Opting out of PayPass should not deactivate my current card

Posted Fri July 18, 2008 4:37 pm, by Scott F. written to Washington Mutual

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On June 30, 2008 I was sent a new debit card to replace the one I have which expires July 2008, but I was shocked to discover my new debit card contained an RFID chip as I had been opted into the PayPass scheme without my permission or notification. A staunch believer in privacy, I refuse to be subject to RFID technology in any form. I proceeded to destroy the new card. I notified Washington Mutual that I would like a replacement card opting out of the PayPass scheme and they agreed to send me a new, clean, card.

I went on vacation, mostly used my credit card, but realizing I needed cash for the bridge toll to get home I stopped by a branch of WaMu to use the ATM only to find my card had been deactivated! If my wife's paycheck hadn't been deposited a day early we would not have had the cash to pay the bridge toll. When I got home I railed against WaMu for deactivating my card and they told me they would reactivate it.

I've waited two weeks now for my replacement card while the last month of my debit card runs out to expiration. Fearing the worst, that they reactivated my card only after canceling my new card order, I contacted them again the other day and they confirmed that they hadn't sent a new card, but would now, and I told them explicitly not to cancel my current card. Today at the grocery store I discovered my current card has been deactivated. I contacted them by phone and they insist that my card had been reported lost or stolen but a new one is on its way. In no way did I imply in my request for a new card that my current card was lost or stolen, and as I've said I explicitly told them not to cancel anything!

I can only assume some policy prevents them from sending me a new card without reporting my current card "lost or stolen", or that it's just easier that way and they don't really want to go to the trouble of sending me a new card without canceling my current card, and incompetence prevents them from being honest about this or doing the right thing.

I want my new WaMu card, with no paypass RFID chip inside FedEx'ed overnight to my home ASAP and an honest apology from everyone I've spoken to for deactivating my card repeatedly and against my instructions, and for WaMu to start asking people before signing them up for PayPass which would've eliminated this problem altogether.

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Re: Opting out of PayPass should not deactivate my current card by Scott F. Posted Fri July 25, 2008 @ 5:33 PM Since I've posted this complaint, though not because of it, but because of my continued messages to them directly, I have been called by a supervisor and informed that a Paypass-free card would be sent soon. In the meantime I have been sent a second Paypass card and finally two non-Paypass cards, one of which I have activated and seems to work fine, so I consider the matter resolved, though my treatment and difficulty was inexcusable and hasn't been resolved for others by making Paypass opt-in rather than automatic. Reply Re: Opting out of PayPass should not deactivate my current card by RedheadwGlasses Posted Fri July 18, 2008 @ 7:27 PM Isn't it possible that your card was deactivated because you went on vacation and used your card in locations outside the norm for your spending habits, thus tripping the software that flags suspicious activity? That would mean they did it for your own protection. Reply Not at all by Scott F. Sat July 19, 2008 @ 5:17 PM