Wanted: Insurance I Can Bank On

[Godders]

How does someone resident in Thailand, with offshore and Thai bank accounts, insure debit and credit cards from two different jurisdictions against fraudsters? My former UK-based insurers, CardGuard, say they will only provide protection for people with a UK residential address and have refused to renew my policy.

This is very worrying, as card fraud is rife in Thailand and Thai banks are not exactly sympathetic to victims, usually advising them to sort out their problems at the nearest police station (and we all know where this can lead).

I now get a nasty sinking feeling every time I watch my cards disappear into an ATM or get swiped in a retail outlet. Is it possible to obtain reliable, reasonably priced card insurance here? And if so, can someone recommend a provider? I can't imagine trying to pay my way on a day to day basis, let alone in medical emergencies, etc without my plastic pals.

[chainarong]

Best to see an Expat insurance broker, main line insurance companies drop their bundle when you tell them you live o/sea's, especially Asia:

Edited September 11, 2010 by chainarong

[Renbe]

I have a cunning plan for my upcoming long term stay in Thailand. I transfer per internet banking money from my Dutch bank account to my Thai bank account, and then only use my Thai bank card

to make cash withdrawals. I use my credit cards strictly for emergencies and online payments, would never give my credit card to pay hotels or restaurants. Even though the Dutch bank that issues my cards also

provides safeguards against data theft etc. I will simply avoid any hassle by not using those cards in SE Asia

[Godders]

I have a cunning plan for my upcoming long term stay in Thailand. I transfer per internet banking money from my Dutch bank account to my Thai bank account, and then only use my Thai bank card

to make cash withdrawals. I use my credit cards strictly for emergencies and online payments, would never give my credit card to pay hotels or restaurants. Even though the Dutch bank that issues my cards also

provides safeguards against data theft etc. I will simply avoid any hassle by not using those cards in SE Asia

Your "cunning plan" is the one I use myself. But it is not foolproof, as I have discovered to my cost. Your credit card is at risk if you are obliged to use it for, say, a medical emergency (as I was once, with the result that somebody at the hospital cloned my card and later attempted to withdraw money from my offshore account). Also, without insurance you will have no redress if your Thai bank account is raided (as mine was on two separate occasions) other than going to the police and trying to persuade them and the bank that the money was not withdrawn by your or someone you had sanctioned. It pays to check your Thai account balance very regularly - a precaution I stupidly neglected, with the result that somebody milked 40,000 baht from my account. The other problem relating to your credit card is that if you use it only rarely your bank may well decide you don't need it (as happened with me) and refuse to renew it! This happened to me and I had quite a fight to get the decision reversed.