish!

I used my virgin One Maestro card only yesterday and there was no
issue (number or problem). I have *never* had a card with an issue
number and it has *never* caused a problem.

MBQ