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Scary!!

So what should one do when the cust care agent asks for the full card number?

Another query - it seems you can pay the card bill using Visa card to card transfer, besides NEFT. Which one would be a better option?

ICICI customer care told me it would take 3 or 4 days (forgot exact number) for Visa card to card transfer to take effect, so I should pay that many days in advance. NEFT tnx are supposed to happen on the same day if its a working day and before 2 pm, IIRC. So I guess its better to pay by NEFT?

Tell him NO. :-) Ask for another authentication method.

Whatever works for you. NEFT transactions are manually cleared, so sometimes backlogs do happen. Plus some transactions trigger alerts that cause clearance to be held up. I don't know how Visa-Visa works - if it is over the NEFT mechanism, then you can expect similar delays.

The same day SLA seldom holds up on the first working day after a series of holidays. :-)

Since I have already given the full card number twice to different Customer Service agents, maybe my card got compromised even before activation? :Frustrati What is really bad is that HDFC is allowing agents to ask for the full card number.

As for Visa card transfer over NEFT, I guess I should see the calender when paying the bill. :)


Regarding the card - HDFC has sent me a Platinum Plus card. It is a chip card. It is supposed to be Lifetime Free. I intend to confirm the lifetime free condition thru email, as its not mentioned on the covering letter. However, it does mention 3 Lifetime free ad-on cards for family members, etc.

What I'd like to know is how this card compares to other HDFC cards and also with those of other banks. I mean does it compare favourably wrt reward points? It mentions 3 reward points per Rs. 150. Isn't this quite low? No idea what the value of 1 point is though.

Also, anybody knows if this card is really Lifetime free, or does it expire if unused for any period of time, or any other catch?

One good thing is that it says zero fuel surcharge across all bunks. The catch being tnx should be between Rs. 400 - 5,000. So not useful for gassing up my bikes. :(

Raccoon
Hi
I too have received a new HDFC platinum plus card.
The covering letter is dated 17th May.
This is a chip + pin card. Wherever the POS is chip + pin enabled I have to punch the pin number myself. This makes it more secure against misuse.
There is no mention of any yearly charges. AFAIR there are no yearly charges levied.
Incidentally a couple of months back I had received platinum plus card which did not have chip + pin just the chip.
Regards

^^ Actually no!

The card has an annual fee which would be reversed if we spend a particular amount for that year.

^^^Mine is supposed to be free. I was told its being given based on my relation with the bank/customer profile.

Customer care exec confirmed it on phone. Still, can't believe oral assurances. Will ask for an email confirmation. Would this be enough, or should I insist on a hardcopy letter?

I don't intend to keep it till next year, if it has any annual charges of any kind.

Platinum Plus card as shown on the HDFC site does show an annual fee.

They haven't sent any PIN yet. I was told they send it separately though post. However, I was able to swipe it at a store. So I guess the PIN is required only if its dipped into a chip POS terminal?

Received my Citibank-Shoppers Stop cobranded credit card today.
Any one here using this card? Any fine print to read and any Do's and Don'ts with reference to this particular card?

I have it for the past umpteen years (probably ever since the card was launched). Three things:

1. Shoppers Stop used to send me some sort of email statement once a month, with - get this - the card number in full in the body of the email. I wrote a stinker to Citibank and that stopped (cause & effect?). Keep an eye out for this.

2. Reward points on swipes elsewhere never reaches SS on their own. SS's support is useless ("what can we do when Citi doesn't send us points?"). You need to keep pestering Citi support for this. Even if they tell you they have done it, rest assured it wouldn't have reached SS. So, plan your redemption accordingly.

3. The credit limit is so low that I suspect an artificial attempt to keep people from accumulating points. :-)

But I think the usual Citi deal of no-fuel-surcharge-at-IOCL applies to this card too.

Hi
The PIN is sent separately by post for security reasons.
You need a PIN when it is swiped at POS which is chip and PIN enabled. Slowly and surely all POS will have it. May take time.
Regards

Interesting. Seems ICICI cards give Payback (www.payback.in) points. Any idea how good this association works, and how good Payback is, esp. wrt. crediting points honestly on their own? One good thing about Payback is that their redemption options seem way better than HDFC at least. Payback has options redeeming points for HPCL (petrol), Bigbazaar, Central, etc. Wheres, quickly scanning thru HDFC's rewards catalogue I could only find stff like Wrangler, etc, vouchers. I don't like being stuck with such vouchers. If you don't like the stuff or the price, you might still end up buying. And possibly, you cannot claim any other discounts that are running. Getting a Petrol or a Big Bazaar voucher is a way better option.

I plan to get an ICICI card because of this. Though I'v never associated with them till recently because of the huge -ve reports about them.

1 Payback point seems to be = Rs. 0.25. Still not too sure about an HDFC point's Rupee value.

Yes, I know they would send it separately due to security reasons. But dunno why they have to use Indian Posts. Maybe because it cannot he tracked and hence more difficult to intercept? Its been over a week, and still no sign of the postman. So can't even check the card a/c online. :Frustrati


There is something that is bugging me about my new ICICI's B2 account - the account is a purely online account, and you get absolutely nothing in hard copy form. No statements, no passbook, no ATM access, nothing! One fine day, what happens if ICICI decides to show something much less than what is there in your account? Or even a zero balance? :Shockked:

What kind of assurance/options/evidence/redressal/etc would the customer have in such cases?

Heh. I spent about a year terminating every relationship I had with ICICI. Bank accounts, credit cards, car insurance, life insurance, ICICI Direct account, mutual funds... today I live in that much peace, assured that I don't have to deal with the almost unending stream of snafus and their uncaring customer care.

(all personal experience, YMMV).

That's easy to answer. It costs Rs. 4 to send an item via India Post to anywhere in India. It costs a lot more than that to use a private sector courier company (even Vichare's cheapest rate is higher than that). India Post reaches every corner of the country too.

They do not send using India posts usually I get ICICI cards and PINs ( yes they do send too many of them) using bluedart or some other courier.

Experience at ICICI bank branch is worst these days but the mobile application, Net banking and phone banking is quite decent and netbanking is much better then HDFC.
HDFC bank branches are less crowded but their representatives dont known anything about their products and missell.

Do not worry too much after all printouts are also generated from same view which you get on web , In fact even in case of PSU banks whatever is written in your passbook does not carry any weight in case of any discripency bank considers only their computerized records. Passbook is just good for your personal satisfaction if you are on other side of digitial divide and useful as an additional address proof in certain cases.

In case you have any problems you should approach branch and in case of any disputes banking ombudsman is there.

I had a Citibank ERA account which was with out any associated paperwork but there were no hassels.

Ditto with me. Received the card (Visa Signature with Chip) but not the PIN. I called the Cust Care and they informed me that PIN has been sent by normal post and hence will take more time. Hoping to receive it this week.

I have been assured by the Customer Care that it's a lifetime free card with no joining fees / annual charges. They are offering it free to employees of select corporate .

I have been accumulating the Payback (erstwhile imint ) points over the years. Their redemption catalog is pretty decent and process of ordering is smooth. I have redeemed my points for some Tupperware products and the delivery was quick (3 days flat). And the option of redeeming it against Gift vouchers of Central / Big Bazaar / BookmyShow / PizzaHut / etc. is very useful.

Errr... now you got me scared a bit more. :p I opted for their products - the B2 a/c and CC on merit. No other bank seems to have something similar to a b2 a/c. And the rewards and other terms regarding CC are also something I could not easily find elsewhere. Else, ICICI is like a last option for me. Their Insurance division is supposed to be the least ethical.

As for the Indian Posts thingy - they do use couriers for everything else. So why only the PIN thru ordinary post?

Branch and Ombudsman and all is fine, but as a customer you have ZERO evidence regarding your holdings in the account. So if one fine day the bank makes your savings vanish, the customer himself has absolutely no proof. In that case if I go to the Ombudsman or whatever saying had several million in my bank a/c, which have just vanished, who would he believe and how? stupid: With a passbook or statements at least you have something to show up till a recent date.

Good to know that. The offers in their catalogue are varied and useful. But HDFC is totally uninteresting.

Were you able to figure out the Rupee equivalent of HDFC's points?

Value of points varies with the type of card.

for platinum card it ia approximately 25-30 piase

For Infinite card it is almost One rupee.

For Titanium cards it is around 15 paise.

Further value varies with type of reward( gift vouchers from different companies). It is more with some and less with others