It is true that you can use your Direct Express debit Mastercard to pay bills online.
Frustrations with Bill Payīecause Direct Express is advertised as a debit card that allows you to pay bills online, most customers have come to wrongly believe that you can set up online bill pay with your card using the account number and routing number. That is why the Direct Express account routing number is not available anywhere online since you are not allowed to add more money to your account except for what you get in federal benefit payments. Unlike a traditional bank checking or savings account where you can transfer money to the account from other bank accounts, you are not allowed to add any funds to your Direct Express debit card account except for federal government benefit deposits. Most Direct Express cardholders assume that since the card is advertised as a debit card and an alternative to a traditional bank account, they can add money to their Direct Express account. That is why it is important for the dispute resolution process to be streamlined so customers can get their issues resolved quickly. However, there seems to be a growing problem with Direct Express accounts being compromised, based on the growing volume of complaints we receive.įunds are being stolen from customer accounts with frequency and it’s becoming very difficult to get the issues investigated and the funds restored to customer accounts.
It is also true that hardly a week goes by without some major company reporting customer accounts being hacked. Granted, nowadays, you are at risk anytime you use your debit and credit cards for purchases both in person and online. Unauthorized Transactionsįor reasons that Direct Express has not been able to explain, the Direct Express Debit Card is more often targeted by online criminals for fraud.
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This leaves customers very frustrated at a moment when they need a quick resolution to their issue so they can gain full access to their money. The only way to dispute a charge on your card is to call Customer Service, and as we have mentioned above, that is a challenge in and of itself. There is also no fax number on the website to send in a formal complaint. There are multiple issues about this process that irritate cardholders.įirst, even though you are required to complete a dispute form before the dispute resolution department will review your issue, there is no downloadable dispute form on the Direct Express website. We have detailed the entire process in this article. One of the biggest issues that cardholders have to deal with is the confusing and long dispute resolution process. Some people have had to wait as long as 3 – 4 weeks after they requested a replacement card to receive one in the mail. Otherwise, you just have to wait and hope your card arrives sooner. That is also a source of irritation for most cardholders given how often some cardholders have watched helplessly as their debit cards have been compromised multiple times within a single year.Įven worse, if you want your replacement card mailed to you sooner, you have to pay a fee for them to ship the card to you via FedEx or UPS (with a tracking code).
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In addition, while there is no fee charged for the first card replacement within a year, once you use your free card replacement for the year, you will be charged $4 for any additional card replacement request. Second, it takes a while before you receive your replacement card. That’s because first, it’s hard to get a hold of customer service so you can report the issue and have the card de-activated. If you find yourself in a situation where your Direct Express card is lost or stolen, getting a new one can be a bit of a challenge.
This puts their benefits at risk Replacing Lost or Stolen Card If you have to take out cash three or four times a month, that adds up.Ĭonsidering that the Direct Express card is being marketed as a safer alternative to checks and check-cashing, forcing people to take out a lot of cash because they want to avoid ATM fees is counterproductive. For those who do not live near a surcharge-free ATM, getting cash can be expensive, with some banks charging as much as $5 per transaction.