Visa Card

Jamie · #1 (**permalink**) 06-24-2008, 11:01 PM

Is there anyone in Colombia having problem with there visa card for point of sales purchases? For the last 2 weeks most of my point of sale purchase are denied with a message to call the bank. The bank and visa says everything is in working order and they don’t even show a record of a decline. I tried to purchase over the phone Aviaca airline tickets and got turned down. I have no problem with the ATMs and Internet purchases for USA based websites and tonight in the same store I get turn down on a visa network and they tried the Redeban network which I am not familiar with and the sale goes through. Is it just me and Colombia having another go at or is there a networking problem effecting others? And why would a store have two different networks for POS purchases?

Micky10 · #2 (**permalink**) 06-25-2008, 12:24 AM

Jamie -

I most always just get cash at the ATM, but I do use my card (visa) as a credit card when I do the big grocery shopping. And it has had no problems, and I did just use it last week. The only reason that I use it as a credit card is that when I try to run it as a debit card it only works at ATM's. You know better than I, this is Colombia.

Love - Micky

PatrickenCali · #3 (**permalink**) 06-25-2008, 09:01 AM

I have had a similar problem in the past.

Not only is there a limit in Colombia of daily cash withdrawls, there is also a limit within a given network of weekly purchases. No one can tell me exactly what the limit is.

Note that I said weekly purchases. I had no problem purchasing my motorcycle on a credit card ($6,000,000 pesos), but I did call the bank in the US to let them know ahead of time to expect the large transaction.

Colombia Vacations · #4 (**permalink**) 06-26-2008, 11:32 PM

Jamie,

There were several times in the past when people staying with me in Bogota tried to make a reservation on the phone with Avianca for a ticket, the card would not go through, the people were told Avianca did not except International credit cards in Colombia.

Made no sense to me, but that's what they were told each time.

TheFamousWingMan · #5 (**permalink**) 09-09-2008, 11:46 PM

Jamie, I get that alot as well in BQ. I bank with Bank of America. If I make more than 5 transactions at an ATM, the system will block my card. The same with POS, if I do too many in one day......account blocked. I've notified BOA that I was living down here, but they said it was how the "System" was set up. I'd call them, verify my info, and they would unblock the account.

TheFamousWingMan · #6 (**permalink**) 09-09-2008, 11:55 PM

Also, I've learned to take money from my BOA account and put it into my Bancolombia account. It's been a few times in the wee hours of the morning when BOA had blocked
my account and I was unable to contact them. I've been looking into CitiBank, they have a couple of branches here in BQ, but dealing with opening an account online has proven to have been a three week headache. Hopefully, this week it will happen!