Wereldpas, my ass!

May 1, 2011 2:05 PM

Why can't I book a coach in the UK with my Dutch Maestro card?

I'm in Holland, attempting to book super-mega-advanced coach tickets from one UK city to another to reap the benefits of lowered fares, but whenever I type in my number, both MegaBus and NationalExpress reject the number as invalid. My card is a Maestro card from ABN Amro and I've triple-checked the card number before inputting it.

Is there something I'm missing here? Are Great Britain and my Dutch debit card just doomed to not get along? (Does this also mean that my Maestro card won't work in the UK?)

I'll have a word with my bank tomorrow, but my need for instant gratification has led me to AskMeFi once again.

posted by apophenia to Travel & Transportation (11 answers total)

Perhaps because it's a debit card? Here in the UK Visa Debit is more widely used.

Anecdata: My UK debit cards work in the Netherlands as they don't have Maestro. So it (doesn't) work both ways.
posted by wingless_angel at 2:08 PM on May 1, 2011

Response by poster: Oh, I forgot to mention: Maestro comes up as a payment option during the check-out, but maybe you're still on to something.
posted by apophenia at 2:10 PM on May 1, 2011

From my experience, a Dutch Maestro card (an ING one, but that shouldn't matter) worked just fine in English shops.

I assume all the SecureCode stuff is happening correctly? AFAIK, it should.. just work.

Do they not have a creditcard option? That tends to work a lot easier.
posted by Harry at 2:14 PM on May 1, 2011

Oh, did you double check they actually have the Maestro logo, and not Visa or something else?
posted by Harry at 2:20 PM on May 1, 2011

Response by poster: Harry, it is definitely the Maestro logo, and the SecureCode logo pops up as well. I actually don't have a credit card! Otherwise, I'd just use that. I've also tried using my Visa Debit from USBank, but that dreaded Visa verification function on most UK sites doesn't mesh well with that card.
posted by apophenia at 2:28 PM on May 1, 2011

I've used my maestro debit card to book megabus tickets. So... there's that. I've never had a problem using it online in the UK.
posted by stillnocturnal at 2:36 PM on May 1, 2011

Response by poster: The main problem seems to be that the card number is invalid. When I typed it into the National Express site, for instance, the error message read that the card number has to be at least 11 characters. My account number only has 9 numbers in it...so there's really no way around that.
posted by apophenia at 2:39 PM on May 1, 2011

Best answer: I had few problems using my US Visa debit card in the UK (and in The Netherlands). It worked fine online buying National Express tickets, at the ATM, and anything that was being processed as a credit card. I could NOT use at point of sale locations that required Chip and Pin, because there was no chip.

Check this out - this could be the first instance that Yahoo Answers might be of help.
posted by elsietheeel at 2:43 PM on May 1, 2011

Best answer: I guess what I'm wondering is if you're using the number that's stamped on the debit card and if it's prefaced with one of these Issuer Identification Numbers:

Maestro - 5018, 5020, 5038, 6304, 6759, 6761, 6763
posted by elsietheeel at 2:46 PM on May 1, 2011

Response by poster: I'm using the number that's on the front of the card, but none of those Issuer Identification Numbers are present. Wow, I'll definitely go to the bank tomorrow. That just seems so counterintuitive.
posted by apophenia at 2:49 PM on May 1, 2011

I have recently found that my Swiss Maestro card does not work for UK online shopping, mainly because it doesn't have the secure id number on the back, nor did it work when I was trying to buy currency (US$) at the Post Office when I was last in the UK. I ended up having to find a cash point, withdrawing the GBP (using said Maestro card) and paying the Post Office in cash.......so your problems are by no means unheard of.
posted by koahiatamadl at 4:02 AM on May 2, 2011