I'm trying to help a relative who will be getting out of jail soon. He'll have nothing, and one thing I want to give him is a prepaid debit card or another way for him to access a few hundred dollars to get him started. It looked like a prepaid debit card was the best option, and Bluebird looked like the best prepaid debit card, with no fees as long as you use only MoneyPass ATMs and avoid the deposit methods that incur fees.

I had thought that prepaid debit cards were blank cards that you could give to anyone, that it was like giving cash but with a piece of plastic and a PIN. But when I went to order one, I saw that the person's name goes on the card. And one of the questions was for the person's SSN.

Bluebird also has sub-accounts, and maybe that's what I need, with this person having access only to a sub account. Another concern is that I want to be able to transfer money from my bank account onto this debit card, but I don't want this person to be able to access my bank account if he logs into the Bluebird account.

A downside of Bluebird is that there's no way to talk to a support person until you have an account, at least not that I could find.

What more can you tell me about prepaid debit cards work? Are they the best option in this situation, or do you have any other suggestions?

Thanks for your help.