New French Supermarket scam

tummy_tank

Glad they can't do this in Tanzania as my Swahili aint that good!!!

budgetflyer

This is not new. Same thing posted on this forum last year. Although I was aware of it ,I still got hit last year in Spain.Had a row with guy who sold me excursions. Gave me a crap rate for conversion and charged me 3% just to put the boot in.

Donnie

Altarf wrote:

Not for the vast majority of customers who would pay either a conversion fee to the credit card company if charged in Euros or the DCC fee if charged in sterling.

The article you posted relates to the charges that American cardholders pay, so is hardly relevant to the UK.

As I said before, I am sure that if when you handed over your credit card you spoke to the shop assistant in their native language and explained that you would rather pay pay in Euros, rather than have them convert to sterling they would happily oblige.

It IS a scam.
Firstly, because you must be offered the choice. In many, if not most cases, it is not even mentioned.
Therefore 'scamming' those all of those users.
You are correct in suggesting, that it is the cardholders of cards who levy no forex commissions on their products who are losing out the most. (Nationwide, Audi for Worldwide transactions and Liverpool Victoria and Saga for European transactions)
Are they not being scammed out of their cash?

Personally, I've experienced four separate occurrences of this in Thailand. At no time was it mentioned to me.
Twice it was for online hotel bookings, once in a restaurant and another in paying a hotel bill.
I only noticed because I can check my Nationwide account online and I noticed that there was no currency conversion amount next to the transaction,

You try to tell us that the Washington Post article in not relevant because it relates to the charges that US cardholders pay. That is pure nonsense.

It is true that in some cases they get hit even harder than us, but that doesn't mean that we are not being cheated.

You try to tell us that they are doing us a favour by converting it into Streling for us. Ok, if they wanted to do us a favour, why don't they just print the equivalent sterling amount on the receipt without doing the conversion?
That way the customer who, as you put it, cannot work it out in his head, has a handy reference figure in Pounds Sterling to keep a track on what he is spending.

You know why.... they complete the transaction and then share the commision with the local bank. More profits for them and more profits for the local bank.

Who pays? The cardholder. The amount is exchange at a poor rate at up to 4% off the wholesale exchange rate, plus Visa charge 1% regardless of whether they have done the currency exchange or not.

So, for the people in the UK who are normally charged for 0% to 2.75% by their banks, it is a scam.

The truth is that most people don't know this has occurred, as the transaction shows up on their statement in £s as normal. They have no idea up to 5% has been added to the amount they would normally pay.


Clearly you were taking the p*** when you wrote this;
""As I said before, I am sure that if when you handed over your credit card you spoke to the shop assistant in their native language and explained that you would rather pay pay in Euros, rather than have them convert to sterling they would happily oblige."


Most people have little idea that it is going to occur at all.

Remember that CHIP and PIN is more prevalent now, so you don't even get the opportunity to peruse the receipt before the transaction is completed.

One doesn't expect the restaurant or supermarket to be colluding to make further profits out of you in this hidden way.

It's a scam pure and simple.

If it wasn't, the Hypermarkets, restaurants etc. would have visible signs replete with a simple explanation.

student100

Donnie wrote:

Remember that CHIP and PIN is more prevalent now, so you don't even get the opportunity to peruse the receipt before the transaction is completed.

Surely, on the PIN terminal's screen, it would say either:

GBP 12.34

or

EUR 12.34


according to which currency was being used for the transaction? Giving you a big clue...

Donnie

Actually no, because you wouldn't expect there to be charged in another currency. Also, on the receipt the price is stated in the local currency. The information on the conversion is printed in tiny letters under this.

Altarf

Donnie wrote:

It IS a scam.

No its not. Shall I wait another 4 months for more insults.

Amys

This is a scam, but it is not new, many countries have been doing it a long time, try paying a hotel bill in Egypt and be very careful!

flossy_splodge

Maybe in the big hotel chains that are so often owned by NON Egyptians.! The small egyptian hotels are fine as my daughter would attest having spent many months travelling through Egypt in the small inexpensive hotels and was met only by kindness. We do rather set ourselves up for being taken for a ride by our behaviour. Perhaps if we were able to go back to being just a teensy bit cultured we wouldn't be a target for others whom we offend in thier own lands. Rant over.:eek:

Donnie

Altarf wrote:

No its not. Shall I wait another 4 months for more insults.

Strange that you insist that it isn't.

I have put forward clear evidence as to why I think it is a scam.

So rather than to refute it with clear evidence, you choose ignore all of the relevant information, to concentrate on some perceived insult.


Explain to the good people on this forum, why being charged 4% to 5% commission via DCC is better than being charged 0% to 2.75% by their UK card provider.

Your statement, "And a large number cannot do exchange rate conversions either which processing the transaction in sterling avoids and for the vast majority of people it cost the same." is not only insulting but utterly wrong.

It might serve you well to remember that this site is called Moneysavingexpert. That means people want advice on saving money, not pomposity insinuating that they are too stupid to understand how much that they are spending and therefore should be happy to pay 5% commission to find out.

What say you, Altarf?

budgetflyer

I dont know if this is always the case but the rate I got was just the local rate at the time (minus 3% after) not the Visa rate which would have been much higher. So that nice man who sold me the excursions managed to screw me for 6c per £1 on the rate and then charge me 3% for doing it.
If thats not a scam then what is?