UT Encourages Safe, Reliable Transportation with Prepaid “Home Safe” Card

The University of Tampa, in partnership with Store Financial and Home Safe Card, is offering its students a prepaid card that facilitates a safe ride home and prevents drunk driving.

An alternative to cash and credit cards, the Home Safe Card is a prepaid gift card that can only be redeemed for taxi fare, mass-transit fare, rental car fees, airline tickets and other transportation methods.

Store Financial is the program manager and processor for the program, and UT is its first participant.

UT Associate Dean of Wellness Gina Firth chose the program for its emphasis on student safety.

“The Home Safe Card project provides a safe, reliable transportation option for our students as they venture out into the community,” Firth said. “There are multiple uses for the card that range from emergency transportation, safe transportation when students are out socially and ease of budgeting.”

However, Firth added, students cannot spend the money placed on the cards for anything other than transportation.

The Home Safe Card was created by Perry Anderson, a police officer with the Tampa Police Department. Anderson’s experience as a police officer, coupled with a nearly fatal car accident involving his nephew, led him to the idea of the Home Safe Card.

“Drunk driving is one of the most preventable problems our nation faces, yet it accounts for more than 30 percent of traffic fatalities, claims the lives of more than 10,000 people and costs more than $50 billion in damages each year. Home Safe Card’s primary mission is to reduce those numbers as much as possible.”

The program runs on Store Financial’s controlled redemption platform, which enables clients to choose their network of merchants and control the use of the card.

“Store Financial has a proven track record for connecting specific groups of merchants through prepaid card programs. Our program will include multiple transportation companies, but it will exclude other types of merchants to ensure the card is used only for transportation,” Anderson said. “Students, for example, will need to find other sources of funds for food and entertainment … But the Home Safe Card will still be in their wallets to ensure a safe ride home.”

The Home Safe Card has been endorsed by Anheuser-Busch, MADD (Mothers Against Drunk Driving) and Pepin Distributing Company, a Tampa-based beverage distributor.

Cards can be purchased online and will soon be available at UT.