This whole dicussion brings up a good point. Debit cards are great for banks and horrible for consumers. Why?

1. You don't get the $50 limit if it is stolen. So you're out instead of the bank.

2. If you have overdraft protection, you can deplete your savings or go in debt because someone stole your card. Again, you owe and the bank is out nothing.

We got a debit card as a replacement for the ATM card. It assured us that we didn't have to worry because we would be required to provide our PIN each time. To date the only time I've been asked for my PIN is at the ATM. All other transactions go through. Hmmm, where's my banks phone number?!

Debit cards - bad.

Cash - good.