Cashplus Gold Prepaid MasterCard Review

Product Snapshot
The multiple award winning Cashplus Gold prepaid MasterCard is one of the oldest prepaid cards available in the UK Market and that experience certainly tells and how!

A Chip and PIN Gold prepaid MasterCard, the Cashplus card is still the only GOLD prepaid card available in the market and can be used to over 29 million retailers online, instore and over the phone that accept MasterCard in addition to making withdrawals at over 1.5 million ATM's worldwide.

The Cashplus prepaid Gold MasterCard is available with a number of pricing tariffs to suit your needs and continues to be one of the most reliable prepaid cards available with over a 400,000 cards issued since its launch in 2005 and over £450 million loaded on to the cards.

As a general spend prepaid card, you really cannot go wrong with the Cashplus Prepaid MasterCard card.

The Good
Excellent award winning customer service is backed up with a number of valuable consumer focussed benefits such as Creditbuilder® and Purchase Protection making the Cashplus Prepaid Card the best general spend prepaid card in the UK Market. .

The Not so Good
Only a GBP card is available which makes the Cashplus prepaid card a poor traveller and it is not recommended for usage abroad. Withdrawal fees on the Cashplus prepaid card can be tad bit higher than a number of other cards in the market so if you aim to use your card primarily for ATM withdrawals, be sure to choose the Cashplus Deluxe account, which features free cash machine withdrawals in the UK but has a higher monthly fee too. So choose your pricing plan wisely.

Application Process

• Apply online - Order online in minutes – it’s easy and as long as you live in the UK and you’re 18 or over, you’re guaranteed to get one.
  
  
• Apply at a Retail Outlet - Simply visit one of the Cashplus retail partner outlets and apply for your Cashplus prepaid card at your nearest cashplus retail outlet. You will need at least two types of identification (one that includes your photograph and one that proves your UK home address) and funds to cover your card issue fee and first monthly subscription fee, if applicable and the amount you want to load on to the card.

That's it and your Cashplus Prepaid Card should be with you in the next 3-5 days.

Card Features

• 5 different price plans to choose from to suit your needs.
• FREE purchase protection.
• Helps you to build your credit history using the Creditbuilder feature.
  

Fees
There are five pricing plans to choose from – a Pay As You Go Cashplus Flexiplus product, two Pay Monthly Cashplus products, Activeplus (£4.95) and Deluxe (£9.95), with different fee structures to suit different usage patterns, Cashplus Premier that has a one off yearly fee and no monthly fees and a fifth Cashplus product which is better suited for payroll needs.

Cashplus Flexiplus (Pay As You Go):

• Card Issue Fee - £9.95.
• Monthly Fee - Free.
• Transaction Fee UK - £0.99.
• ATM Withdrawal Fee UK - Up to £2.00.
• Reload Fee - Free at Post Office or via bank transfer or wage transfer.

Cashplus Activeplus (Pay Monthly):

• Card Issue Fee - £9.95. £4.95
• Monthly Fee - £4.95.
• Transaction Fee UK - Free.
• ATM Withdrawal Fee UK - Up to £2.00.
• Reload Fee - Free at Post Office or via bank transfer or wage transfer.

Cashplus Deluxe (Pay Monthly):

• Card Issue Fee - £9.95.
• Monthly Fee - £9.95.
• Transaction Fee UK - Free.
• ATM Withdrawal Fee UK - Free.
• Reload Fee - Free at Post Office or via bank transfer or wage transfer.

Cashplus Premier (Pay Annually):

• Card Issue Fee - £29.99.
• Monthly Fee - Free.
• Transaction Fee UK - Free.
• ATM Withdrawal Fee UK - £0.99.
• Reload Fee - Free at Post Office or via bank transfer or wage transfer.

Cashplus Freedom:

• Card Issue Fee - £9.95.
• Monthly Fee - Free if you load £1000 per month or £4.95 per month.
• Transaction Fee UK - Free.
• ATM Withdrawal Fee UK - £0.99.
• Reload Fee - Free at Post Office or via bank transfer or wage transfer.

Choose the price plan that is right for you. For a complete fee structure listing, review the terms and conditions on the cashplus website before you make a final decision.

Online Account Management and Self Servicing
You can manage your account online with the Cashplus Prepaid Card. When you become a Cashplus customer, you get access to the Members Area on the Cashplus website. You can register and activate your card and once registered, you can use the online account management functionality to

• activate your card
• check your balance
• review and print your statements
• and transactions at any time.

Using Abroad
The Cashplus prepaid card is MasterCard branded which means that you can use it at over 29 million merchants worldwide as well as to withdraw cash at over 1.5 million ATM's worldwide.

However, the card is only available as a GBP card and hence, will incur an FX fee when used for making transactions and withdrawals abroad in non GBP regions. The FX fee charged on the Cashplus account is 2.99% of the transaction amount. ATM withdrawals abroad incur a £3.00 fee in addition to this FX fee making usage abroad an expensive option.

Hence, whilst you can use your card abroad, the Cashplus prepaid card is not recommended as a travel card for usage abroad.

Reload Options
Funds can be loaded on to your Cashplus Gold Prepaid MasterCard in a number of ways:

• Post Office Outlets - Free.
• Cashplus Retail Outlets - Free.
• e-PAY Outlets - £2.00 per load.
• Bank account transfer - Free.
• Wage Transfer - Free.

Simply find the reload option that works best for you.

Customer Service
If you need assistance, you can contact the Cashplus prepaid MasterCard Customer Services team by Customer Services on 0871 277 5599 Mon to Fri 8am to 6pm, Sat 10am to 4pm. Calls will be charged at 10p per minute from BT landlines or by writing to Cashplus Customer Services at PO Box 466, Salford, M50 2XU.

• By Telephone : 0871 277 5599 - £0.10 per minute from BT landlines.
• By SMS: Send SMS to 07797 800 601 - 25p per message plus network rates.
• IVR: +44 (0)845 520 0025 - FREE local rate.
• Lost and Stolen: 0871 277 5599 - £0.10 per minute from BT landlines.

Complaints Procedure
If you have a complaint or are unhappy with any aspect of the way your account is being run, you should contact Customer Services so that your concerns can be investigated. A copy of the complaints procedure is available on request. Alternatively you can contact the Cashplus team in writing by sending your letter to: Complaints Department, PO Box 466 Salford M50 2XU

You may be able to take unresolved complaints to the Financial Ombudsman Service at South Quay Plaza, 183 Marsh Wall, London E14 9SR. Telephone: 0845 080 1800 or +44 (0)20 7964 1000 (for calls from outside the UK) and e-mail: enquiries@financial-ombudsman.org.uk

Awards
Winner of the following awards

• Best General Purpose Prepaid Card - Prepaid365 Prepaid Card Awards 2010
• Best Internet Shopping Prepaid Card - Prepaid365 Prepaid Card Awards 2010
• Best General Purpose Prepaid Card - Prepaid365 Prepaid Card Awards 2009
• Best Unbanked Prepaid Card - Prepaid365 Prepaid Card Awards 2009
• Best New Prepaid Card - Cards International Global Awards 2007
• Best Cardholder Service Award - MasterCard Prepaid Awards 2007
• Hallmark of Innovation Award - ifs/Capgemini 2006

The Cashplus prepaid Gold MasterCard is easily the most awarded prepaid card product in the UK Market.