Do Credit Cards Work After Being Washed?
Credit Cards are often thought to be almost nearly indestructible. They are incredibly resilient and have a capacity for withstanding being used regularly without easily breaking. However, they can also end up in a bad condition and not work as well as they should do.
This is why you must make sure to check your credit card regularly to see whether it is in a good condition or not.
Not only that, but it is also always a good idea to check whether or not you know what can do the most harm to a credit card. Credit cards shouldn’t be taken for granted.
If you do something that makes your credit card not work as well as it should do then you will not only feel ashamed of yourself for letting this happen but also frustrated that you could have done something to prevent your card getting damaged and didn’t.
This is where this article comes in. It will set out what exactly can damage a credit card and how to avoid doing it.
It will answer questions like do credit cards work after being washed and how to avoid making the same mistakes as other people who have ended up ruining their credit cards.
What Kind Of Things Can Damage Your Credit Card?
Whilst your credit card is made and designed to be very resilient it doesn’t mean that things can’t harm it or break it. Let’s run down some of the things that can damage your credit card.
There are a few things that can easily damage your credit card and render it inoperable.
One of the worst offenders is exposure to magnets. Magnets you see can interfere with the credit card’s own magnetic strip and can therefore make your credit card as useful as a stick of cotton candy when it comes to paying for bills or groceries.
This is why it is important to keep your credit card as far away from strong magnets as possible.
Another thing that can seriously damage your credit card is dirt. Dirt may seem harmless enough, particularly when compared with the strong thick plastic of a credit card, however, it can quite easily harm it and harm it permanently.
If dirt gets too encased on the magnetic strip on the chip on the card, then it can become ineffective because card readers won’t be able to recognize the card’s details and will therefore not allow you to take any money out using it or to pay for anything with it.
Whilst dirt shouldn’t be a serious problem, as in most cases it can be wiped off your credit card and thus make the card usable again, scratches are far more serious.
Scratches can easily occur on your card if you have your card in your trouser pocket alongside your car keys or alongside something else that is metallic and can scratch the plastic on the card.
Scratches on cards can be perhaps one of the most serious types of damage because, unlike dirt, it isn’t a situation that can be easily fixed after being wiped over.
A nasty scratch on the front or back of your card can render it entirely unusable and thus force you to call your credit provider and order another card.
Now that we’ve addressed some of the main causes of damage to your cards, let’s examine the main solution – keep your card safely in your wallet all the time unless you are using it.
It is incredibly easy to forget to put your card back into your wallet, but you must always do so because it is the main way you can prevent it getting seriously damaged.
Do Credit Cards Work After Being Washed?
When you believe that your credit card has been damaged, particularly by something like dirt or oil, one of your first instincts might be to go and wash it. However, you might wonder whether washing your credit card might cause more trouble than you bargained for.
So, you might rightly ask – do credit cards work after being washed?
The answer is yes, usually. If you wash your credit card after it has got dirty and gently dry it then you will more likely than not find a fully functioning card in your hand. However, the issue comes if your credit card has been left in an item of clothing in the washing machine.
If your credit card is in your trouser pockets in your washing machine it could end up getting damaged, however, if it isn’t then it will still likely work. If, however, you put your credit card in your trouser pocket into a tumble dryer then you will be in serious trouble.
The heat of a dryer usually melts or at least softens the magnetic strip on the back of your credit card making it unusable.
This is why you should always ensure that your credit card is in a safe place and not lying around on top of a table or in a pair of pants ready to get washed. It is so easy for your credit card to get damaged which can have a detrimental impact on your life.
This is why you should always make sure you look after your credit card.
The Importance Of Credit Card Care
Credit cards seems invincible but as has been shown in this piece they clearly are not. They can be easily damaged, whether via dirt or via grime or even accidents with a dryer. You may think that this doesn’t matter in the long run because they can be easily replaced.
Whilst it is true that if you damage your credit card it can be easily replaced, it is also certain to cause a disruption in your life.
In the world that we live in, surely it is better the minimize the number of disruptions that you face. Surely it is better to ensure that you don’t suffer any inconvenience at all?
This is why you should ensure that you look after your credit card because by not properly looking after it you are certain to only make lifer harder for you than easier.
