I have 7 cards in the 4 slot of my wallet in this exact order:
Driver’s License – Used frequently to get into bars.
Business Amex – Used when I want to charge a business expense. Used 2x a month.
JP Morgan Chase Card – My most commonly used credit card. Recently switched from Mastercard to Visa and the cause of this post
Amazon Visa Card – Used for Amazon purchases and stores that don’t take Mastercard
US Air Barclay Mastercard – $89 per year and that got 40,000 frequent flyer miles. I rarely use this card for purchases outside of flights.
Bank of America Visa Card – One of the first credit cards I ever opened and I use it strictly to deposit into Bovada.
PNC Bank ATM Card – Frequently used to withdraw money from ATM’s. Kept in the very back for reasons to be mentioned.
On the other side of my wallet I have a Sam’s club card, Macy’s, Best Buy, 2x Golf cards, 5x Casino cards, IBX card, and a Home Depot card. These are all rarely used.
Why would I spend the time dissecting my wallet? I had a traumatic experience checking out at Sam’s Club and it’s imperative you know all the details to why it happened.
Sam’s Club moronically only accepts Mastercard. Previous to this and if you read above, my JP Morgan Chase card was a Mastercard so I never had an issue paying at Sam’s. For the first time today I noticed that it had switched to a Visa card. As I was getting ready to pay, I realized I wouldn’t be able to pay like I usually do and fumbled for my USAir Mastercard. This card wouldn’t swipe. I started sweating bullets because I knew that this card was my only hope.
So I’m standing in line feeling like an asshole and a deadbeat because I have no means of payment. She tried running the card manually but was failing for lord knows what reason but she didn’t give a shit. The people behind me were about 4 deep now and I was getting this feeling of “fuck it”, I’m just going to sprint out of the store. Probably not a great move but now I’m a shithead standing in line having to leave the cart with all the items because I can’t pay. I eventually realized I had $110 dollars in cash in my wallet and had to return 2 lightbulbs so I could pay in cash. This little story comes with a bigger problem.
With the 7 cards I have in my wallet, when I pull them out, the raised numbers scratch the back of other cards. This causes the magnetic strip to become damaged and thus not working. For this reason, my USAir card doesn’t work, my ATM card works about 25% of the time, and my Amex card has been replaced 3 times within the last year and after writing this post I’m finally aware of why it happens. There are too many cards in the one side. If there were only 4 cards, there wouldn’t be as much pressure. I’m not sure if my wallet situation is similar to yours but I believe it’s smart to have many credit cards all paid off. Now I have two options, 1) get a bigger wallet 2) carry less cards. I’m not sure what I’ll do but I think I’ve pinpointed the problem.
This recenty occured with my card too.
Had an old Wells Fargo which needed to be replaced. Luckily it was about to expire – because the bank told me that they would need to take my card, and a new one would arrive in 2-3 weeks. So, basically 2-3 weeks without access to my account. I held out.
The new card arrived and the same problem. Rarely reads when swiped.
Most people in service don’t even seem to know how to do it manuallly. I actually had a lady in the Poconos whip out the old carbon slide-press to process a transaction.
A potential contributing factor is that my phone case has a magnet in it…
Money clip. Drivers License, ATM card, two credit cards, health insurance card. Cash on the other side of the clip. Boom.
http://www.ebay.com/itm/like/121242664612?lpid=82
The fact that you carry around a Macy’s card, a Best Buy card, 2x Golf cards (it’s almost winter bro), 5x Casino cards (degen), and a Home Depot card is beyond me. Take them out and move some of the cards to the other side would be my move.