Some of the other bank cards carry fees that become scary. The iCARD Visa Gift Card imposes a $25.00 maintenance fee after six months and then it expires a month later. It will cost at least $25.00 to get the balance refunded by check and can cost up to $75.00 if one waits over two years to request a refund. The processing charge to purchase All-Access Visa Prepaid Card and the Good2Go MasterCard is $9.95 and both of these cards offer confusing options during online activation that could end up costing consumers a lot more.

States have been very active in passing legislation restricting the various dormancy and expiration fees imposed by many card issuers (Consumers Union has a pdf summary). Some merchants and malls have made legal claims that state laws don't apply to them since the ultimate issuer of their cards is a national bank, but the OCC, normally a fierce protector of whatever national banks want to do, has sided with the states.