A while back, Joe mused about what the big deal was about metal credit cards. I have to admit that I’m certainly not a fan of them…they just make my wallet heavier. But I’m apparently still in the minority, as they’re still very much a “thing” for those who consider them to be a status symbol.
Anyway, besides the weight, another issue with metal credit cards is if you close your account (or even just get reissued a new card), you can’t just cut the card up and throw it in the garbage, like you can with a plastic card. You can’t even put it into a shredder that accepts credit cards.
So if you have a metal credit card and need to get rid of it, what should you do? It turns out there are a few things:
Return it to the bank
If you live close enough to a branch of the bank in question, you’re always welcome to return the card to their physical location. Call them first though, to ensure you follow whatever specific directions they require.
Destroy it yourself
Although scissors won’t work on a metal card, anything that would normally cut metal should work fine. Tin snips, for example. Some people have used a drill directly on the chip, magnetic strip and a few of the numbers on the card so it’s unusable. They also demagnetized the strip by putting a fridge magnet on it for an hour or so, then swiping the fridge magnet several times over the stripe. Sandpaper your name off, as well. Others have used their handy dandy blow torch (don’t get me wrong – I know a lot of people actually own blowtorches. But when I was a kid and watched Julia Child with my mom, we laughed that she just happened to have a blow torch as a kitchen gadget).
Oh, just keep it
I say this in jest, but when one of my metal cards, my Citi Prestige, was hacked in early 2019, that’s what Citi said to do when I tweeted them for guidance. They said I could “store the card in a safe place.” For FOREVER?!?!?! Yeah, that was dumb.
Mail it back to the bank
That was Citi’s other recommendation, and that one at least made sense. It’s also what we ultimately did with our hacked card. After our tweeted conversation, followed by a phone call, Citi even sent us a mailer in which to return the card.
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This post first appeared on Your Mileage May Vary
2 comments
Good article – I’m with you on the dislike for metal cards. FYI – Chase will replace a Sapphire Reserve with a pure plastic version if you just call and ask.
I also dislike metal credit cards. If I do not have one with me, I cal walk through the metal detector without a problem. If I have a metal card in my wallet, it sets off the detector and I have to show the wallet to proceed.