Interesting banking industry practice uncovered.

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Forums › Finance and wealth management › Interesting banking industry practice uncovered.

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#3438653 30-Nov-2025 09:58

michaelmurfy:

It doesn't matter if you change your card / card number etc as that token will never change as it is linked to your card account number with the bank.

That is a very valuable piece of information, which I can't say I have ever seen mentioned in plain English in any of my card's terms and conditions or in any dialogue with my Banks.

Having been in a similar situation in the past as the OP, this fact was never explained to me by the Bank at that time (one of the big four), indeed I was told that simply replacing the card with a new one would stop automatic charges / debits coming through, while still allowing any credits processed against and old / cancelled card to still appear on the new card's account. Clearly that advice about stopping debits to the card from the Bank was wrong.

It is now obvious that while the Bank / card issuer does not provide the actual card details to any merchant, their processes still allow all subsequent charges to be processed to your card's account until you actually close it. Thank you @michaelmurfy for that insight.

sqishy

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#3438689 30-Nov-2025 12:00

I’ve worked in banking for years, and at the end of the day, cardholders are protected. These old transactions are often not caused by tokenization issues or by the bank notifying other banks that a card has been replaced. It may sound strange, but it usually comes from a merchant or billing file that still holds your old card number. The bank then assigns those charges to your current card account.

Ultimately, the issue is expected to be resolved within 30 working days. Many banks now simply cancel and reissue a new card — it’s inconvenient, I know, but it’s often the most efficient way for them to handle the situation.

This type of problem commonly shows up with charities and other recurring payments.

alasta

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#3438693 30-Nov-2025 12:12

I have been helping a friend with her budgeting. She struggles with managing money and has a tendency to subscribe to all sorts of weird recurring charges.

I had always assumed that a one-off cleanup could be done by simply cancelling her existing credit card and getting a new one. My thinking was that it would effectively cancel all recurring subscriptions and allow her to start from scratch, but that appears not to be the case.

It is going to be a huge task to identify all individual recurring charges, attempt to cancel each one, and raise a dispute with the bank wherever vendors are uncontactable or refuse to comply with cancellation requests. Perhaps it would be easier to just cancel the card and not replace it? Living without a credit card might be better for her from a financial discipline perspective anyway.

MichaelNZ

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#3438696 30-Nov-2025 12:38

OldGeek:

I had an annual subscription with merchant A, based in Dublin. They billed a renewal to a credit card number that had been cancelled (0866), without any prior warning and at double the rate of the previous year. If I had known about this prior to the renewal date I would have cancelled before the renewal date. No notification was received, either before or after the transaction was processed. A uses payment provider B.

I agree with the other posters. You chose not to cancel and it renewed. No case here.

OldGeek:

Wow - a minefield. So I intend to do 2 things:

Pursue this through the banking ombudsman, and if necessary through the Privacy Commissioner. Generally I am up for not letting go when it comes to banking practices I disapprove of..

And this probably fall over because they haven't shared your new details - or if they have - you agreed to it in the T&C's.

The only point I can see here which might prevail is if the merchant made it hard to cancel.

I suggest this is best resolved by contacting the merchant first and seeing if you can cancel the subscription and get a refund assuming this is a very recent renewal.

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OldGeek

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#3438746 30-Nov-2025 13:13

Update 1: did I consent to Visa Account Updates (VAU) being issued to allow my new card to be used in place of my cancelled card. Looking through the ANZ NZ credit card terms and conditions, and the ANZ NZ privacy policy, there are several generic references to organisations that may include the VAU. My case with the Banking Ombudsman should clarify whether the VAU is the cause of the problem, and whether I agreed to its use (or not). Note that this is just advisory to anyone interested in detail on this.

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PolicyGuy

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#3438749 30-Nov-2025 14:10

This issue has also come up on the RNZ "Ask Susan" financial advice column, it's the third issue here: https://www.rnz.co.nz/news/business/580413/my-daughter-has-moved-to-the-uk-what-happens-to-her-kiwisaver-ask-susan. Perhaps it's going to start to get some air in the MSM now.

TL;DR: the column IMO simply uncritically restates the banks' & Visa's position that "this is how it works nowadays"

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richms

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#3438751 30-Nov-2025 14:24

If they are going to generate tokens that are then used to charge the account, its almost like the card and the numbers on it is just a relic of a past era that are not needed anymore.

Richard rich.ms

yitz

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#3438794 30-Nov-2025 19:43

Is this something that is going to get worse with open banking or will it help to get better?

michaelmurfy

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#3438853 30-Nov-2025 20:39

yitz: Is this something that is going to get worse with open banking or will it help to get better?

Open Banking has nothing to do with this.

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eracode

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#3438856 30-Nov-2025 21:11

alasta:

Perhaps it would be easier to just cancel the card and not replace it? Living without a credit card might be better for her from a financial discipline perspective anyway.

Maybe cancel the card at her existing bank - as above. Then, if she really needs or wants a card, get a new one from another bank and/or different card company - and start completely afresh.

Sometimes I just sit and think. Other times I just sit.

cddt

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#3438869 1-Dec-2025 06:57

ANglEAUT:

mudguard: ... Surely if you can sign up to it, you can cancel it too?

Very often, that is not the case.

When Websites Make It Hard to Cancel... - StaySafeOnline.org
‘Too hard to cancel’ – global spotlight on subscriptions and use of online choice architecture - WynnWilliams.co.nz

That was my thought too. I was in a queue in a bank behind an older gentleman who was requesting that his credit card be cancelled. Overhearing the discussion, he explained that he was still getting charged for Netflix, but he didn't have an account (possibly a grandchild used his device and signed up with a saved credit card number) so couldn't cancel it, he had already been to the bank and had the card replaced, but since the charge was still coming through he was just done with having a credit card full stop.

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richms

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#3438893 1-Dec-2025 09:49

eracode:

Maybe cancel the card at her existing bank - as above. Then, if she really needs or wants a card, get a new one from another bank and/or different card company - and start completely afresh.

With how hard getting cards are thanks to obnoxious over regulation now, I would not suggest cancelling any form of card anywhere since there is a good chance you would not pass their tests to get another one elsewhere.

Richard rich.ms

duckDecoy

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#3439065 1-Dec-2025 16:51

freitasm:

Imagine the inconvenience of changing a card number because of fraud (usually one off, unauthorised transactions) and having the legwork to change the card number everywhere - ISP, electricity, water, streaming services, insurance, etc.

I had no idea this was a thing. Whenever I have changed my card or had one expire I have sat down and contacted everyone to update my details.

freitasm

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#3439069 1-Dec-2025 17:02

duckDecoy:

freitasm:

Imagine the inconvenience of changing a card number because of fraud (usually one off, unauthorised transactions) and having the legwork to change the card number everywhere - ISP, electricity, water, streaming services, insurance, etc.

I had no idea this was a thing. Whenever I have changed my card or had one expire I have sat down and contacted everyone to update my details.

As discussed, not every company uses this system. Some will fail when the number changes, large ones will have an authorisation token and keep charging, so service is not interrupted.

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bigreddog

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#3439073 1-Dec-2025 17:20

I guess this explains why my NZTA Toll Road account happily continues to take my money even with the credit card on my account showing an expiry of Oct-2021.

Is the list of organisations that can do this available anywhere?

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