The first thing to understand is that Western Union is TARGET #1 when it comes to fraud. Once money transfers, it is impossible to reverse the transaction, since the cash has already been given out. Still, Western Union is subject to the SAME CHARGEBACK rules as any other merchant. So, they have one of the toughest security programs checking each new transaction that involves a credit card.
They check to see that your name and address are known to the credit bureaus. They check fraud databases. They check your credit rating. Sometimes, they even check your banking history.
If you have bad credit, you will be declined.
If you have a short credit file, you will be declined.
If you have a habit of bouncing checks, you will be declined.
If your phone number does not match the utilities database, you will be declined.
If anything at all is suspicious about the transaction, you will be declined.
The above is not an exhaustive list of their security procedures, but it might give you an idea of why you were declined. Don't feel bad, a LOT OF PEOPLE are declined. Probably the majority.
Now, if you walk into a currency exchange that is a Western Union agent, with CASH, then none of that matters. Currency exchanges will NOT take a credit card for Western Union payments. They DO usually have an ATM setup where you can use your PIN number to get cash to make the transfer.
That type of transfer is a lot less risky for Western Union.
Last edited by jeffweico; 11-18-2012 at 07:24 PM.
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