My credit card (Visa) was compromised.

I called the card company and all is taken care of. However, they tell me they will send me a new card in 5 to7 business days. Too long. They then said they can send me one RUSH in 2 business days. All sounds good.

I got to thinking if that happens again what bus will I be thrown under.

So have decided I would like to get another (a second) card just to be used if something happens to the first card again. I can’t wait 5 to 7 business days to have a card.

Question. What card would you recommend.

I like Spark Capital One - no annual fee and 1.5% cash back. Or you can pay an annual fee and get 2% cash back.

Amazon offers a card from Chase if you shop much there. Pays lots of cash back.

Costco offers a card from Citi. Ditto.

CapOne from CapOne is considered a good card. Cash back or you can get a lot of miles (which we keep declining, we'd rather get the cash back.)

Discover is a good solid card but it's still not accepted overseas many places - not a big deal for us.

We keep several cards active because at any time a credit line can be reduced or benefits changed or card hacked or lost.

I have a 2nd card that I use only for the routine monthly bills, that way if the card I use all the time gets hacked I don't have to notify all those routine billers the new card information. I don't routinely carry it in my wallet in case my wallet gets lost or stolen. When the main-use card gets hacked, I just use the 2nd card for the few days it takes to get a new one.

Back in the day, I took our brand-new baby down to visit my parents, 400 miles from our house. DH stayed behind to work. After the visit, I went to go fill up our tank of gas for the return trip--- and the first gas station wouldn't take the card. I went to a second station, and discovered that the card was frozen.

I called the number on the card. That was when I discovered that I was only an authorized user on a card that DH had brought into the marriage--- I wasn't a joint accountholder. Because I wasn't a joint accountholder, I couldn't unfreeze the card. And DH was doing something where he was out of phone contact for the whole workday. The card company had seen us using the same Chase Freedom card 400 miles apart, and froze it for suspicious activity without asking--- and they made up some excuse about freezing the card because there had been a <$2 charge for "photo printing" that looked suspicious. Umm-hmmm.

But that day taught me, always have a backup card, just in case. Fortunately, I did, so I was able to gas up and make that 400-mile trip.

Five minutes after I walked in the door, I had DH on the phone with Chase to make me an authorized user, so I wouldn't be trapped the next time I needed to deal directly with a card.

That put cards on my radar. At the time, the CARD Act was in place (which prevented students from getting in over their heads with cc approvals based on their parents' income, not theirs) but it hadn't yet been modified (because a side effect was not letting a nonworking spouse claim a working spouse's income for cc consideration.)

So as an authorized user, I wasn't developing an independent credit history. If something happened to him, or to us, I would be struggling. So, the time to develop credit is when you don't need it.

I usually avoid cards with annual fees, because I don't use the benefits that make those annual fees worthwhile. But at the same time, remember that cards are always shaving away point value or redefining what rewards can be claimed under what circumstances, so if you get a card specifically for a certain perk--- know that it's not going to stay that way forever.

How did your card get compromised?

Why can you not go 7 days without it?

Can you not use cash instead?

6x6, I watch my cards like a hawk. Also, they do too. Discover is exceptionally good at catching fraud (or being annoying if it's not really fraud.)

6 bye questions then my answers

6 - How did your card get compromised?

M - I have no idea. They did not tell me. But I will ask again again again.

6 - Why can you not go 7 days without it?

M – I could but lately have been spending a little (some) money. Last three months credit card charges 8 to 10 k per month. Easier way to give info to tax lady.

6 - Can you not use cash instead?

M – I don’t want to push a wheel barrow around

6 - The more cards you have the greater the risk for compromised cards, I would think.

M – I agree. That is why for the last 92 years I have only had one card. Now I want one in my file cabinet JUST IN CASE

I use the AMEX card for all biz stuff. Then we have a Visa that we use for the personal stuff.

We also have a second visa that is thru our credit union. That one is the emergency card. Been so long since we used it that we got a notice that it was going to be closed out. Wife bought a coffee or something and paid it the next day.

Now we still have our spare back-up.

I was standing in Lowes and got a fraud alert text, then email. I called AMEX and they asked if I had bought a couple hundred dollars worth of sandwiches in New Jersey. I was in Indiana.

They let me use the card without using the magnetic strip for the next day, then I got the new one.

Thank you WMH, good plan.