I purchased a preloadable Visa card from Greendot.com at the grocery. Normally I use fixed preloaded cards, with no problem but these were not available in amounts over $100; and on-line companies insist only one card be used. The Greendot card cost $9.96 and I loaded it with $150. to use on-line. I did read the fine print. I used the card to make the purchase but within days asked for a refund. During the refund process the month changed and the card (after only 10 days possession) acquired a service charge of $4.95 deducted from the balance. I knew this would happen, it was not their fault. Soon afterwards I made my purchase 0f $107.94. I then called and canceled my card which showed a balance of $37.11. When I received my check it was for only $24.96. According the the fine print, if canceled within one month there would be no cancellation fee. Obviously I missed something which authorized them to charge me another service fee of $9.15. I could dispute this but since telephone contact with a live person is virtually if not actually impossible it is not worth the money to discover why, let alone correct and get a refund, of this amount. I held this $9.96 card for one month and paid $14.10 in additional fees for a total user cost of $24.06.

On a positive note, I later found a Preloadable ($20-200) Visa called "The Ideal Gift" at Safeway grocery which has no monthly fee for a year and it sells for only $5.96. If purchasing an amount more than is loaded you need to know what is on the card and have them ring that amount exactly or it may say the card is empty, but this is a small matter. (www.giftcardmall.com) Why mention this card - because it means greendot can not justify their charges as normal.