Most online casinos are Maestro casinos but beware charges

Most of our regular readers here at onlinecasino.ie will know that we are constantly warning about the additional charges associated with using a credit card as an online casino deposit option. We always advise that online casino games players who wish to fund their casino games using plastic should use a debit card or open an e-wallet account which they can fund in any way they choose without suffering unnecessary surcharges. Unfortunately for Irish customers with debit cards issued by the Irish banks carrying the Maestro symbol, the debit card symbol issued by Mastercard, there can be problems. Although most online casinos do claim to be Maestro casinos and accept the Maestro card as a deposit option, in Ireland Maestro debit card transactions are usually processed through the Laser credit card system which unfortunately means that any transaction involving gambling may attract the same penalties associated with using a credit card. Incidentally the Maestro debit card can also cause problems when used outside of Ireland for other purposes, because the chip can often not be read by some machines. If we return to the choice of deposit options to fund playing online casino games, whilst the Maestro debit card is certainly better than using a credit card it is best used to fund an e-wallet such as Pay Pal or Neteller rather than as a direct method of payment. You will not incur the additional charges and will retain your personal privacy and security using this method of managing your online casino account. Please give it some thought before you make your decision regarding your deposit options.