Why pay by credit card?

Read more to find out what makes payment by credit card the safer option, and why it’s a good idea to use a credit card especially for online payment.

A credit card enables flexible payment

Each month, you'll receive a bill for your credit card payments, meaning payments made using the credit facility. You can decide to pay it with a single payment or in instalments. If you pay the bill in full, you'll avoid additional charges. The average interest-free billing period is 35 days.

A credit card is useful if the unexpected happens: for example, your washing machine breaks down or your car needs servicing. You can then benefit from the interest-free billing period, paying for big purchases in monthly instalments that you find suitable.

You get additional purchase protection

When you pay by credit card, the credit card company acts as a buffer between your money and the online store. The sum is charged from the credit account linked to the card, not directly from your bank account as in debit card payments.

In accordance with the Consumer Protection Act, when you pay by credit card you get Purchase Protection Insurance, just in case problems occur. For example, you can seek a refund from the credit card company if goods ordered online don’t turn up, or your travel agent goes bust before your trip.

As an owner-customer, you also get Product Protection Insurance for your OP credit card. This covers purchases – made with the credit or debit feature – for at least half a year against breakage, loss and theft.

Read more about Product Protection Insurance

Strong identification protects payment

Within the EU, the Payment Service Directive requires strong identification from the customer whenever account information or payment services are used. This means that you can safely enter your card details when using an online store.

After entering your card details, you’ll be automatically forwarded to OP’s identification service, for identification using Mobile key or your OP User ID. After identification, you can accept the payment and await delivery with peace of mind.

Checking your card transactions is easy

It’s easy to track and check card payments from the credit card transactions or the bill on OP-mobile and the op.fi service. It’s advisable to have recurring payments, like Spotify or Netflix, taken from a credit card so they don’t get mixed up with the other daily expenses.

If you notice credit card transactions that you don’t recognise, deactivate your card immediately by calling OP’s Deactivation Service on 0100 0555 (open 24/7). Note that the name of the store where you made a purchase is often different from the name shown in the itemisation of transactions. So, also check the paid amounts and dates.

Remember to set spending and withdrawal limits for your card

Sometimes, a card can get lost or be stolen no matter how careful you are. Spending and withdrawal limits will protect the card against misuse in such cases.

It is worth setting spending and withdrawal limits that correspond to your daily use of your card. You can set daily spending and withdrawal limits for cash withdrawals, swiped payments, and online and in-app payments. If you rarely make online purchases, the limits for online purchases should be kept small. If you set the limit to 0 euro, your card can’t be used for online purchases at all.

You can change the limits easily, whenever you wish, on OP-mobile or the op.fi service. The new limits will take effect immediately.

Check the spending/withdrawal limits of your card