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Solo is a debit card produced by Switch Card Services in the UK, specifically for people under 18 or on lower incomes. One particular feature of the card is that all transactions require electronic authorisation from the issuing bank. Such authorisation will not be given if there are not sufficient funds in the cardholder's account, and the funds are earmarked, if not transferred, immediately. An unauthorised overdraft may still take place if the cardholder transfers additional funds out of an account before the earmarked Solo transactions are applied to that account (much like writing a cheque and then withdrawing from the account before the cheque is cashed). Solo - fairuse This work is copyrighted. ...
A debit card is a plastic card which provides an alternative payment method to cash when making purchases. ...
I warn you, Sir! The discourtesy of this bank is beyond all limits. ...
The card was launched on 1 July 1997 and in 2004 there were 7.2 million Solo cards in circulation in the UK. Its sister card is Switch. July 1 is the 182nd day of the year (183rd in leap years) in the Gregorian Calendar, with 183 days remaining. ...
1997 (MCMXCVII) was a common year starting on Wednesday of the Gregorian calendar. ...
2004 (MMIV) was a leap year starting on Thursday of the Gregorian calendar. ...
Switch was a debit card used in the United Kingdom. ...
Its main rival is the Visa Electron debit card, which can also be issued to under-18s. The main advantage of Visa Electron over Solo is that it has become widely accepted internationally. There are however some UK merchants who do not accept the Visa Electron card. Visa Electron logo A Visa Electron card issued by the UK Barclays bank. ...
Disadvantages
Acceptance One notable disadvantage of the Solo was that the card was rarely accepted on internet based retailers. Use of the Paypal network could overcome this. However over time Solo became more and more accepted both in high street stores and on on-line retailers alike. Solo cards are closely linked with the Switch processing system (now re-branded as Maestro), however some online retailers can differentiate Solo cards from other Switch cards through their numbering scheme and prevent under 18's from purchasing online. Due to their availability to under 18s, they can also be used as a simple age-vetting mechanism; for example, when online shopping service Ocado accepted Solo, they refused to sell razor blades or alcoholic drinks to anyone paying via Solo, even though some Solo card holders are over 18 (the service now does not accept Solo, however it does not check for Solo card numbers if Switch is selected). eBay North First Street satellite office campus (home to PayPal) PayPal is an e-commerce business allowing payments and money transfers to be made through the internet. ...
Maestro is a software application used by NASA and Jet Propulsion Laboratory. ...
Ocado Logo Ocado is an internet based grocery retailer in the United Kingdom. ...
Occams Razor or Hanlons razor A razor is a an edge tool (primarily, used in shaving). ...
Currently, Solo cards cannot be used to purchase train tickets, whether pre-ordering by phone or web, or in person at station counters or FastTicket machines. This is because the rail ticket network does not have the infrastructure to authorise with the issuing bank for every payment (Solo requires the account balance to be checked with every transaction). London Underground ticket machines however accept the cards. It is possible to go overdrawn whilst shopping online, which proves convenient at times and stressful at others. However a number of train companies have announced plans to bring Solo into wider acceptance when consumers are purchasing train tickets both on-line and in train stations. The London Underground is an all electric railway system that covers much of the conurbation of Greater London and some neighbouring areas. ...
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