Teaching children about money management can be a challenging task for parents. It’s important to educate kids on the value of money and saving, all whilst giving them the freedom to spend their hard-earned money on the things that they enjoy. That’s where prepaid cards for children and teens come in.

As we move closer towards a more cashless society, it’s essential that children are educated on how debit cards and current accounts work, as well as how to use them responsibly.

With the help of the icount prepaid Mastercard®, you can add up to four additional cardholders to your account. This is a great option for giving children pocket money, teaching them to budget and keeping an eye on their spending via the Cashplus mobile app.

In this guide, we’ll go through everything you need to know about prepaid cards and current accounts for kids, and how the icount prepaid MasterCard® could benefit you and your family finances.

What is the minimum age to be able to apply for a prepaid debit card & current account in the UK?

The age limit for current accounts in the UK is 16, however, if you want to open one on your child’s behalf, some banks offer children’s current accounts for those aged between 11 and 18. On the other hand, the age limit for prepaid debit card accounts is 18, however, you can get additional cards for children as young as the age of six from some providers.

A number of providers will also supply contactless cards for under 18s, however, this will vary from bank to bank.

How old do you need to be to apply for an icount prepaid Mastercard® & current account?

You need to be at least 18 years old to apply for an icount prepaid Mastercard® and current account. However, this doesn’t mean that you can’t use an icount card for you and your family.

As mentioned earlier, you can add up to 4 additional cardholders to your existing icount account, and these cards can be used by anyone aged 13 and over. You can use the additional cards as a pocket money card, to give your children spends and help them with budgeting and saving.

With the icount card, you only spend what you load onto the card, therefore you don’t have to worry about your kids running up large bills with their spending! As well as this, you can use the Cashplus app to monitor both your children’s and your own spending, giving you greater control over your family finances.

Benefits of prepaid cards for children

The icount prepaid Mastercard® is a great tool for both adults and children to utilise. By teaching the whole family about money management, you can work towards a healthy relationship with money and a brighter financial future. Here are just a few benefits of prepaid cards for children.

• They provide a fun way to pay pocket money (kids may even appreciate it more!).

• You can teach your children good money habits by using the card to help them budget.

• With prepaid cards, you cannot go over a certain limit, so your kids can’t run up big bills on the card.

• Children can manage their own finances on the app, helping them to learn more about money management.
• You can see where your children are spending money and what they’re spending it on.

Teaching your children about money

Recent research by the Office for National Statistics shows that, on average, children aged 15 years spend triple the amount that a seven year old would spend in a week! As well as this, the top spending category for spending for children aged 7 to 15 was clothes and shoes.

To cut the cost of your kids’ weekly spending, we’ve put together some top tips for teaching budgeting to children, that they can use with their icount card:

Teach kids to save up by doing chores

If your kids feel like their weekly budget is slightly restrictive, teach them that they can earn extra money by doing small jobs around the house! This will not only help you keep your home looking nice and tidy, it’ll also help to teach kids the value of money.

Draw up a mini budget

Drawing up a mini budget is a great way to teach kids how to save and allocate their weekly spends. You can even split spending into essentials and non-essentials, so that they can prioritise their funds and save for fun treats.

For more financial guidance and money-saving advice, visit our money guides for our exclusive tips and tricks.