ECO Webcard - Online Prepaid MasterCard® Terms and Conditions
These terms and conditions apply to your ECO Webcard. You must read them carefully. In these terms and conditions "you" means the named Prepaid Cardholder and the authorised user of the ECO Webcard. "We", "us" or "our" means Newcastle Building Society, Newcastle Card Solutions Limited or PSI-Pay Ltd acting on its behalf. “Website” means our website at www.ecocard.com.
1. Your ECO Webcard - Online Prepaid MasterCard® Card You can use the ECO Webcard at any online location that displays the MasterCard® acceptance mark, including making purchases using the telephone. Before using the ECO Webcard you need to make sure there are enough funds loaded on it. You will not be able and should not attempt to use your ECO Webcard after its expiry date. To be issued with a replacement ECO Webcard you will need to cancel your existing ECO Webcard and apply for a new ECO Webcard. Your ECO Webcard is not a credit card and can only be connected to your bank account for the purposes of loading the card. You will not earn any interest on any funds loaded on your ECO Webcard.
2. Applying for and activating your ECO Webcard To apply for our ECO Webcard you must be at least 18 years old and an EU resident. We will require evidence of who you are and your address. We may ask you to provide some documentary evidence to prove this and/or we may carry out checks on you electronically. Please refer to our Website (www.ecocard.com) for all ECO Webcard loading options, or refer to the “Loading your ECO Webcard” section below. By using the ECO Webcard you are agreeing to these terms and conditions.
3. Loading your ECO Webcard Funds can be loaded to your ECO Webcard through your EcoCard e-wallet - Simply follow the instructions at the Website. The maximum initial load on your first ECO Webcard is €500. The balance on your ECO Webcard can never exceed the maximum balance allowed, at any time. We reserve the right to refuse to accept any particular loading transaction. Upon receipt, your funds will be available for use without delay. A Load/Reload Fee may apply for each load/reload that you make. Please see Section 12 below for details of when a Load/Reload fee will apply and how much it will be.
4. Using your ECO Webcard Detailed instructions on how to use your ECO Webcard are found on the Website. You will need to follow these instructions when using your ECO Webcard. We will deduct the value of your transactions from the balance on your ECO Webcard. We will also deduct any applicable fees as soon as they become payable by you, see our Fees section below for details of our fees. The ECO Webcard belongs to us. We may ask you to stop using your ECO Webcard and cancel it destroy it. We may at anytime suspend, restrict or cancel your ECO Webcard or refuse to issue or replace a ECO Webcard for reasons relating to the following: we are concerned about security of your account or ECO Webcard we have issued to you; we suspect your account is being used in an unauthorised or fraudulent manner; or we need to do so to comply with the law. If we do this, we will tell you as soon as we can or are permitted to do so after we have taken these steps. Like other payment cards, we cannot guarantee a retailer will accept your ECO Webcard. We may also refuse to pay a transaction: if we are concerned about security of your ECO Webcard or we suspect your ECO Webcard is being used in an unauthorised or fraudulent manner; if sufficient funds are not loaded on your ECO Webcard at the time of a transaction to cover the amount of the transaction and any applicable fees; if there is an outstanding Shortfall on the ECO Webcard in accordance with condition 12; if we have reasonable grounds to believe that you are acting in breach of this agreement; If we believe that a transaction is potentially suspicious or illegal (for example, if we believe that a transaction is being made fraudulently); or because of errors, failures (whether mechanical or otherwise) or refusals by merchants, payment processors or payment schemes processing transactions. If we refuse to authorise a transaction, we will, if practicable, tell you why immediately unless it would be unlawful for us to do so. You may correct any information we hold and which may have caused us to refuse a transaction by contacting us on support@ecocard.com.
5. Authorising Transactions Subject to the features of the particular ECO Webcard, the authorisation of a transaction can include authorising any single transaction, a series or recurring transactions (including transactions for an indefinite period) or pre-authorising future transactions of a certain or uncertain amount. An ECO Webcard transaction will be regarded as authorised by you where you provide the ECO Webcard details and/ or provide any other details as requested. Authorisation for a transaction may not be withdrawn (or revoked) by you after the time it is received. However, the following transactions may be withdrawn if you give notice to the supplier (providing a copy of the notice to us): any transaction which is agreed to take place on a date later than the date it was authorised as long as notice was provided no later than the close of business on the business day before it was due to take place; We may charge you a fee if a transaction is revoked by you under this condition, please see our fees table in section 12 below. We will pay the funds required by the retailer or merchant to cover the transactions authorised by you within 3 days of us receiving their request. A transaction (the payment order) will be received as follows: for purchases, at the time we receive the transaction instruction from the merchant acquirer; for transactions which are communicated directly to us, at the time you ask us to complete the transaction. If, in relation to; purchases, we receive the transaction instruction from the merchant acquirer; or transactions communicated directly to us, you ask us to complete the transaction after 3pm GMT, the transaction instruction or request will be deemed to have been received by us on the following business day.
6. Cancellation and expiry of your ECO Webcard This agreement will continue indefinitely unless terminated. You have a legal right to cancel your ECO Webcard up to 14 days after you activate the ECO Webcard without being charged the redemption fee – this 14 day period is known as the “Cooling-Off Period”. Under these terms and conditions, you also have the right to cancel your ECO Webcard at any time after the 14 day Cooling-Off Period without notice and any funds remaining on your ECO Webcard will be returned to you within 5 days subject to satisfactory checks being completed. We may also cancel your agreement for any reason by giving you at least 2 month's notice: if this agreement or your card expires on a set date and we have not agreed to renew this Agreement; if you break an important part of this agreement, or repeatedly break the agreement and fail to resolve the matter in a timely manner; if you act in a manner that is threatening or abusive to our staff, or any or our representatives; if you fail to pay fees or charges that you have incurred or fail to put right any shortfall; in the event of your death. We may also cancel this agreement or suspend your card or account immediately if we believe your ECO Webcard is deliberately being used by you to commit fraud or for other illegal purposes. If we do this we will tell you as soon as we are permitted to do so. If we cancel your ECO Webcard you must tell us what you want us to do with any unused funds within 3 months of the date we tell you your ECO Webcard is cancelled. We can return the funds to the loading source, to a bank account in the same name as the ECO Webcard account or we can issue a cheque for your refund. Please note we will need to verify your identity in order to satisfy Anti Money Laundering requirements. If we receive no contact within three months, the funds will be returned to the loading source. If your ECO Webcard is cancelled, we will immediately block your ECO Webcard so it cannot be used. You will not be entitled to a refund of money you have already spent on transactions authorised, or pending or any fees for use of the ECO Webcard before the ECO Webcard is cancelled or expires. You can cancel your ECO Webcard from your EcoCard account or by sending an email to us using the “contact us” function on the Website. If you cancel your ECO Webcard, once all transactions and fees have been deducted, we will arrange for any unused funds to be refunded to you, see “Your Rights to Redemption of Funds and Refunding of Transactions on your ECO Webcard” section below for further information. A Redemption Fee may be charged (see Fees section below) unless you have arranged to transfer any unused funds to another prepaid Card managed by us, or you cancel your ECO Webcard within 14 days of activating it. Your ECO Webcard will be valid for 1 year. Shortly before expiry of your ECO Webcard, if you promptly confirm to us that you wish to receive a replacement card, you will then need to cancel your existing ECO Webcard and apply for a new ECO Webcard, then subject to receiving acceptable evidence of identity from you, we will issue a replacement card before expiry of your card. When we issue a replacement ECO Webcard we may charge a fee. Please see section 12 for a summary of fees.
7. Keeping your ECO Webcard secure You should treat your ECO Webcard details like cash. If they are lost or stolen, you may lose some or all of your money on your ECO Webcard, in the same way as if you lost cash in your wallet or purse. As a result, you must keep your ECO Webcard details safe and not let anyone else use them. We recommend that you check the balance on your ECO Webcard regularly online at the Website. We will provide you with your ECO Webcard balance and a statement of recent transactions either by electronic means or on our secure webpage at any time. Your statement will show: information relating to each ECO Webcard transaction which will enable it to be identified; the amount of the ECO Webcard transaction shown in the currency in which the transaction was paid or debited to the account; the amount of charges for the transaction; the date the transaction is authorised or posted on to the account.
8. Lost and stolen ECO Webcard and unauthorised or incorrectly executed payments You must tell us without undue delay by calling us on our 24 hour lost and stolen card helpline +44 (0) 871 898 1012 if you know or suspect that the ECO Webcard details are lost or stolen, or that the ECO Webcard details are known to an unauthorised person, or if you think a transaction has been incorrectly executed. We will refund any incorrectly executed transaction immediately unless we have any reason to believe that the incident has been caused by a breach of this agreement, gross negligence or we have reasonable grounds to suspect fraudulent activity. However, if the investigations show that any disputed transaction was authorised by you, or you have acted fraudulently or with gross negligence (for example by failing to keep your ECO Webcard details secure), you may be liable any loss we suffer because of the use of the ECO Webcard.
9. Our liability We will not be liable for any loss arising from: any cause which results from abnormal or unforeseen circumstances beyond our control, consequences which would have been unavoidable despite all our efforts to the contrary; or a retailer refusing to accept your ECO Webcard; or our compliance with legal and regulatory requirements; loss or corruption of data unless caused by our wilful default. We are also not liable for: business interruption, loss of revenue, goodwill, opportunity or anticipated savings; any indirect or consequential loss.
10. Your Rights to Redemption of Funds and Refunding of Transactions on your ECO Webcard Redeeming the funds on your ECO Webcard You have the right to redeem the funds on your ECO Webcard at any time in whole or in part. To do so, please either send us an e-mail using the "contact us" facility on the Website, requesting redemption and indicating the amount to be redeemed. When we process your redemption request, we may require you to provide us with documents such as identification so that we may process your request in accordance with legal requirements. We may also charge a redemption fee if one of the following circumstances applies: You are requesting redemption before termination or expiry of this agreement; You cancel this agreement before any agreed termination or expiry date; or You request redemption more than one year after the date of termination or expiry of this agreement. Please see section 12 for a summary of fees including redemption fees. We will not redeem the value of the funds on your card to you if your request for redemption of the funds is more than six years after the date of termination or expiry of this agreement. Refunding Transactions You may be entitled to claim a refund in relation to transactions where: the transactions was not authorised under this agreement; we are responsible for a transaction which was incorrectly executed notified us in accordance with section 8 above; a pre-authorised transaction did not specify the exact amount at the time of its authorisation and the amount charged by a supplier is more than you could reasonably have expected taking into account normal spending patterns on the ECO Webcard or the circumstances of the transaction. A claim for a refund in the circumstances set out above will not be accepted if the amount of the transaction was made available to you at least 4 weeks before the transaction date or it is made more than 8 weeks after being debited to your account. We were notified of the unauthorized/incorrectly executed transaction within 13 months of the debit date.
11. Changes to these Terms We may change these terms at any time by notifying you by e-mail or other agreed means at least 2 months before the change is due to take effect. The up-to-date version of the ECO Webcard terms and conditions will always be available on the Website. The change will automatically take effect and you will be taken to have accepted the notified change unless you tell us that you do not agree to the change. In that event, we will treat that notice as notification that you wish immediately to terminate. In such circumstances we will refund any balance on the card in accordance with section 10 above and you will not be charged a Refund Fee. We may make immediate changes to the exchange rate used to convert foreign transactions into Sterling. For all transactions made in a foreign currency you can find out what the applicable exchange rate was at the time of the transaction via the MasterCard website.
12. Fees and Usage Restrictions We do not charge any fees for checking your online balance and transactions. However the following fees do apply: On Application Service Card issue fee 2%, maximum charge €17.50, minimum charge €2.50 (includes activation and card load fee) Limits LOADS:- Minimum Single Load Value €10.00 Maximum Single Load Value €500.00 (depending on your account level) 3 Daily Loads per card USAGE:- Maximum of 2 cards in different currencies at the same time For full details please refer to the Terms & Conditions Ongoing Features Service Transaction Fees 2% on purchases (min €0.40 and max €10.00) 2.99% foreign exchange fee Card dormancy (if the card is unused after 6 months, a monthly fee is charged along with a management fee) €6.00 per month Card valid for 1 year If we decide to increase or impose any new fees, we will tell you by e-mail, text, or post, at least two months before any changes take effect. Authorisation will be requested for all transactions at the time of each transaction. In the unlikely event, for any reason whatsoever, a transaction is completed when there are insufficient funds on the ECO Webcard for that transaction (a "Shortfall"), the Shortfall shall be reimbursed by you unless it is due to an error on the part of the retailer where the ECO Webcard was presented, in this circumstance we may seek the Shortfall from the retailer. You agree that once we make this Shortfall known to you, we may charge you for the Shortfall amount. We may charge the amount of the shortfall from any other Prepaid Cards that you hold with us, to any other payment method which you may designate at that time, or against any funds which you may subsequently load onto your ECO Webcard or on any additional Prepaid Card ordered by you. Until we are reimbursed the Shortfall amount, we may suspend your ECO Webcard and any additional Prepaid Cards connected to you. In addition, we reserve the right to charge you an Administration Fee for each transaction that you make using your ECO Webcard that results in a Shortfall or increases the Shortfall amount on your ECO Webcard.
13. Your Details You must let us know as soon as possible if you change name, address, phone number or e-mail address. If we contact you in relation to your ECO Webcard, for example, to notify you that we have cancelled your ECO Webcard or to send you a refund by cheque, we will use the most recent contact details you have provided to us. Any e-mail to you will be treated as being received as soon as it is sent by us. We will not be liable to you if your contact details have changed and you have not told us.
14. Data Protection In purchasing the ECO Webcard on the Website and using it, you agree that we can use your personal information in accordance with our Privacy Policy. Our Privacy Policy is set out on our Website, it includes details of the personal information that we collect, how it will be used, and who we pass it to. You can tell us if you don't want to receive any marketing materials from us.
15. Disputes with Retailers If you have any disputes about purchases made using your ECO Webcard, you should settle these with the person you bought the goods or services from. We are not responsible for the quality, safety, legality or any other aspect of any goods or services purchased with your ECO Webcard. Remember that once you have used your ECO Webcard to make a purchase we cannot stop that transaction.
16. Communication If you have an enquiry relating to your ECO Webcard, you can use the "Contact Us" facility on the website. We will deal with your enquiry promptly. If you do not wish to enquire in this way you can alternatively call our customer service telephone line on + 44 (0) 871 898 1012 or if your card details have been stolen on +44 (0) 871 898 1012. The customer services telephone line is a chargeable service. Calls cost 25p per minute from a fixed BT landline. Call costs from other networks may vary.
17. Complaints The Online Prepaid Card programme is managed by Newcastle Building Society. If you are unhappy in any way with your ECO Webcard or the way it is managed, tell us by using the e-mail enquiry facility on the Website so we can investigate the circumstances for you. Any complaints you have will be dealt with quickly and fairly. You may be able to take unresolved complaints to the Financial Ombudsman Service at South Quay Plaza, 183 Marsh Wall, London E14 9SR. Telephone: 0845 080 1800 and e-mail: enquiries@financial-ombudsman.org.uk.
18. Compensation The ECO Webcard is an electronic money product and although it is a product regulated by the Financial Services Authority, it is not covered by the Financial Services Compensation Scheme. No other compensation scheme exists to cover losses claimed in connection with the ECO Webcard. This means that in the unlikely event that Newcastle Building Society becomes insolvent your funds may become valueless and unusable and as a result you may lose your money.
19. Assignment We may assign the benefit and burden of these terms and conditions to another company at any time, on giving you 2 month’s prior notice of this. If we do this, your rights will not be affected.
20. Transfer to a new Prepaid Card We may transfer your unused balance to a new Prepaid Card provided by a Prepaid Card issuer other than Newcastle Building Society at any time. Before we do this, we will give you 2 month's notice of the new Prepaid Card arrangements and the new Prepaid Card terms and conditions. Unless you advise us within the 2 month period that you do not want a new Prepaid Card from the new Prepaid Card issuer, you agree that we can automatically transfer the unused balance on your ECO Webcard to a new Prepaid Card provided by the new Prepaid Card issuer.
21. Governing Law This Agreement is concluded in English. All communications with you will be in English. These terms and conditions will be construed in accordance with English law.
22. Fund Protection As a responsible e-money issuer, Newcastle Building Society ensures that once it has received your funds they are deposited in a secure account, specifically for the purpose of redeeming transactions made by your ECO Webcard. In the event that Newcastle Building Society becomes insolvent funds that you have loaded which have arrived with and been deposited by Newcastle Building Society are protected against the claims made by creditors.
23. Prepaid Card Issuer Your ECO Webcard is issued by Newcastle Building Society (NBS) whose principal office is Portland House, New Bridge Street, Newcastle Upon Tyne, Tyne and Wear, NE1 8AL, which is authorised and regulated by the Financial Services Authority (registered number 156058) as a building society and an issuer of e-money. Your ECO Webcard is the property of Newcastle Building Society and is not transferable to anyone else.