Application For PTSB Laser Card

I opened an account with PTSB recently and lodged a small sum of money. I was issued with the standard ATM card. When I enquired about a laser card I was told it had the same criteria as a credit card application and would require some form filling etc and would not be guaranteed my application would be successful.

The money in the account is mine and not that of a credit card company so shouldn't the laser card be given to the customer automatically?? Maybe I'm missing the point

Anyone any thoughts on this.

A Laser card is a debit and cheque guarantee card, not just an ATM card.

A Laser Card is not a Cheque Guarantee Card, it is a combined ATM & Laser/Maestro Debit Card. Some Laser Cards can have the cheque guarantee facility, but this is not automatic.

Most banks issue an ATM Card, or a combined ATM plus Laser Card (or Visa Debit), or a combined ATM, plus Laser (or Visa Debit) plus Cheque Guarantee Card.

Some current accounts do not even come with a cheque book, & some current account holders with a cheque book do not have a Cheque Guarantee Card, but have Laser Cards.

It could be the case that PTSB only issue Laser Cards to customers who are entitled to a Cheque Guarantee Card, & this could be the reason why they would need to do a credit check on a customer before issuing one but most banks issue a combined ATM/Laser or Visa Debit as a matter of course without a credit check.

I have 2 Laser Cards associated with two different AIB current accounts – one is an ATM/Laser/Cheque Guarantee Card & the other is just an ATM/Laser Card. I could use the Laser Card that has the cheque guarantee included to force the account into unauthorised overdraft, but the one that doesn’t would be declined.

I have a Halifax standard current account (with which a cheque book is never issued) with a combined ATM/Visa Debit Card & when I opened that they did a credit check, whereas Ulster Bank issue Visa Debit Cards automatically, so it seems to be down to the individual bank & the type of card systems they use.