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The Major Differences Between a Credit and a Debit Card

Businesses can collect payments from their customers in a variety of ways. This makes it convenient for both customers and businesses that not all transactions involve receiving cash in paper and coin form. This can be a problematic form of payment for larger businesses when there is that constant need to have plenty of change to give to customers in return for a note and also the security risk of having something so tempting to thieves stored on the premises during certain times of the day.

So, the solution for a business is to have a system to collect the payments from card transactions. One such company offering the service is https://www.easypaydirect.com/.

Now, let us think about the major differences between credit and debit cards that help customers decide which they use.

Contracts

A credit card contract makes those transactions separate from a bank account, whereas with a debit card, the money from the transaction is taken directly from the bank account. The only credit that the spender will have with a debit card will be from an overdraft facility that may or may not be provided as part of the bank account. Some accounts have hidden overdrafts, allowing personal customers, at least, to be overdrawn to a certain limit without charges being applied. Higher overdrafts can, of course, be agreed upon. It can be useful to balance these charges with those of settling credit card statement balances later by instalments.

Building Credit History

For anyone looking to build a credit history, it is possible with a credit card but not a debit card. So, if you are looking to take out a mortgage in the future, then it is not a bad idea to start paying for things using a credit card and starting to build up a credit rating that will see you accepted for a mortgage. Many people starting businesses of their own have benefitted from having built up a good credit rating from possessing a credit card and always paying their bills on time, alongside acquiring a good standing and relationship with their bank.

Acceptance

Mostly where credit cards are accepted, debit cards are too. It is just a matter of where the money comes from in the transaction. Credit cards will come with greater protection when the money is not going straight out of bank accounts. Also, goods will be insured to an extent when paid for by credit card as opposed to a debit card.

Security

If someone should steal your debit card, it would be more difficult and it could take longer to get your money back. This is because the money is going directly from a bank account with a debit card, rather than adding to the transactions on a statement that is either settled in full at the end of the month or by instalments later.

Spending Limits

A credit card will likely have a higher spending limit than a debit card, depending on available bank balances.

The timings for repayment are greater with credit cards, allowing for more to be spent at a time. With debit cards, the money must be in place and available from the payer at the time of payment.

In conclusion, credit cards and debit cards largely differ on where the money is initially coming from and that you are not paying for something straight away with a credit card. This helps with cash flow in terms of a family budget and allows families to replace essential items when they need them. It may otherwise be the case that it takes too long to save up the money for the convenience to be met. Also, there will be certain times of the year when spending is heavy, perhaps where a lot of birthdays fall in the same few months. This can be evened out by the credit that credit cards provide when they are used as the method of payment.

So, there are many advantages to businesses in having a facility that accepts both credit and debit cards. How these systems process the payments will be down to the individual credit card processing companies. There is no doubt that the credit card is the most versatile and that Easy Pay Direct has been adopted now by thousands of businesses that consider it their preferred payment method for customers.

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