Pre paid credit card for withdrawing cash abroad?

welshnige

Just lately all I seem to do is raid this site for help! Once again I am hoping someone can point me in the right direction. Our daughter is thinking of going to Africa on a voluntary gap year and what we would like to do is have some sort of pre paid card that she can just go to an ATM and withdraw money. We dont really want her to have a credit card but would like the flexibility to be able to put money on the card and then for her to with draw the funds (hopefully at a low cost), we were going to use Western Union but there charges are shocking.
The missus and I would much appreciate any help.
Cheers
Nige

dylanuk

The problem is the currency.. Because it's Africa you'll struggle to find a prepaid card that comes in Rand.

The Post Office Travel Money is available in Sterling, Euro or Dollars - and if you get the particular currency you'll be using - you avoid the foreign transaction fee.

You can still get a Post Office Travel Money card and use it in Africa - but you'll have to pay 2.75% foreign fee on purchases or cash withdrawals, plus an additional £1.50 fee for cash withdrawals. It is a Visa Electron though - worth considering.

The new O2 money cards are worth a look, you'll need an O2 mobile phone number - but this can be pay as you go - to get one. But they have no purchase, cash withdrawal or loading fees. They do have a foreign transaction fee of 2.75% - but this is going to be hard to avoid.

The O2 money cards are fully fledged Visa cards - so might be a better option, you don't want her getting there and then not being able to find an cash machine that'll accept Visa electron!

mancini601

Hi. The last two summers we have been to Dubai on holiday and taken the 'Thomas Cook' Prepaid Visa Electron card (the sterling one) as well as debit cards etc etc.

There is a loading fee at Thomas Cook branches but when abroad, the only charge from an ATM is £1.50 although you do have to factor in the exchange rate by the bank that you are using for the ATm withdrawal.

When we checked, we were getting a better exchange rate that if we had purchased the foreign currency before we went.

We also liked that you had emergency back procedures/protection supplied. They also give you a second card tied to the main account in case you lose the main one. The card is actually from 'Travelex'. https://www.cashpassport.com

There is online account management too so theoretically if your daughter/son needs extra money you should be able to load more onto the card from here...

welshnige

Thankyou so much, the missus and I dont know where we would be if it wasnt for the kind help of people on this forum.
Cheers!!!!

Oldernotwiser

If she isn't going to a city, have you checked what ATMs are available?

lil_miss_may

• Travelex Cash Passport. Extra currencies or if you need a card quick
  Not far behind is the foreign exchange giant travelex's Cash Passport, which also offers a few more currencies, namely Euros, US Dollars, South African Rand and Australian, Canadian and New Zealand Dollars.
  
  There's no fee for spending abroad, but it does charge 2% when you top up online, by phone or in stores. You’ll get the prevailing Travelex exchange rate, generally not as good as FairFX/Caxton, and the exchange rates you get on the best credit and debit cards.
  The big boon over the above cards is it's available at Travelex branches, plus Thomas Cook and Co-op Travel agents, meaning you can get one mega quick if your holiday is soon, though buy there and you can only then top-up in branches (not online), and you'll be charged that shop's commission.
  It charges a £2 monthly charge if the card goes unused for twelve months. If you’re heading towards that situation, simply cancel the card as it’s rarely worth it.
  Travelex Quick Stats. European Load: 0%. Worldwide Load: 0%. Exchange Rate: Travelex's own rate, determined daily. Cash withdrawal fee: £0. Currencies: Euros, US Dollars, South African Rand and Australian, Canadian and New Zealand Dollars.. Low Usage Charge: £2/month if unused for 12 months. Topping up: 2% (min £3).

callum9999

lil_miss_may wrote: »

• Travelex Cash Passport. Extra currencies or if you need a card quick
  Not far behind is the foreign exchange giant travelex's Cash Passport, which also offers a few more currencies, namely Euros, US Dollars, South African Rand and Australian, Canadian and New Zealand Dollars.
  
  There's no fee for spending abroad, but it does charge 2% when you top up online, by phone or in stores. You’ll get the prevailing Travelex exchange rate, generally not as good as FairFX/Caxton, and the exchange rates you get on the best credit and debit cards.
  The big boon over the above cards is it's available at Travelex branches, plus Thomas Cook and Co-op Travel agents, meaning you can get one mega quick if your holiday is soon, though buy there and you can only then top-up in branches (not online), and you'll be charged that shop's commission.
  It charges a £2 monthly charge if the card goes unused for twelve months. If you’re heading towards that situation, simply cancel the card as it’s rarely worth it.
  Travelex Quick Stats. European Load: 0%. Worldwide Load: 0%. Exchange Rate: Travelex's own rate, determined daily. Cash withdrawal fee: £0. Currencies: Euros, US Dollars, South African Rand and Australian, Canadian and New Zealand Dollars.. Low Usage Charge: £2/month if unused for 12 months. Topping up: 2% (min £3).

If you go on the cashpassport website, it will let you register Thomas Cook cards (I think when I did it, I just pretended it was a travelex issued card and that worked) and you can see your balance, purchases and how to top it up online (via internet banking). I don't remember being charged a fee for topping up either.

wr1ght

have a look at fairfx anywhere card
http://www.fairfx.com/cardselection

rkcl

I purchased a travelex card 3rd may, using my debit card, they charged me 2%, my bank charged me another 2% because Visa makes a charge for cash purchases.
When I looked in the Credit card section, I thought that a debit card did not incur the extra charges.

Fruit_and_Nut_Case

rkcl wrote: »

I purchased a travelex card 3rd may, using my debit card, they charged me 2%, my bank charged me another 2% because Visa makes a charge for cash purchases.
When I looked in the Credit card section, I thought that a debit card did not incur the extra charges.

OK OK We heard you already. No need to repeat.

Toe-Jam

welshnige wrote: »

Just lately all I seem to do is raid this site for help! Once again I am hoping someone can point me in the right direction. Our daughter is thinking of going to Africa on a voluntary gap year and what we would like to do is have some sort of pre paid card that she can just go to an ATM and withdraw money. We dont really want her to have a credit card but would like the flexibility to be able to put money on the card and then for her to with draw the funds (hopefully at a low cost), we were going to use Western Union but there charges are shocking.
The missus and I would much appreciate any help.
Cheers
Nige

I would recommend that you get a FairFX Anywhere card, It gives you the Interbank exchange rate, and they take 1.5% off all usage, which is very good.

You top it up with your debit card or a bank transfer, and the funds are available to spend in a few hours.

If your daugher gets one in her name, you can top it up with your debit card, as long as your card is registered at the same address as her fairfx card.

Its free to order at www.fairfx.com. You'll have to order yourself one first and then order the secondary card via email

Your not going to get a better exchage rate unless she has a Nationwide Credit/Debit card, or a Santander Zero Card.