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Beware - credit card rip-off



 
 
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  #21  
Old April 22nd, 2004, 09:46 AM
Alec
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Default Beware - credit card rip-off


"simon" wrote in message
...
In message , Andy Pandy
writes
There is a new "facility" you may encounter when paying by credit card in

a
foreign currency. The POS terminal identifies which country your credit

card is
from and conveniently converts the local currency into your home

currency. Your
credit card is then billed in your home currency rather than the local
currency.

Might sound helpful, but the catch is that the exchange rate at which the
conversion is done is almost certainly a lot worse than your bank would

use if
you got billed in the local currency. The retailer usually gets a cut of

the
exchange rate markup so it's in their interest to bill you in your home
currency.

They are supposed to ask you which currency you want to billed in, but it
practice it doesn't always happen, and the default is to bill you in your

home
currency. But you are perfectly entitled to insist you are billed in the

local
currency, after all the product or service will have been priced in the

local
currency. Don't let retailers rip you off in this way!

--
Andy




Oh blimey, now I'm really confused. My family and I are visiting
Australia from the UK this August. We have been planning to take
Nationwide credit & debit cards and a Visa card but very little cash.
The idea was to draw cash off an ATM from the Nationwide account as and
when necessary instead of taking and cashing travellers cheques.
Naturally, we want a convenient way of settling bills without getting
ripped off. Any suggestions on how we should proceed would be gratefully
received.

Withdraw cash with your Nationwide Flexcard from local ATM. You should not
be charged for this service, and exchange rate used will be close to
wholesale money market rate with little mark-up.
Use credit card for purchases. DCC is in use at some Australian terminals so
it may be worth insisting before your card is swiped that you want to be
billed in Aus$. Or you can just pay cash.

Alec


  #22  
Old April 22nd, 2004, 10:12 AM
simon
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Posts: n/a
Default Beware - credit card rip-off

Oh blimey, now I'm really confused. My family and I are visiting
Australia from the UK this August. We have been planning to take
Nationwide credit & debit cards and a Visa card but very little cash.
The idea was to draw cash off an ATM from the Nationwide account as and
when necessary instead of taking and cashing travellers cheques.
Naturally, we want a convenient way of settling bills without getting
ripped off. Any suggestions on how we should proceed would be gratefully
received.

Withdraw cash with your Nationwide Flexcard from local ATM. You should not
be charged for this service, and exchange rate used will be close to
wholesale money market rate with little mark-up.
Use credit card for purchases. DCC is in use at some Australian terminals so
it may be worth insisting before your card is swiped that you want to be
billed in Aus$. Or you can just pay cash.

Alec


Thanks Alec.

I assume from your response that it's not worth bothering with
travellers cheques?

Simon.
  #23  
Old April 22nd, 2004, 11:19 AM
Padraig Breathnach
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Posts: n/a
Default Beware - credit card rip-off

simon wrote:

I assume from your response that it's not worth bothering with
travellers cheques?

I know this is crossposted to other groups, but I think I can safely
say that the travellers' cheques question is just about the only thing
that regulars in rec.travel.europe agree on: they are not worth the
hassle. Use credit cards and ATMs for the best deals. We need now to
add the proviso that you watch which currency your CC transaction is
denominated in.

--
PB
The return address has been MUNGED
  #24  
Old April 22nd, 2004, 11:20 AM
Alec
external usenet poster
 
Posts: n/a
Default Beware - credit card rip-off


"simon" wrote in message
...
Oh blimey, now I'm really confused. My family and I are visiting
Australia from the UK this August. We have been planning to take
Nationwide credit & debit cards and a Visa card but very little cash.
The idea was to draw cash off an ATM from the Nationwide account as and
when necessary instead of taking and cashing travellers cheques.
Naturally, we want a convenient way of settling bills without getting
ripped off. Any suggestions on how we should proceed would be

gratefully
received.

Withdraw cash with your Nationwide Flexcard from local ATM. You should

not
be charged for this service, and exchange rate used will be close to
wholesale money market rate with little mark-up.
Use credit card for purchases. DCC is in use at some Australian terminals

so
it may be worth insisting before your card is swiped that you want to be
billed in Aus$. Or you can just pay cash.

Alec


Thanks Alec.

I assume from your response that it's not worth bothering with
travellers cheques?

If you want some readies as an insurance again ATM malfunction etc, take
about £100 worth of Aus$ cash from a larger branch of M&S (no commission,
good rates). Also it's a good idea to take an ATM/cash card linked to
another account in the unlikely event of losing your original card or having
it swallowed by a rogue machine (it can take a while to get a replacement).

Alec


  #25  
Old April 22nd, 2004, 11:48 AM
simon
external usenet poster
 
Posts: n/a
Default Beware - credit card rip-off

In message , Alec
writes

"simon" wrote in message
...
Oh blimey, now I'm really confused. My family and I are visiting
Australia from the UK this August. We have been planning to take
Nationwide credit & debit cards and a Visa card but very little cash.
The idea was to draw cash off an ATM from the Nationwide account as and
when necessary instead of taking and cashing travellers cheques.
Naturally, we want a convenient way of settling bills without getting
ripped off. Any suggestions on how we should proceed would be

gratefully
received.

Withdraw cash with your Nationwide Flexcard from local ATM. You should

not
be charged for this service, and exchange rate used will be close to
wholesale money market rate with little mark-up.
Use credit card for purchases. DCC is in use at some Australian terminals

so
it may be worth insisting before your card is swiped that you want to be
billed in Aus$. Or you can just pay cash.

Alec


Thanks Alec.

I assume from your response that it's not worth bothering with
travellers cheques?

If you want some readies as an insurance again ATM malfunction etc, take
about £100 worth of Aus$ cash from a larger branch of M&S (no commission,
good rates). Also it's a good idea to take an ATM/cash card linked to
another account in the unlikely event of losing your original card or having
it swallowed by a rogue machine (it can take a while to get a replacement).

Alec


Cheers, Alec.
Simon.
  #26  
Old April 22nd, 2004, 12:13 PM
Chris Blunt
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Posts: n/a
Default Beware - credit card rip-off

On Thu, 22 Apr 2004 11:19:35 +0100, Padraig Breathnach
wrote:

simon wrote:

I assume from your response that it's not worth bothering with
travellers cheques?

I know this is crossposted to other groups, but I think I can safely
say that the travellers' cheques question is just about the only thing
that regulars in rec.travel.europe agree on: they are not worth the
hassle. Use credit cards and ATMs for the best deals. We need now to
add the proviso that you watch which currency your CC transaction is
denominated in.


Its certainly not like that here in rec.travel asia. We've spent
terabytes of bandwidth arguing over that one.

  #27  
Old April 22nd, 2004, 12:31 PM
Markku Grönroos
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Posts: n/a
Default Beware - credit card rip-off


"Padraig Breathnach" wrote in message
...
simon wrote:

I assume from your response that it's not worth bothering with
travellers cheques?

I know this is crossposted to other groups, but I think I can safely
say that the travellers' cheques question is just about the only thing
that regulars in rec.travel.europe agree on: they are not worth the
hassle. Use credit cards and ATMs for the best deals. We need now to


I am not a "regular". However, your claim is groundless. For instance I will
use traveller's cheques on my holiday next May and June. My plastic cards
are not backed up decently when they get lost. I do have them along with me
though. As you said, paying is beneficial by credit cards. For instance in
Mexico you need cash too.


  #28  
Old April 22nd, 2004, 03:44 PM
Evelyn C. Leeper
external usenet poster
 
Posts: n/a
Default Beware - credit card rip-off

Padraig Breathnach wrote:

simon wrote:


I assume from your response that it's not worth bothering with
travellers cheques?


I know this is crossposted to other groups, but I think I can safely
say that the travellers' cheques question is just about the only thing
that regulars in rec.travel.europe agree on: they are not worth the
hassle. Use credit cards and ATMs for the best deals. We need now to
add the proviso that you watch which currency your CC transaction is
denominated in.


In any case, be sure to have some extra cash or TCs for if/when the ATM
network fails. (We had problems in Turkey--bad phone lines--and in
Sweden--general ATM failure.)

--
Evelyn C. Leeper
http://www.geocities.com/evelynleeper
Separate is not equal. The right time to do the right thing
is always now. Those who say "wait" usually mean "never."
--Bonnie Tinker and The Rev. Cecil Prescod







  #29  
Old April 22nd, 2004, 04:21 PM
mimi
external usenet poster
 
Posts: n/a
Default Beware - credit card rip-off


"Alec" wrote in message
...

Use credit card for purchases. DCC is in use at some Australian terminals

so
it may be worth insisting before your card is swiped that you want to be
billed in Aus$. Or you can just pay cash.


As I understand it, the rip-off comes in converting foreign currency to
Aus$. So you want the charge slip to show the local currency.

I went to England cold turkey (without traveler's checks) for the first time
last year. No problem, just hit the ATM in Heathrow. In case of emergency, I
have a pin number for getting cash from my credit cards. If the whole
electronic banking system breaks down, I doubt I'd have enough in traveler's
checks to cover. So maybe just get a little extra from your first ATM and
secrete it away for temporary emergencies.

Marianne


  #30  
Old April 22nd, 2004, 06:53 PM
David Horne
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Posts: n/a
Default Beware - credit card rip-off

Miguel Cruz wrote:

Bizarrely, I still see huge clumps of people at exchange booths in airports
everywhere - even Americans in the DEPARTURE section of US airports, where
it makes the least sense -


In what way- the cost? Practically, it's where people tend to have the
spare time, waiting around- thinking about the trip, and what they're
going to do for currency, etc. On the very few occasions I've exchanged
money, it's been at the airport, usually just a small amount for a taxi
or something at the other end.

David

--
David Horne- www.davidhorne.net
usenet (at) davidhorne (dot) co (dot) uk
 




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