abbey zero or nationwide flex?

anskills

Hi Guys,

My girlfriend and I are visiting Canada for 3 weeks this Summer and I am considering how to manage our spending. I expect the 3 weeks to cost us around £1200 of spending money. Obviously I don’t want to carry that much cash so have been doing a bit of research on moneysavingexpert.

I noticed you can get the Abbey Zero credit card which has no loading fee or penalty for withdrawing cash from an ATM, but you pay 27.9% on all cash used. Alternatively we could get a nationwide flex account with debit card and pay 1% fee plus 2.5% for cash withdrawals.

Assuming we took £400 of Canadian $, and just took the rest of the money out at an ATM or purchased on the card the rest as we needed it, which card would be the better/cheaper option for us? Any outstanding balance on the credit card would be cleared as soon as we got home.

benjus

anskills wrote: »

Alternatively we could get a nationwide flex account with debit card and pay 1% fee plus 2.5% for cash withdrawals.

Where do you get the 2.5% figure from? The Nationwide debit card will only charge 1%.

If you pay the Abbey Zero card off at the end of the trip if will still be slightly more expensive than the Nationwide card because of the interest on cash withdrawals. I've heard that it is possible to avoid the cash interest by pre-loading the card before you travel. However, credit card providers are not obliged to allow you to have a positive balance on the card.

Of course, you could get both and use the Abbey Zero for purchases and the Nationwide for cash withdrawals.

anskills

benjus wrote: »

Where do you get the 2.5% figure from? The Nationwide debit card will only charge 1%..

Martins travel money guide:

Nationwide is fees-free in Europe, but charges 0.84% for worldwide purchases (this will rise to 1% on 1 July), and charges a 2.5% cash withdrawal fee.

Nationwide Quick Stats. European Load: 0%. Worldwide Load: 0.84%, 1% from 1 July. Cash withdrawal fee: 2.5% (min £3). APR: 16.9% Interest charged on cash withdrawals even if paid off in full: Yes, 27.9%

ginvzt

What about getting Nationwide flex account and then you will have no 2.5% cash withdrawal fee? There is no mention of cash withdrawal fee on Nationwide website for either credit or debit card (not that I can see one!!!).

We have debit card and used it in Europe - didn't have any fee applied.

anskills

just checked on nationwide website, and i think you may be right, its just the 1% fee.

what confuses me though is the following Q&A, where it states about the cash advance. if you have a flex account is this charge avoided as its a debit card?

• Will I be charged the Visa fee for withdrawing cash from a cash machine?
  Select the country you are visiting from the list below, if it is listed as "no fee charged" you will not be charged. Otherwise you will be charged the fee. Please remember if you use your credit card to withdraw cash you will be charged a cash advance fee.
  

anskills

ginvzt wrote: »

What about getting Nationwide flex account and then you will have no 2.5% cash withdrawal fee? There is no mention of cash withdrawal fee on Nationwide website for either credit or debit card (not that I can see one!!!).

We have debit card and used it in Europe - didn't have any fee applied.

this is the one i was querying. there is a 1% charge on worlwide spending. from what i can see, i believe there is a charge for credit card cash withdrawals, but not for debit. think i'll make an appointment with Nationwide to discuss and hopefully open an account

ginvzt

The Visa Fee, I think, is the 1% fee (from July), which you only pay outside Visa Europe region. Unfortunately, Canada is outside Europe!

anskills

ginvzt wrote: »

Unfortunately, Canada is outside Europe!

what? seriously?

eslick

avoid abbey zero their customer service is terrible, post office is the only card to use as it doesnt charge and customer service has to be better and they dont charge.

I applied in April last year for a holiday in Sept for a zero card and they told me in July that the card was in the post, by Aug they told me the same again and by sept they had cancelled the application.

Use post office card as a credit card and take some cash would be the best bet.

ellielovesem

I agree about the Abbey card. I applied about two weeks ago and haven't heard anything since. Was cutting it a bit fine for my holiday but it definitely won't be here on time! Luckily I've got Nationwide debit/credit but was hoping to get a no charges card. I will apply for a post office card in time for my next holiday!

conker89

Why dont you just open a cash card account....This is what I have and I wanted to check that I was ok to use it in Egypt cost free....

I have a Cash Card Account that I use to withdraw cash when I'm on holiday. Will I be charged?

"No. Initially, only Visa debit card transactions will have a fee applied. Your cash card is run by a different provider and is only available for withdrawing cash (it does not have facilities to make purchases online or at retailers). Our Cash Card Account is our Basic Bank Account and is available/suitable for customers who meet the Basic Bank Account criteria."