Maestro card needed

rp272

I am aware that many banks have or are in the process od 'upgrading' their debit cards from Maestro to Visa.

I have recently returned from a touring holiday in Holland and Germany where shopping in supermarkets with Visa or MasterCard proved somewhat of a problem.

We found one chain that accepted Visa and made a bee-line for one of their branches in a different town. We took our fully laden trolley to the checkout and only when we came to pay did we discover that this branch did not accept any of our card either debit or credit. We reluctantly shrugged our shoulders and legged it out of the store.

Some supermarkets do accept Visa and MasterCard but usually only in larger towns particularly in tourist centres.

They do have their own local cards but almost all accept Maestro! Germany is even worse and we had to resort to finding an ATM that would accept a Visa debit card.

I have tried all our local banks but none offer Maestro now and many of the main banks mentioned on the Maestro website no longer issue them.

Any suggestions please?

EarthBoy

I only know of Yorkshire or Clydesdale Banks, but I think they only provide Maestro cards with their basic accounts, not with their standard current accounts.

guesswho2000

Also bear in mind Maestro in Europe is different to that in the uk; Maestro UK is switch with a different name - this might make a difference, though happy to be corrected?

dr_adidas01

rp272 wrote: »

I am aware that many banks have or are in the process od 'upgrading' their debit cards from Maestro to Visa.

I have recently returned from a touring holiday in Holland and Germany where shopping in supermarkets with Visa or MasterCard proved somewhat of a problem.

We found one chain that accepted Visa and made a bee-line for one of their branches in a different town. We took our fully laden trolley to the checkout and only when we came to pay did we discover that this branch did not accept any of our card either debit or credit. We reluctantly shrugged our shoulders and legged it out of the store.

Some supermarkets do accept Visa and MasterCard but usually only in larger towns particularly in tourist centres.

They do have their own local cards but almost all accept Maestro! Germany is even worse and we had to resort to finding an ATM that would accept a Visa debit card.

I have tried all our local banks but none offer Maestro now and many of the main banks mentioned on the Maestro website no longer issue them.

Any suggestions please?

Hmmm I don't know where in Germany you went to but I find it odd that they didn't accept visa debit.

Especially as I have a DKB (Deutsche Kreditbank) account and the card is a Visa one and is accepted everywhere I've used it in Germany and Europe.

If you really want a Mastercard debit card, then why don't you go to London and open an account with Metrobank and they issue a Mastercard Debit Card.

If you open a current account with them then they don't charge any withdrawal fee's for use abroad.

reclusive46

guesswho2000 wrote: »

Also bear in mind Maestro in Europe is different to that in the uk; Maestro UK is switch with a different name - this might make a difference, though happy to be corrected?

They merged in 2011, so they are on the same network now. The old switch network has been decommissioned.

If you live in Norfolk, you can open up one of the Post offices new trial current accounts.

System

OP - you will probably be better with cash in Germany for day to day spending

Clydesdale / Yorkshire Bank can issue Maestro on all current accounts and savings accounts that come with an ATM card. However, for non-UK use costs are prohibitive as it's around 3.75% with a minimum charge IIRC - definitely a debit card from hell!

EarthBoy wrote: »

I only know of Yorkshire or Clydesdale Banks, but I think they only provide Maestro cards with their basic accounts, not with their standard current accounts.