UPside 101

UPside is an online service accompanied by a Visa ^®prepaid card for teens and students to manage money received from parents and jobs without having to open a bank account or get a credit card.

Once the money has been loaded onto the card, it can be spent online and in the physical world at more than 20 million merchants worldwide. The card can also be used to withdraw cash at the tens of thousands of ATMs which have the Interlink or Cirrus logos. In a nutshell, it combines the safety of an FDIC-insured bank and the universality of the Visa^® network, with the flexibility of an online service specifically designed for the younger generation and their family.

As a bonus, unlike many other bank accounts and debit cards, UPside provides a members-only rewards program called UPoints…specially designed to reward cardholders quicker.

The Card

The UPside Visa^® prepaid card is not a credit card: you can only spend the money that has been loaded beforehand into the UPside card account. There is no credit card bill to pay at the end of the month, no late fees, no risk of going into debt.

If you loose the card, you don’t loose the money in the UPside card account: as long as you notify us promptly of a loss or theft, the money is 100% safe.

Our cardholders have a voice: The card comes in different colors and designs. And UPside members can submit their ideas for the Create-A-Card contest; the winning design gets printed for the next set of UPside cards.

Getting the Card

There is no need to find a bank branch, wait in line or fill out any paperwork. Enrollment in the UPside service is done online and the UPside Visa ^®prepaid card is received directly by mail.

Anyone 13 or older can sign-up for the card. For those under 18, a parent or guardian is needed to complete registration.

It’s only $4.95 to try with no commitment or pay just $24.95 for an annual plan. Registering is easy…just five minutes and you’re set.

Accessing the Service

UPside is accessible 24 hours a day, 7 days a week via the Internet and by phone.
In fact, two websites are provided:

• one for loading money, requesting a card, monitoring the available balance and watching the expenses; this site is used by parents or anyone above 18.
• one also for verifying the available balance and the past expenses, as well as monitoring UPoints earned with the Rewards Program, exchanging UPoints for cash back or reward certificates, referring friends, participating in votes and contests, and more; this site is used by the cardholders.

For cell phone users, a simplified version of the UPside cardholder site can be accessed from any browser-equipped mobile phone, to check the balance and suspend the card immediately if it has been lost or stolen.

And, for the security-conscious, email alerts can also be received when the balance gets too low or when certain transactions are detected.

Loading Money

Money can be loaded onto an UPside card by:

• Transferring money from an existing credit card or checking account. This is usually done by a parent or guardian using one of his/her credit cards or bank accounts. Loading money from credit cards or bank accounts can be done on the Internet or by phone. Regular allowances can be programmed on the website, for example to load $100 from a bank account onto the UPside card the first day of each month.
• Requesting an employer to deposit onto the card part or all of the money earned through a job. A voided check with a direct deposit account number corresponding to the card can be printed at home from the website and given to the employer to have him/her deposit the money.
• Loading funds from a checking or savings account takes 4-5 business days. Loading funds from a credit or debit card is instantaneous

Safe and Secure

If an urgent need arises on the road to fill up the gas tank or a train ticket home, money is only a phone call away to initiate an instant value load from a credit card.

If the card is misplaced, lost or stolen, your teen can suspend it immediately with one click on their cell phone’s Internet browser. No one can use the card until it is unsuspended by you, the account owner.
If it is lost, simply order a replacement. Your money is secure and you have no liability.

UPoints Rewards Program

UPside enables you to earn UPoints that can be exchanged for cash back, electronic reward certificates from major online merchants.
Earning UPoints is easy:

• loading money onto the card earns 1 UPoint per dollar (UPside Edge only)
• successfully referring a friend who signs up for the UPside service earns 500 UPoints
• additional offers like the Create-A-Card contest and “Purchase of the Month” gives extra UPoints
• and with the UPside Mall shopping from one of the many featured online stores will earn up to 12 UPoints per dollar spent

How much does it cost?

UPside is cheaper than most prepaid cards and traditional banking debit cards. Two plans are available for the UPside service:

• The no-commitment, UPside Access Plan where a service charge of $0.99 is payable every month, and a $0.99 fee is applied when reloading the card from a checking account; in this plan, a one-time activation fee of $4.95 is paid to start the service.
• UPside Edge is an annual-renewal plan available for $24.95 a year with no activation fee, no monthly fee, and free unlimited reloads from a checking account.

See the details of each plan below:

PLAN OPTIONS	UPside Access	UPside Edge
Activation fee	$4.95	FREE
Yearly fee	None	$24.95
Monthly maintenance fee	$0.99 each month	NO FEE
Transactional fee on purchases	NONE. UNLIKE OTHER PREPAID CARD PROGRAMS, UPSIDE DOES NOT AND WILL NEVER CHARGE A FEE ON PURCHASES MADE WITH THE CARD.
Reloading money through the UPside website or by phone
Reload fee from a checking account	$0.99	FREE (unlimited)
Credit card reload fee (used primarily for instant funding for emergencies or last-minute reloads)	$2.50 convenience fee
Using ATMs
Cash Withdrawal	$1.49
Balance inquiry	$0.99
Placing phone inquiries
Inquiries from cell phone browser	FREE WITH NO MONTHLY LIMITS
Voice inquiries	$0.99 per call	FREE for the first call each month. Additional calls are $0.99 per call.
In those rare instances...
Changing the PIN by phone	First change is free; additional changes: $0.99
Need to replace a card?	Deliver by standard postal service: $6.95
	Deliver by Express Mail: $14.95 surcharge
Overdraft fee	$3.00
Decline fee on payment or ATM withdrawal	$2.00
Decline fee if reload from checking account bounces back	$10.00
Foreign currency conversion	2% (in addition to Visa commission)

For example, over one year, a cardholder on UPSIDE EDGE with 2 reloads every month from a checking account, 2 occasional reloads from a credit card and one phone inquiry every month will be charged $29.95 in total.