blocked pin

john_roland

:money:I have just returned from a holiday in France. I took Martin's advice and took out a SANTANDER ZERO credit card some years ago. Also took his advice on his TV programme to take just the cards you need whilst away so I took drivers licence / E111 and the above card. Imagine my horror to find that STARBCKS at the airport had "blocked my PIN" so I was unable to use the card to pay for the hire car though HERTZ did get round round this one by doing the payment on the phone.

The mystery that SANTANDER seem anable to answer is why could I continue to withdraw cash on a french ATM but could not pay for fuel and meals out.

When I called them they told me to unblock the PIN on an ATM but then I find that French ATM's do not have such :pa facility.

the_insider

The majority of ATMs use the magnetic strip on your card to confirm the payment (as they did before chip and PIN was introduced), merchants like restaurants and petrol stations use the chip. So it sounds like a problem with the terminal in Starbucks has blocked the chip but you're still able to withdraw cash.

Looks like you're just going to have to withdraw the amount of money you need to pay for your meals and fuel in advance!

Hominu

john_roland wrote: »

The mystery that SANTANDER seem anable to answer is why could I continue to withdraw cash on a french ATM but could not pay for fuel and meals out.

Quite simply because your card can have two blocks - POS Lock and ATM Lock. A POS Lock can be unlocked by an ATM.

Theres also a Santander branch in Place de l'Opera which can unlock your card (they need the physical card, you can't do it over the phone), should it become a problem for you.

darrenpete

Call your bank. They can tell you how long it will take or may be able to reset it for you.

sharpy2010

darrenpete wrote: »

Call your bank. They can tell you how long it will take or may be able to reset it for you.

Absolute rubbish. Ignore this.

jackieblack

john_roland wrote: »

took his advice on his TV programme to take just the cards you need whilst away so I took drivers licence / E111 and the above card.

Yes, don't take all the cards you own, but to travel with just one card is just silly!
Always take a back-up in case of emergencies

We've got 3 'fee free' cards for using abroad, the only one I've ever had any problems with is the Santander Zero. (Blocked on two different trips.)