MSE News discussion. Nationwide kills cheap overseas spending

marklee

Saucepot wrote: »

A few have mentioned MetroBank offer free transaction abroad on their accounts. I've not seen details of this on their website. Anyone got a link to a bit that specified this?

https://www.metrobankonline.co.uk/Documents/ts%20and%20cs/P-TC.pdf

Metrobank wrote:

16.7 If you make a debit card payment in a foreign currency
from one of your accounts, we will change the amount
of the transaction to sterling on the date we pay it out of
your account using the rate for the transaction which is
set and provided to us by MasterCard.

I don't think I'm one to complain too much though... I'm one of the 'lucky' ones on a 2.5% Nationwide SVR, and have an ISA with them at 2.75%. Although I use their current account as my 'main' one (Salary, DDs, etc), I can't imagine that they make much money from me.

Marcjonq

Have been dismayed by the decrease in interest rates on flex and deposit, plus childrens account I have an ISA and a fixed rate bond with them. I have recommended them to my daughter and son who have all opened accounts, and recently my wife has taken their credit card. How many customers do they want to lose?

KTF

RobertinHerts wrote: »

That's what Nationwide is relying on.

I am as annoyed about this as everyone else but if you are planning on still using a debit card to take money out overseas then Nationwide is still the 'cheapest' from that point of view so if you are going to use the account anyway then why move everything over?

I have applied for the Halifax clarity card all the same just in case that gets pulled with the sudden extra demand but am going to wait and see if Nationwide change their mind about this before moving accounts. There is still time for them to back pedal before November and change it so that the overseas withdrawals are still free if you use it as your 'main' account or for a competitor to offer something similar - like Santander take the restriction off their Zero current account.

gozomark

Halifax are imposing a £ 1,000 per month limit on overseas ATM usage on the Clarity card, a move which Nationwide should have done for free ATM usage if their concern was "excessive" use by some of this facility.

Biggles

gozomark wrote: »

Halifax are imposing a £ 1,000 per month limit on overseas ATM usage on the Clarity card, a move which Nationwide should have done for free ATM usage if their concern was "excessive" use by some of this facility.

Is that in the T&Cs? It's no good to me then, esp if I were to book accommodation and train in the same account month as I wanted to draw from ATMs!

KTF

I imagine that is for withdrawals only, not spending I imagine so unless you are planning to pay for everything in cash you will be fine.

Biggles

There's nothing in the online T&Cs, either.

gozomark

Its what I was told on applying in a branch - it applies to ATM only, not on purchases - maybe different limits for different clients, and maybe no limit for others, but for me as a non-Halifax customer, thats the limit they specified

Baldeagle33

I received a flyer headed 'We're improving our current account' from Nationwide back in June saying that 'on 19 June 2010 we are introducing cash card+'. Among the improvements was 'You will not be able to use cash card+ to withdraw cash overseas'!!

I phoned Customer Services and said that that wasn't an improvement!! Could I not keep my existing Debit card? They said that the new cards would be issued automatically between June and September but that I could phone them up when I received the new card and ask to revert to the old Debit card which would still allow overseas withdrawals.

I then went off to France and Spain and enjoyed the real benefits of my Nationwide credit card for purchases and my Debit card for cash withdrawals both of which were converted at the prevailing inter-bank exchange rate - excellent.

Has all this been superseded by the latest announcement of charges for withdrawing cash in Europe even with the existing Debit card?

insurgente

shame....had some good times on that Nationwide debit card. ah well


*meant debit..... oops