Stung by Lloyds -> Using Debit card to buy stuff in sterling in the UK

JasX

Is this something new? are other banks doing it too? Apparently now if I buy goods in the UK using my debit card but my bank notices I've spent my money in a Bureau de Change they can start hitting me with a fee despite me making a £ sterling transaction in the UK ??!?!? :mad::mad::mad:

1.5% capped at £4.50 can;t complain too much, have since found it buried in the Ts and Cs but caught me completly off guard.

Unsure if its a LloydsTSB initiative or passing on a new fee from visa themselves?

What next they'll decide they don't want me using my debit card to buy Junk Food / Insurance products from other suppliers etc etc and start levying fees on that.


I'll not be caught by that again! You have been warned...:A

dzug1

JasX wrote: »

Is this something new? are other banks doing it too? Apparently now if I buy goods in the UK using my debit card but my bank notices I've spent my money in a Bureau de Change they can start hitting me with a fee despite me making a £ sterling transaction in the UK ??!?!? :mad::mad::mad:

1.5% capped at £4.50 can;t complain too much, have since found it buried in the Ts and Cs but caught me completly off guard.

Unsure if its a LloydsTSB initiative or passing on a new fee from visa themselves?

What next they'll decide they don't want me using my debit card to buy Junk Food / Insurance products from other suppliers etc etc and start levying fees on that.


I'll not be caught by that again! You have been warned...:A

No it's not new - they and many other banks have been doing it for years. And it appears in this forum several times a month

It applies to most visa debit cards, but not all. There's a list buried away in the money maximiser pages.

jamesbrownontheroad

Sorry, your post is confusing me. Are you complaining that you got charged for using your debit card to buy foreign currency? Or that you've been charged for buying other stuff (not currency)?

It may not yet be universal, but it is certainly not uncommon for foreign currency transactions to accrue a debit card fee. Many banks do this, both debit cards and credit cards. This has been the case with my Natwest account for a while. I would always recommend you just withdraw the cash from an ATM and change that instead. Not handy or safe if you have a daily withdrawal limit and need to save up a wodge of Sterling, but it's the most convenient way to avoid this fee.

richardw

You don't buy foreign currency, it isn't a purchase like purchasing a tin of beans, it is a cash advance transaction into a foreign currency.

p00hsticks

richardw wrote: »

You don't buy foreign currency, it isn't a purchase like purchasing a tin of beans, it is a cash advance transaction into a foreign currency.

Correct, it's a Visa / Mastercard rule - buying money (in whatever currency) is a cash advance , not a purchase of goods or services.

dzug1

jamesbrownontheroad wrote: »

This has been the case with my Natwest account for a while. I would always recommend you just withdraw the cash from an ATM and change that instead. Not handy or safe if you have a daily withdrawal limit and need to save up a wodge of Sterling, but it's the most convenient way to avoid this fee.

It started with Natwest when they switched from Maestro to Visa - Mastercard/Maestro debit cards don't charge.

But short of changing banks getting cash from the ATM is the answer

JasX

p00hsticks wrote: »

Correct, it's a Visa / Mastercard rule - buying money (in whatever currency) is a cash advance , not a purchase of goods or services.

Yes but if I go to a supermarket I can get cash advances in sterling for free...... my bank is doing the same amount of 'processing / currency conversion there as in a travel agent no? I mostly object to the way there is zero notification of it at the point of sale and I only find out about it days later via my statement

dzug1

The travel agent/b de c is supposed to warn you of the possibility of the charge - I accept that not all do and those that do may well do so by means of a card at the window rather than actually telling you.

The supermarket is a different situation - it's bundled up with a proper purchase and may well be subsidised (to a degree) by the supermarket as it save them having to store and bank as much cash

bagand96

Martins Travel Money Guide list the banks that do and do not charge:
http://www.moneysavingexpert.com/travel/cheap-travel-money

If your bank does charge, just withdraw the cash from an ATM and pay with that.

scragend

bagand96 wrote: »

If your bank does charge, just withdraw the cash from an ATM and pay with that.

Exactly - the only time I have ever tried to buy foreign currency with a debit card (I rarely buy currency at all; I use overseas ATMs and I now have a euro bank account anyway), the woman serving me suggested I go and withdraw the cash instead and come straight back.

JasX

dzug1 wrote: »

The travel agent/b de c is supposed to warn you of the possibility of the charge - I accept that not all do and those that do may well do so by means of a card at the window rather than actually telling you.

I'm very eagle eyed when it comes to the window, definitely nothing there, think I still have/can get a copy of the visa reciept and there was nothing on there either.

I'd have had no trouble withdrawing the cash if the possibility of a fee had been communicated.

Not sure if ATMs that charge you for withdrawing cash are obliged/semi obliged to inform you prior to applying the fee?

If there is a requirement to make you aware of this 'reasonably unexpected' fee at the point of transaction has anyone ever tried challenging them on the transparency front? are they likely to roll over on the complaint front if threatened (subtly) with an ombundsman investigation fee?

Interestingly I dippped into my overdraft the other month and my bank went thru a particularly diligent process writing to advise me of the charges and how they broke down before debiting them the following month?

This one they just nabbed quietly and immediately ?