How do fees for using Credit Card Abroad appear on statement?

fox82

When I use my credit card abroad how do fees appear on my statement?

In February I used my Halifax credit card abroad in a shop. As far as I know this isn't one of the 0% commission cards. I was quite surprised to see my statement showed the amounts but not a commission fee, like so:

FEB Shop in France 22.08 (28.68 EURO NATL CURR UNIT (NCU) @ RATE 1.30)

FEB Another shop in France 54.96 (71.40 EURO NATL CURR UNIT (NCU) @ RATE 1.30)

I'm about to go on holiday and have a Post Office credit card I'm considering using instead. However as I've never seen how much using a "normal" credit card abroad actually costs me I'm unsure if it would be much cheaper. Is the commission fee hidden in the exchange rate?

James

Do use your PO Card, it's cheaper.

Golden Rule, when you're shopping always check and insist that the payment is taken in EUROS and not Pounds Sterling.

lisyloo

Is the commission fee hidden in the exchange rate?

Yes it's hidden in the exchange rate.
I't usually about 2.75% but you'd need to look at your terms and conditions to get an exact figure.

Golden Rule, when you're shopping always check and insist that the payment is taken in EUROS and not Pounds Sterling.

Yep James is right.
If a shop or ATM offers to do currency conversion then DON'T let them.
It WILL be more expnsive for the shop to convert than for your bank and again it will probably be hidden in the exchange rate.
Get chrged in LOCAL currency and let your bank or card company do the conversion.

Well done for makin yourself aware of things because it's all hidden.

fox82

Thanks. I was hoping it would appear as a fee so it is obvious what you've been charged.

lisyloo

I was hoping it would appear as a fee so it is obvious what you've been charged.

But that would be silly for the banks.
People would know about it them !!

Exchange rates vary all the time, so it's a tricky one but if the T&Cs say 2.75% then it will be 102.75% of the VISA/mastercard rates that are used at that time.
These vary throughout the day, so it's very difficult to make comparisons.

nomoneytoday

Nationwide, Post Office, Saga and Abbey Zero cards use decent rates.
The rest charge you behind the scenes.

LTSB debit cards charge you behind the scenes and then add another £1 !!

King_Of_Fools

From http://www.halifax.co.uk/creditcards/conditions_7503.asp

[FONT=Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif]5.3 If you make transactions in a foreign currency, we will change the amount to sterling at the exchange rate used by the payment system. We will charge 2.95% of the value of each foreign-currency transaction. The sterling amount shown on your statement will include this charge.[/FONT]

Eydon

lisyloo wrote: »

But that would be silly for the banks.
People would know about it them !!

Some banks do tell you on your statement - Barclays do. They actually break down the entire transaction telling you the commission and the fee that is included in the exchange rate they used.