Subscriptions are getting out of hand (2.Viewing)

Return it immediately and never buy their product again

My subscriptions are adding p to hundreds of dollars per month

I have a credit card I use exclusively for subscriptions and I just checked

I have 9 monthly subscriptions totaling $221.87 monthly

My wife has 16 subscriptions totaling $326 monthly

My son has 3 subscriptions totaling $46 monthly

My daughter has 2 subscriptions totaling $21 monthly

My card is hit for $614.87 per month

Yeah, there is no way this is sustainable moving forward because this is before I pay any domain renewals

Quite amusing that right after reading that post on X, I get this:

MapleDots said:

I have a credit card I use exclusively for subscriptions and I just checked

My card is hit for $614.87 per month

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Kids is the most expensive subscription I've ever had.

MapleDots said:

I have a credit card I use exclusively for subscriptions and I just checked

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Curious, do you mix business (LLM subscriptions for example) and personal subscriptions on this card? Or do you use accounts for both either way?

Artashes said:

Kids is the most expensive subscription I've ever had

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So true.

FM said:

Curious, do you mix business (LLM subscriptions for example) and personal subscriptions on this card? Or do you use accounts for both either way?

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I put all subscriptions on one card and separate them on a spread sheet.

REASON: I don't have to worry about this card getting lost or stolen because it stays in the house. If and when the expiry date changes I have all my subscriptions in one place and they are easy to track.

I'm using a card with a $250 limit for my subscriptions, it forces me to keep subscription below that amount.

Bruce said:

I'm using a card with a $250 limit for my subscriptions, it forces me to keep subscription below that amount.

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Not really, as a credit card "limit" is pure fiction and the CC companies will gleefully let you overdraw on your VISA or MC (in the name of 'friendly customer service') while charging you for it.

I figured this out when a $500 "online-only" card got compromised and some yahoos in BC were charging ski clothes to it (probably employees), and at well over $1,000 in total. I asked how this could happen and was given the info that a credit limit is a "soft limit" and does not stop additional charges from going through.

I think it used to be a hard limit, back when Canada was Canada, but certainly not in today's environment where 60% of the population is one paycheck away from being homeless.

DomainRecap said:

Not really, as a credit card "limit" is pure fiction and the CC companies will gleefully let you overdraw on your VISA or MC (in the name of 'friendly customer service') while charging you for it.

I figured this out when a $500 "online-only" card got compromised and some yahoos in BC were charging ski clothes to it (probably employees), and at well over $1,000 in total. I asked how this could happen and was given the info that a credit limit is a "soft limit" and does not stop additional charges from going through.

I think it used to be a hard limit, back when Canada was Canada, but certainly not in today's environment where 60% of the population is one paycheck away from being homeless.

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so what you really need would be a debit card, not a credit card, and automatically transfer $250 (or whatever you want as a limit) in on the first of each month.

rlm said:

so what you really need would be a debit card, not a credit card, and automatically transfer $250 (or whatever you want as a limit) in on the first of each month.

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But make sure that '$250 debit card' is at a bank you don't have any other accounts with, as Canadian banks are also "oh so helpful" in transferring funds from one of your accounts to another whenever there is an overdraw. And real money is far more dangerous to use online vs credit, as banks will fight tooth and nail to not give it back in the case of fraud.

I don't recommend anyone use a debit card for any purchases, online or otherwise, as you get skimmed once and you're a world of hurt. The bank isn't your friend (they will do anything to prove you as liable for losses) and there are fewer protections when losing actual cash through fraud, so I only use credit cards, and save my debit card for bank transactions only.

The entire system has been revamped to allow people to spend like drunken sailors with almost no limits (except on major purchases), which is the main reason scammers can easily take advantage of it.

Prepaid credit card like PC works great, I have those for my kids, they can only spend what I put on it.

You have to disable overdraft though

MapleDots said:

Prepaid credit card like PC works great, I have those for my kids, they can only spend what I put on it.

You have to disable overdraft though

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Read those two sentences a second time.

Overdraft is a standard, default-enabled feature on prepaid credit cards like this, which totally defeats the purpose of a prepaid credit card.

In Canada, we have created an insane system where there is no effective limit on credit spending, and you wonder why so many people are in massive debt while also being hammered by overage service charges.

DomainRecap said:

Read those two sentences a second time.

Overdraft is a standard, default-enabled feature on prepaid credit cards like this, which totally defeats the purpose of a prepaid credit card.

In Canada, we have created an insane system where there is no effective limit on credit spending, and you wonder why so many people are in massive debt while also being hammered by overage service charges.

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I always trusted my kids 100% so it was never about spending, my real concern was always about the amount of fraud possible in case their card gets skimmed/stolen/etc... I encouraged them to get their own CC's under their names as soon as practical to start building their own credit. At age 25 now, my daughter still has a CC linked to my account, but hasn't used it for anything in many years, it was just a safety net. But now that she just bought her first house, it might be a good time to pull the plug on that card. Having a card you never use just feels like a potential fraud liability more than anything.

rlm said:

Having a card you never use just feels like a potential fraud liability more than anything.

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Definitely, and word on the street is that fraudsters use "insider info" to target accounts that are not accessed regularly. So naturally I check mine daily.