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Bluebird

The basics:

Sign up for a free account from Bluebird. Wait 7-10 business days to receive the card. If you have a Serve account, you will need to cancel it and then wait about 30 days before signing up. You need to wait for your physical BB card before you can proceed here.

Please note: As of the beginning of July 2014, you can load a maximum of $2500 a day at a WM register or ATM, up to $5,000 each calendar month into your Bluebird (hereafter: "BB") account. As of September 4, 2014, you can also load an additional $200/day with a debit card, up to $1000/month, though this might be risky, see below, II.4.

You can find answers to many questions here: https://www.bluebird.com/faqs?linknav=us-Prepaid-Bluebird-Home-Faqs#bluebird-checks And here: https://www.bluebird.com/ (just scroll down instead of clicking 'log in')

How to load it:

"Gift" cards (GCs)
Mastercard (MC) and Visa GCs have PIN codes that will make the cards function as debit cards. GCs may be used to load up your BB account in any Walmart, as will be explained below, or to get cash back when purchasing with them. Note that not all GCs work this way. Those from Metabank do, as do others. AMEX GCs are not capable of working with a PIN. They can only be used as gift cards. GCs for a specific business or store (iTunes or Home Depot or whatever) will never work in the ways described here. Note that 'Vanilla' brand GCs can no longer  be loaded to BB.

1. Buy Visa or MC GCs. The larger the denomination the better, since the fee-to-balance ratio will be better. Buy them anywhere, but you get the most out of this if you buy them with a CC that pays more than 1 point per dollar at that store at that time.

2. You will need a PIN for each GC. If you bought a MC GC, call the number on the back of the card or go online to set a PIN. If you bought a Visa, the last four digits of the card number will usually work, as long as you have not used the card yet. If you have used it, you had to set a PIN, so use that.
The # for US Bank MC Gift Cards is 1-866-952-5653. 1/2/<16 digit cc>#/<3 digits from back>#/3/PIN#/PIN#.

3. Go to Walmart (WM).

There are two suggested ways to load the GCs to BB at WM. Via a MoneyPass ATM (preferred) or via any cashier. Neither method charges an additional fee to what you paid when you bought the card. Please do not go to the service desk. Certainly do not refer to the GCs as gift cards, as they are, in fact, debit cards.

3a. MoneyPass ATMs

Not all WMs have MoneyPass ATMs, and MoneyPass ATMs at non-WM locations will not work to load BB. You can search for MoneyPass ATMs at WMs here: http://www.moneypass.com/atm-locator.aspx

Some report that MoneyPass ATMs in WMs near areas with high concentrations of DDFers seem to be permanently out of service. You may need to go farther afield or use the other method, mentioned below.

Follow the instructions on the machine to load your BB card. In some cases, the "WM Money Card" option will work for BB as well. Be patient and careful with your card swipes, as the machines are often slow or touchy. Each GC will be a separate transaction. Remember, the maximum of $2,500/day per BB account always applies.

If you are using high-denomination GCs, have found a very quick ATM, had a fellow BBer ahead of you, or are just experienced and able to complete each transaction very quickly, it is possible that you will complete $2,000 of transactions within about 10 minutes, which locks up the ATM for a while. Take a walk around the store and come back to let the machine unlock.

3b. Cashier

Please remember to be friendly, considerate and compassionate in all your interactions.

Ask a cashier to load your BB account from a debit card. If they don't know how, tell them to use 70 action code (they may need to type 70 first, followed by "action code") and follow the instructions on their screen. They are able to split a single transaction into up to four different cards, but it can be simpler to add one GC at a time, especially with people waiting behind you on line. You can then go back around to the same or another cashier to add other cards. Again, the $2,500/day per BB account applies.

This method should work at any WM - as intended by the BB product - but there are many stores in which some or all of the staff and management are suspicious of such transactions and will not do it. Your chances of convincing them to do something they think will risk their jobs is slim to none so if you encounter such resistance, please: Do take no for an answer and leave courteously to try another store or another day.
You want to stay under the radar as much as possible, so if things start getting complicated, tell them that you just remembered that you need to pick your kid up from school or whatever (have a good excuse ready beforehand) and that you need to leave, but you'll be back later. Th is way they forgot about their suspicions much faster.

4. It is apparently possible to load up to $200 per day to BB from debit cards on the BB web site for free, up to $1000 per month. Please note that people have had their BB accounts frozen or shut down for using GCs to load BB online, and that the BB site clearly says that any debit card used must be in the BB account holder's name. You have been warned.

Using A MC GC
Frequently a MC is declined at WM

When using the moneypass ATM, press the button ABOVE the BB button.  It may work without the following workaround.
The workaround is to:
1. Swipe MC
2.If you have the black and green screen press Cancel.If you have the white screen with colored touch icons, then right after you swipe a yellow 'change payment' button well pop up for a second, press that (you have to be fast).  You can also push the physical yellow button on the keypad. It does the same thing.
3. Select Debit
4. No Cash Back
5. Enter the PIN

Also seems to work if only $99 loaded.  or 99.99, too.

What to do with the money on your BB:

On the BB site, money can be sent to pay bills that don't normally accept CCs (think rent/mortgage, tuition, insurance, car payment, gas bill, even pay your cc bill) or to anyone in the U.S. for free. Use the 'pay and transfer tab'.  Checks sent online this way are delivered within 5 business days. (It may be prudent not to use BB to directly pay the CC on which you purchased the VRs/GCs that funded BB, but, once again, YMMV.)

Some people would rather use the free physical checks that you can order from BB. Please note that these checks need to be pre-authorized by you online, and a number written on them, before you give them to the person/institution you are paying. For checks of more than $2,000, authorization will require additional information and time. You need to provide the information and wait for confirmation before the check will be valid.

The money in your BB account can be withdrawn directly to a linked bank account, which, if done too much, may be seen as risky by BB, but in moderation should be fine. You can also send money to your bank account online by check, same as any other payee, but this might be risky from the perspective of the bank (not BB) if you bank and have CCs at the same institution.

Useful organizing techniques:

It can be unwieldy and confusing when standing in front of the WM ATM with a BB card or two and a bunch of GCs, some used, some not. The last thing anyone wants is to end up throwing away several hundred dollars on a perfectly good GC because you mistakenly thought it was drained. I'm sure there are contributors to this thread who have woken up in a cold sweat from just such a nightmare. Plus, being unorganized costs you time, and may make it more likely that some employee thinks you are up to something. Here are a few strategies for how to be organized.

1. Cargo pants, or other clothing/accessories with plenty of different pockets. Use different pockets for GCs yet to use and used GCs.

2. If you have more than one BB card, shuffle them into the stack of GCs at the appropriate spots for how many GCs you plan to load to each card. That way, you can just work through the stack and finish/begin each new BB card in turn.

3. A Sharpie marker works well for marking off GCs or BBs that you're done with. The marks even come off the cards with a little alcohol. Careful not to mark yourself or your clothes though.

4. Sort your GCs in ascending order of last 4 digits.  That makes it easier to keep track of which GCs are used.

To Close Your Bluebird:
While logged into your BB account, open this page: https://secure.bluebird.com/Profile/CloseAccount   

This no longer works and the only way to close your account is to call
For more details, including how to close family accounts, see (FM writeup)
« Last edited by justmeha on January 11, 2020, 11:55:46 PM »

Author Topic: Bluebird: Now you can pay bills that don`t take credit card with a credit card  (Read 2264029 times)

Offline glasses dude

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is there any reason not to pay my amex bill with bluebird? If yes has anyone tried sending a check to there spouse , cashing it out and sending amex a money order for payment? Would love to hear any available info. Thank you
why cash it out and send a mo,once your cashing it out you could send a regular check

Offline Chdayshc

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When buying a lot of reloads on my amex card and then loading them on to bluebird and then paying with bluebird the same Amex bill. Don't they realize since the whole thing is going through Amex?

Offline Thingywingy

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Exactly. I'm working on Dividend targeted 5% for this quarter.
Isnt it home furnishing, home & garden, and Home Depot this quarter?
I am sometimes accused of overthinking things. I am still mulling over whether that accusation has merit.

Offline ckmk47

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Isnt it home furnishing, home & garden, and Home Depot this quarter?

Chase freedom 5% this quarter is :  restaurants, movie theaters and Lowe's
My favorite cause: cssy.org

Offline itsyehuda

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Isnt it home furnishing, home & garden, and Home Depot this quarter?

Yes. I received a targeted offer that gives me restaurants and drugstores and grocery stores as well.
I remember when a coke was a nickel, and you could buy VRs in OD.

Offline glasses dude

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You don't need a reason. You can even do it online.
i added another adress but its still saying zip codes dont match dunno

Offline glasses dude

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Chase freedom 5% this quarter is :  restaurants, movie theaters and Lowe's
hes not talking about the freedom

Offline Centro

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A VR is loadable on line.  If I find a store with VRs I can buy several (with different cc's ) and load it on line at home. The $1000 daily limit only requires me to sit back down at my computer daily. (ha ha)  A GC requires a trip to Walmart (I don't have a walmart nearby ) , and the daily limit of $1000 means a new trip.

So VRs are much more convenient, but if I'll be near a Walmart, I bring GCs and make sure to stop by.
You cant just cash out any gc at any ATM?

Offline Zevwolf

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Offline Centro

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Offline metziah

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A VR is loadable on line.  If I find a store with VRs I can buy several (with different cc's ) and load it on line at home. The $1000 daily limit only requires me to sit back down at my computer daily. (ha ha)  A GC requires a trip to Walmart (I don't have a walmart nearby ) , and the daily limit of $1000 means a new trip.

Not if you go at 12ish😃

Offline yitzf

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Not if you go at 12ish😃

You mean 1ish. That's the daily cutoff time.

Offline metziah

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You mean 1ish. That's the daily cutoff time.
Right😳 thanx for correction

Offline Thingywingy

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Right now,  without the freedom 5% bonus on Drugstores, it's not as appealing unless you need to meet a minimum spend. Also, it's something to think about, explaining to your CC company why you spend 5K a month at CVS!

YOu can buy the same GCs at stop and shop and it makes a lot more sense to be spending so high at a supermarket than a CVS. SO unless it's giving me extra bonus category or it's something like a VR that I can't buy elsewhere, I'd rather not buy it at CVS.
Can anyone confirm if Stop & Shop in Howell carries Ine Vanilla GC? It would also be a way to avoid $1000 day limit at CVS as there are many cashiers.
I am sometimes accused of overthinking things. I am still mulling over whether that accusation has merit.

Offline yitzf

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Can anyone confirm if Stop & Shop in Howell carries Ine Vanilla GC? It would also be a way to avoid $1000 day limit at CVS as there are many cashiers.

They don't let you buy the variable load gift cards with a CC.

Offline EJB

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I never realized how many VRs there are outside the NYC area. Just went to a CVS in orlando to find the shelves packed with 50 of them. Well, 48 now.

Offline glasses dude

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I never realized how many VRs there are outside the NYC area. Just went to a CVS in orlando to find the shelves packed with 50 of them. Well, 48 now.
yups the joys of goin out of town

Offline DovtheBear

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yups the joys of livin out of town
FTFY  8)
"להסתובב זה לא אומר להיות חופשי"

Offline est

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its now 1:30 am - about 4 hrs into reading im really getting dizzy!!

bottom line i hve $8,000 to spend on amex and $11,000 to spend on various chase - best way to go about?

would seem to me i should just buy $11,000 of chase gc and cash out in walmart - is there such a thing as getting closed or fr by chase?
does the lakewood walmart cooperate? so for chase vanilla reloads are a thing of the past for those that have access to walmart?

for amex i should go slow and do a combination of vr, ap and everyday spend?

why is gw different than ap? am I better off with that?

Offline Saver2000

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its now 1:30 am - about 4 hrs into reading im really getting dizzy!!

bottom line i hve $8,000 to spend on amex and $11,000 to spend on various chase - best way to go about?

would seem to me i should just buy $11,000 of chase gc and cash out in walmart - is there such a thing as getting closed or fr by chase?
does the lakewood walmart cooperate? so for chase vanilla reloads are a thing of the past for those that have access to walmart?

for amex i should go slow and do a combination of vr, ap and everyday spend?

why is gw different than ap? am I better off with that?
For your own sake, did you read the wiki?