Piggy Back on Credit Card Question

I didn't see the original credit card question.

When you use the term "freeze" it implies that a company is not allowing you to use your checking account. That is not the case.

Yes, hotels, as well as gas stations and restaurants, will be a "hold" on a specific amount of funds. You can always ask the hotel what their policy is.

If you have a credit card, why don't you just use that to reserve the room? When you arrive, you can pay cash or pay with your debit card, you don't even have to make a charge on your credit card.

ADDED - I just read the replies and it seems like there's a lot of misinformation out there. This is how it works. When your going to make a charge on a credit card or use a debit card and the amount is unknown, the company will make an estimate of how much you might charge, plus a little extra. They tell the credit card company/bank that you're planning on charging/using up to $xxx amount. So now the credit card company/bank will put a hold on those funds. Your credit card is NOT charged. The money is NOT deducted from your account. Most people have absolutely no idea that it's even being done, or that it ever has been done as it doesn't show up anywhere. After the exact amount is known, the charge is made to your card/ debit deducted from your account for the exact amount. Shortly after that (can be up to several days) the remainder of the funds are taken off hold.

They can't freeze your account. Some will, however (just like car rental places), place a 'hold' on x amount of money. Typically I've found the nicer the hotel, the less likely they are to place a hold... or if it is, it's low (like $100). Budget/economy hotels, otoh, I've found it's typical for them to place a $500-$1000 hold on the card when you check in. But it really depends on each hotel policy.

Easy to check. Just call and ask if they place a hold or a reserve when using a debit card instead of a credit card and what that amount is.

FYI USBank I've found to be the WORST at releasing holds. Most banks release holds in 24-72 hours (ditto most hotels and car places take 24-72 hours, so I usually expect the money to be untouchable for a week), and some release immediately. I've NEVER had USBank take less than 3 weeks. Including deposits. I usually use USAA, but need an 'actual' bank with branches, and used them for a time. I chose them because my student loan checks were cut from US Bank, so there should have been no lag. Nope. 3-6week hold EACH and EVERY quarter. Which is a big freakin deal when you're registering for classes and paying rent. Hotel and car rental holds? Ditto. NOTE: This was several years ago. From friends who still have them, I understand they're still atrocious (they collect the interest while the money sits, so they have no inducement to release it early), but my first hand info is several years old so they may have updated their policies since then.

They can't freeze your account. What they do is exactly what they do with a credit card, hold the amount of the room. If the reservation is in the future and you are not paying in advance the hold is released in two business days. It was always done to make sure it is a valid card.

I have never had problems with this process. I haven't actually seen it done in the past few years, perhaps because so many people use debit cards.

I actually have a worse time with gas stations that make you use credit. Some put a hundred dollar hold on your account even if you only put in ten. :(

I've heard the same thing although I've never had a problem. Don't know if I just had more than enough in my checking account that it didn't become an issue or what.

In my experience they "charge" an inflated amount which is then reduced if your actual bill is lower. You can have a pending amount for a few days to several until the bill is resolved/finalized. You can ask your hotel about their policy.

We travel a lot. Normally we pay 100% in advance, and have to put a $100 hold on our card upon arrival incase we spend any money.

The last time I stayed at a normal hotel and did not pay in advance, they put n "hold" the cost of my stay, plus an extra amount, I think it was $50, in case we ordered any movies or room service or anything. We didn't and I got my money back.

I actually just booked our hotel for Atlanta for the 4th of July using my check/debit card. That's how we'll pay for it too.

I have always used my debit card at hotels because I also don't have any credit cards and there has never been a problem. The most they have ever held over the room amount is $40 which was credited back to my account when I checked out.

They don't freeze the checking account, as in you can't access your checking account for other things. But they can go ahead and pull funds for the services, then refund you when you checkout if they overcharged.. or it works something like that. I haven't heard of that happening much, it's never happened to us.

No, they do not freeze the checking account. I only have debit cards, and that has never happened.

I honestly think it's an urban legend created by credit card companies to get you to use their products. We have stayed at plenty of hotels, of all different scopes, and never had a huge hold put on our funds. If anything, they will put a hold on what you already owe & a tad more (similar to gas stations), but you already owe most of that money, so it shouldn't matter.

I've never, ever heard of a hotel freezing your checking acct. I'm pretty sure that would be impossible anyway. Probably a rumor made by the credit card companies to get you to buy into owing them money every month. I haven't had a credit card in 6 years and I've never had ANY problem using my debit card for booking hotels/cars. One hotel made it clear up front that to get their deal I was paying right away instead of waiting til I arrived.

If I were you, I'd put that credit card behind a picture in a picture frame. You'll figure out soon enough that it's just sitting there taking up space on your credit report.

Never heard of that...