This article is from page 18 of the 2009-10-06 edition of The Clare People. OCR mistakes are to be expected so download the original SWF or the rendered page 18 JPG
A CREDIT card that doesn’t allow you to spend beyond your means has just arrived on the scene in Clare.
Pay as you go credit cards are now available to buy in Clare, hav- ing been launched by the company Smart Transfer in April. Comparable to a mobile phone top-up, these cards are operable only when you have suf- ficient funds to spend.
The card allows the user all the ad- vantages of a normal credit card, but without the hassle of bills, interest or credit checks.
How it operates is that you lodge money in your account prior to using it and you cannot use more than you have available.
The card is now available to pur- chase in 18 stores in Clare. These are mainly convenience stores and supermarkets.
According to the operations man- ager of Smart Transfer, Sean Phe- lan, the timing for the launch of this scheme in Clare is appropriate, given iW ALomeL Nw Kes tI merece) sLO ON NCOMe DUDOT-IKoR
‘You cannot spend what you do not have with the pay as you go Master- card. The idea is that rather than get- ting an indeterminate bill in the post at the end of the month you can load up in advance in outlets and spend what’s on the card,” said Mr Phelan, whose company is based in Naas.
“With the economic situation, a lot of people are using it as a way of controlling standard credit card debt,” he added.
“You can literally walk into a shop and walk out with a credit card, ready to use. As long as you have loaded the card with credit, the pay as you go credit card can be used as many times as you like, to make purchases or withdraw cash from ATMs,” he added. Outlets across Clare are tak- ing part in this initiative, including Shannon, Scariff, Lahinch, Kilrush, Killaloe and Clarecastle.
“We have spent the past few months rolling it out. We launched it initially in the UK almost two years ago,” he said.
Full details on the availability of the card in Clare can be obtained by logging on to wWww.payzonemoney. io