Using Your Card Abroad

AW0151

I am a Natwest AdGold customer and have been working in Spain for 3 months now, due to return home at the end of this month.

I have a Spanish bank account and my salary is paid directly into it, no problems there.

However I still use my Natwest account regularly and still get money paid into it each week.

When I withdraw on it, I get charged a certain percent upto a maximum of 5 pounds per day.

Is there any way I can claim these charges back, or is there any banks actually out there who don't charge you for using your card abroad?

Cheers.

Inactive

In a word, Nationwide.;)

Jasper27_2

As Inactive says look into the Nationwide current account. I've researched this myself and they are the only bank that doesn't charge you to use your debit/cash card outside the UK. They probably have a minimum amount you have to pay into the account each month so this might be a problem. I do know someone who got these charges back from their bank but it was a one-off occasion. They will probably tell you it's in the small print that you got when you opened the account. Still, nothing venutred.... it might be worth giving them a ring.

Any

Agree, move to Nationwide.
NatWest are bunch of greedy thiefs.

Inactive

Jasper27 wrote: »

. They probably have a minimum amount you have to pay into the account each month so this might be a problem.

I don't pay anything in to my Nationwide Account on a regular basis, just the odd " one off " payment.

denisecorfu

I live in Corfu and use my Nationwide FlexAccount Card all the time and no charges are made for drawing Euro's and I get the bank rate not the tourist rate of exchange.

RuthMarianna

I give a thumbs up to the Nationwide Account. We went to Paris for the weekend and bought some Euros before we went. Whilst there we also took money from our Nationwide account at an ATM. Worked out that we got more Euros for less cost at the ATM. Not a great difference but as they say "every little helps". Next time we go we will get just 20 Euros just in case beforehand and take the rest out over there. The cash machines even let you pick English so you can read the instructions.:D

d.edna

Nationwide charge the VISA transaction fee according to the small prints in their adverts. Is this true or is it a small disclaimer if they do impose a charge?

Any

Never ever noticed one on my cards. Unless it's already part of the exchange rate. But compare that (final one if there is charge) to the exchange rate on the streets or from other accounts and it is still better rate.
I have Nationwide debit and credit card.

Rafter

d.edna,

I think that refers to the unit ATM withdrawal charge if you use a VISA credit card in an overseas machine.

I believe that debit cards should be free, although again because overseas banks often charge for ATM withdrawals you could get a local charge levied by the local bank - nothing to do with Nationwide.

AW0151,

No chance of a reclaim, these are the fees that you signed up to and they aren't penalties.

Generally there is a small additional cost to the overseas bank and a charge from the VISA or Maestro network that NatWest or Nationwide will get charged.

In nationwides case they bear this cost rather than passing it on to their customers (although as a result they can't offer as good an interest rate as they might if they did). Others like NatWest not only pass on the charge but also a hefty profit margin for them too, on the basis that many customers can't be bothered opening a new bank account just for their holidays.

R.

simpywimpy

I use my nationwide flex account debit card on a weekly basis in France. I have no charges for doing so and my rate this week has been 1.25 which is much higher that I could have got in town (1.23)