Re: Maestro debit card - no Irish please?
Irish issued Maestro cards are simply a Laser Card with Maestro functionality added for physical transactions over the counter used with Chip+PIN or swipe and sign.
I've had no issue using an AIB Laser/Maestro in the UK or in France. Some merchants may be a little weird about it as they're not used to seeing non-locally issued Maestros. However, if you stick it into most credit card terminals, they'll work perfectly once there's a Maestro clearing bank connected to it.
British issued Maestro cards follow the same numbering format that was used by the UK's Switch card. This had an Issue No. or a valid to and valid from date + CCV on the back. The reality is that they're actually still switch cards and UK sites advertising that they take Maestro in fact take what was Switch i.e. UK issued Maestro only.
Laser's no where near as secure, it only has a Card number + exp. date. It most certainly can be used online, but only on sites that advertise that they accept Laser. You can use the card physically over the counter in the UK or elsewhere where the Maestro symbol is displayed. You can also use it in any Maestro branded ATM.
Maestro cards issued in other EU countries follow different formats and are equally unacceptable in the UK or outside their home country when used for a non chip+pin or swipe/sign transaction. They don't necessarily have issue number etc either.
Basically, when it comes to use online etc Maestro is a complete joke. It's not a standardised system. It's like Cirrus etc..
Visa and Mastercard operate full standardised Debit Card schemes, many UK and other European banks (as well as Halifax in Ireland) issue Visa Debit. It works exactly like a Visa credit card and will be accepted anywhere there's a Visa symbol online.
I'd say you'll see other Irish banks start to offer Visa debit or MasterCard debit once Halifax starts to have an impact. There's really no reason why they can't do it.
