Moneycorp ATM rip-off at Stansted - 'Commission Free' my **se - Like It or Lump It

peterbaker

I haven't posted much lately but every now and then I spot something that riles me enough to come here and do so.

I've had some time to kill on recent trips recently and thought as I could use a few Euros in my wallet and I have bank cards that charge no sommision for FOREX, I'd check out the ATMs at Stansted that dispense both Sterling and Euros.

10 days ago I tried the one landside at the top of Check In Desk area J.

I tried it twice and cancelled out to see if I'd missed something but I hadn't - the machines are marked "Commission Free" but the exchange rate is a God Awful rate.

This morning, wondering if I'd missed something in my last experiment, I tried one I found airside - today I could have accepted 100 Euros at £1 = 1.1344 euros. Not on your Nelly :mad:

The Mastercard/VISA rate today is actually around £1 = 1.2344 euros.

That's 8.1% I would have lost versus using an ATM when I arrived in Europe (assuming I knew how to avoid Dynamic Currency Conversion in Europe). Isn't it fascinating the difference a digit makes in a four significant figure exchange rate?

Moneycorp offer no option to charge your card in Euros and let Mastercard/VISA do the foreign exchange bit. I imagine there is some loophole that is being exploited whereby even though the exchange is happening in an international area of the airport, it is still technically in the UK and if punters are ignorant enough to use such a machine which is labelled Hey Use Me for Your Euros Commission Free" but which then gives you a Like It or Lump It exchange rate then more fool them, eh?

Does this or does this not demonstrate that Moneycorp might easily be counted amongst those crooks and spivs of whom we are trying to rid our country?

benjus

There are quite a few Euro/US dollar ATMs cropping up these days in the UK. All of them that I've seen have instructions stating that the machine will perform the conversion at its own rate and debit you in GBP.

I have read that the NatWest Euro ATM on Bishopsgate does actually debit in Euros, although I haven't tried it for myself. I haven't heard of any others that do this.

While the Moneycorp rate is terrible, it's probably no worse than their rate at the exchange desk in the terminal. The only way I can see to improve on this situation is to educate people to check rates before they exchange money and not assume that "Commission Free" actually means anything.

zagfles

Yes these UK airport ATMs are a complete rip-off. Just wait till you're at the other end and withdraw free at the VISA/MasterCard rate!

budgetflyer

Did you seriously expect to get a good rate at the airport Peter?

zagfles

budgetflyer wrote: »

Did you seriously expect to get a good rate at the airport Peter?

I always get a good rate at the airport. At the foreign airport that is.

peterbaker

budgetflyer wrote: »

Did you seriously expect to get a good rate at the airport Peter?

Of course not, but the expectations of those of us discussing this here are not those of the ignorant masses upon which the rip-off merchants feed daily. My aborted 'enquiries' via Moneycorp's ATMs were merely to establish how parasitic an outfit like that can be when unchallenged.

AlexMac

Sorry you've been rooked.... but....I guess they have to make money some way (by disadvantaging the unwary) as Moneycorp's rate for online pre-booked collection is great - as I found when I had some time on my hands and used MSE's currency compare tool- I got almost 1.25 Euros to the poind. And they did me a great deal when I imported some Euros last year when the rate was against the £

bagand96

Its no different to people walking into a high street exchange that is "Comission Free" and accepting a bad rate there. I bet some of the highstreet rates today would be no better than that ATM.

Or similarly, when using a foreign ATM abroad that conviniently offers to convert for you and bill you in GBP. These vary massively depending on country and bank, some can be an OK rate, other can be terrible.

If people are told the rate and accept it then what more can you do?

Bob_the_Saver

peterbaker wrote: »

Of course not, but the expectations of those of us discussing this here are not those of the ignorant masses upon which the rip-off merchants feed daily. My aborted 'enquiries' via Moneycorp's ATMs were merely to establish how parasitic an outfit like that can be when unchallenged.

I wonder how much rent they have to pay at the airport? :eek:

cinereus

Since they got a monopoly by kicking out all their competitors, probably quite a lot!

_Andy_

Why drag up a thread from october last year?