The Pink ACE Elite Visa prepaid debit card is one-of-a-kind, as it offers something more than convenient, flexible prepaid options. With every purchase that you make with the Pink ACE Elite card, you are helping to fight breast cancer. With each swipe of your card, monies are donated to the National Breast Cancer Awareness Foundation.
The fees, charges and features in this review refer to the ACE Elite with Direct Deposit Fee Advantage Plan. There is quite the list of fees for this prepaid card, including:
That fee list may seem horrifyingly long, but this prepaid debit card does offer a few free services, including checking your balance online, anytime text alerts, and direct deposit.
You can also use the card to withdraw cash from any ATM. The ACE Elite website provides this tip: “To avoid ATM fees, you can get cash back when making purchases using your PIN at many retailers, such as grocery stores." ACE does not charge for a PIN purchase transaction, but they do charge a $2.50 ATM cash withdrawal fee.
You are able to load your money via the ACE Cash Express, which has locations across the U.S. To find a location near you, simply visit the ACE Elite website. Here, you will find a Store Locator tab where you can enter your state or zip code to find reload centers near you. A map will populate with all local locations, including their exact address and a phone number, just in case you need to call a specific location.
The ACE Elite website features a blog with a consistent offering of articles about how you can save money. You can also subscribe to their Facebook and Twitter accounts to receive tips on how to be more frugal.
You can use the Pink ACE Elite card wherever Visa debit cards are accepted, including online retailers, car rental services and airlines. You are also able to pay your bills online for added convenience.
The Pink ACE Elite prepaid card has a great list of card-specific features. But our favorite non-card feature is what the Pink represents. For every purchase you make with your Pink ACE Elite Visa, a portion of that money is donated to the National Breast Cancer Foundation. We love that you can enjoy great card features while giving back.
In today’s fast-paced world, mobility is key. With this prepaid card, you can make purchases anywhere. And with the iPhone or Android app (both are free), you can check your balance, see recent transactions and find the closest load location. The iPhone app is compatible with the iPhone, iPod Touch and iPad iOS 4.1 or later. The Android app requires Android 2.1 and up.
Even if you don’t have an iPhone or Android, you can still sign up for anytime text alerts. You will receive texts daily, weekly or after each prepaid debit card transaction to your cell phone or email account. If you choose "per transaction alerts," you'll get notifications of purchase authorizations, ATM withdrawals, loads, refunds, cardholder transfers and fee plan assessments. Note: you must have a text-message enabled cell phone to receive the texts.
Bill pay is one of our favorite features offered by this prepaid debit card. With the Pink ACE Elite prepaid debit card, you can send payments to over 100 accepted companies.
Direct deposit is a fast and efficient way to load money to your card. Your money is immediately accessible, and you can withdraw up to $200 per day with no fees at any ACE Cash Express location.
If other members of your family also have a Pink ACE Elite card, you can transfer money between cards through a text message or online, which is very convenient.
Due to the many rules, regulations and extraneous fees associated with the prepaid debit card, you are more than likely to have questions. You can call customer support Monday through Friday, 8:00 a.m. to 10:00 p.m. CST, and 8:00 a.m. to 8:00 p.m. Saturday and Sunday. The system is automated at first and leads you through a series of “press 1 for …” options. You will need a card number to access the live support service, unless your card has been lost, stolen or you never received it.
We are really disappointed that this prepaid card site does not have an FAQs section. We had to send an email to customer support desk for the simplest questions. Unfortunately, we never heard back from email support, which is, again, disappointing and frustrating.
We are very disappointed in their help and support options and a bit intimidated by their long list of fees and charges. But the Pink ACE Elite Visa prepaid debit card has many great features, including their mobile iPhone and Android applications, online bill pay and direct deposit options.
Pros
This prepaid card offers anytime text alerts so you can keep track of every card transaction and posted payment.
Cons
The help section is lacking an FAQs section and responsive email support.
The ACE Elite prepaid debit card may not be the best prepaid debit card, but it does offer a great set of features, and it allows you to help with breast cancer awareness and research.