If your reading this your probably thinking of buying a Netspend prepaid card and hope to earn some extra money by referring others. Please read this before making any financial investment into this product. In this review I will give you multiple examples that proves NetSpend is a scam!
Please note: I personally was not scammed by this program. I have never used NetSpend. All of the following information comes from a trusted friend and others who have contacted me via my website about this scam. ENJOY!
What is NetSpend
Netspend is an Austin, Texas based company. There main product is providing prepaid Visa and MasterCard credit cards. These cards can be purchased online or at most grocery or convenient stores. When you purchase a card online you also get a checking account for the card. You can direct deposit checks, transfer money from PayPal, and even get your tax refund to the card. This card does seem like a good alternative for someone who does receive a pay check, but does not bank with a physical bank. It will eliminate the hassle of cashing your checks with the direct deposit feature.
NetSpend Review
Website: netspend.com
Price: Tons Of Hidden Fees
Score: 5 out of 100
Verdict: SCAM!
I gave netspend a 5 out of 100 because I think it’s a complete scam. They are scamming people who use their cards with hidden fees that take peoples money. They are also stealing people’s money through their referral program.
I would recommend staying far away from this company. If you would like to make money online check out my All Scam Free Jobs.
Problems I see
- There is a $3.95 Fee every time you load the card with money
- Every time you make a purchase with the card there is $1 purchase Fee
- Reports of very bad customer service
- Tons of people claiming to be scammed
- Pretty much a Fee To Do Anything With the Card
Positives Of Card
- Can be set up to receive direct deposits straight to the card
- Can be reloaded at almost any grocery store
- Can transfer money from PayPal to the Card
- Can be set up to get tax refund straight to card.
NetSpend Referral Program
Now to the money making part of NetSpend and where most of the problems arise. NetSpend promises you $20 for purchasing a card from them. The program works like this. When you buy the card and put at least $40 on the prepaid card. NetSpend is going to put $20 right on your card. You also receive $20 each time one of your referrals put at least $40 on their card. You got it each referral will earn you $20. It sounds like an easy way to make some good money, but the referral program is where this product becomes a scam and where people start having problems, Read on for more!
Trusted NetSpend Customers Who Have Been Scammed!
Below are two stories of people who had problems with NetSpend. One is a close friend who was scammed by NetSpend. The other is someone who contacted me through my website to tell me they were scammed by NetSpend. Please keep in mind I was personally not affected by NetSpend nor have I ever used Netspend!
Testimonial 1: This testimonial comes from a very close friend. He joined NetSpend in December of 2013. He was lucky enough to get 3 referrals in the month of January 2014. All three people he referred were family. All three went and put the minimum $40 on the prepaid card. Problem is he only received one the promised $20 per referral. That’s right all three family members signed up, put the balance needed on the card, and NetSpend shorted him $40. He gave it the 10 days NetSpend says it may take to receive the credit and called the support. After 10 minutes trying to get around the automated answering machine he finally spoke to a real person. He then waited 20 minutes on hold to be told the account had been checked and there was no record of the two other referrals and there was nothing that could be done.
Testimonial 2: This testimonial comes from a lady who contact me via my website, letting me know her experience with NetSpend. Her experience was cut short because she never received the $20 credit for signing up. She ended up putting $60 on the card at a local grocery store. At the time of writing this she had not received credit (23 days after putting money on the card). She has never got any help or straight answer on why the credit wasn’t received.
My Verdict On NetSpend
Please keep in mind that these testimonials were provided to me. It seems that not all people are getting scammed, but there has been a good amount of people who have had random amounts of money taken out of their accounts for no apparent reason as well. Now it seems that many people have had success with referrals and had no problems. But with the lack of support and help to the people who are not getting the money promised raises red flags to me. It seems like the company has no problem with screwing you over in their program. My take on this system is that it is a scam! If you decided to try this system just know you’ve been warned!
Thank you for reading my review on NetSpend. I hope I was able to inform of this scam and saved you your valuable time and money! If you know of any other online scams please contact me. If you have questions or comments please leave your thoughts below. Best of luck to you all!
What To Do Now?
I would not suggest joining NetSpend or using their cards it really is a rip off. But if you would like to make money online you can check out my All Scam Free Jobs Page.
If you would like to see how I make money online every single day check out My #1 Recommendation.
Thank you for reading this Netspend Rip Off Review. If you have had experiences with this company I’d love to hear about them in the comments section below!
RIPPED ME OFF FOR 250.00,WILL NOT GIVE ME ACCESS TO MY MONEY.COMPUTER GOES INTO LOOP MODE. CAN NOT ACCESS A REAL PERSON. ALL THEIR PHONE NUMBERS SEEM TO BE FALSE.DO I HAVE ANY LEGAL LEG TO STAND ON?
Long time paypal user here. Can’t solve mystery of paypal-prepaid debit card disappearing act. I love paypal. Adored sight of mastercard debit with paypal logo.
Maybe hopeless now but 1-23-2019 a new store clerk is seen on video tending this transaction. It is noticed the clerk attempted to activate two cards. The first card he attempted to activate ************0825; did not work and was discarded. The second card he tried to activate ************7531 was supposed to have worked (“Approved” Netspend 150.00)
Got home tried to activate and it wouldn’t. Then noticed last four Card numbers were 0825 insignificant until store manager called card issuer who claimed that card was reported stolen from 7-11 store and I was arrested. BTW no 7-11 within 100 miles.
Is there a solution or fix to this problem; what could have happened. I did no wrong
Netspend prepaid card – best financial tool invention of the last decade. there are no HIDDDEN fees, its all stated clearly on their website. There is like a monthly fee then all your transactions at the grocery or such for free. Flashpay, send money to a friend that has netspend account, awesome. Create virtual cards for online shopping… and so on. Get paid 3 days or more earlier than the poor regular bank customers.. Can move money from your account to a savings account instantly. anybody who calls NETSPEND a RIPPOFF or SCAM has either no clue how to use it or works for a local bank (those with FEES for every little thing.
Netspend is a prepaid card I would avoid along with Accountnow. They have way too hidden fees. There’s no point in having these prepaid cards if you already have a bank account as many banks issue you a debit card. I only recommend prepaid cards for those who cannot get a bank account due to bad banking history. Unless you absolutely need prepaid card, I recommend going with American Express BlueBird by Walmart, Movo prepaid card, Chime, and Simple. They have the lowest fees and good referral programs. These are the only prepaid card programs I can recommend.
Thanks for sharing Joshi!
Trying to activate my card, but can’t because netspend says the number on the card is not valid tried customer support, and they gave me the run around and I couldn’t talk to anyone. My mom says she put $25 on the card for Christmas, which she is assuming was probably taken in fees!! We are considering a refund. I was told to never give out my social security number, especially if you don’t know who you are dealing with, as that is how your identity gets stolen. After reading these testimonials I think I made a good decision..
Thanks for reading Greg. Ya Netspend is just full of hidden fees and no support. Glad you found the review.
Brok
Going thru the same thing as above with the referral bullshit. Waiting. Filed a complaint.
Netspend is the biggest ripoff artist I have encountered. All kinds of hidden fees. Total rip
Thank you for the comment!
You’re right, Netspend is a complete scam on both sides of the company.
The card has a ton of hidden fees that basically drain the balance of your card.
The referral program has so many problems it’s not worth taking a chance on!
Thanks again for the comment,
Brok
I have used NetSpend for 5+ years with no problems at all. I was also upgraded to the NetSpend Premier which reduces my monthly fee to $5/mo and does not charge me the $1 fee to make purchases. I can use my card to pay bills online using checks or money orders with ease & I get my paycheck 2 days before my co-workers do because NetSpend posts the deposit as soon as it is transmitted to them. My ONLY complaint is that there are no free withdraws from ATM’s even though they majority of the ATM’s I use are owned by MetaBank.
Hey there, Last year I got a nice tax return and I signed up to get my returns with netspend. I worked out for me. I got my card in a matter of days with my money. I spent the money pretty quick but it was convenient. I used it like debit card. the only thing I didn’t care for was that they charged me five dollars service charge.
Fernando,
Thanks for the comment. I’m glad to hear that it all worked out for you. Seems that most of the problems are coming from the people who are trying to make some money with the referral program. Luckily you got by without any problems, but of course you can’t avoid those fees!
I too did my taxes and had my money direct deposit to a net spend card I got in the mail.. do I have to worry about anything .. is net spend legit ?
Robert,
You should be fine, but there are some people who have had problems and the hidden fees are going to kill your balance. The main issue is with the referral program, but I wouldn’t let me guard down when using this card!
Brok
Netspend is awesome in 2019!