Using Halifax Card Abroad

GoinAbroad

Would it be possible to "load" the Halifax Clarity card by paying say £1000 on it before going abroad? Then I could use it like a prepaid card to obtain cash with no withdrawal fee and no interest. I would only pay the curent days exchange rate. obviously needing to be aware of not going over my load limit.
Thanks

bigadaj

No it's against the terms and conditions.

The charges themselves are low so don't worry about it too much, pay the cash withdrawals off as soon as you return, for a fortnight this would work out as a total charge of around 0.5% for many which is much lower than almost any other alternatives.

GoinAbroad

I agree it would be fine for a two week holiday , but we are away for 3 months.
Thanks for the answer anyway.
We'll have to revert to plan B

grumbler

GoinAbroad wrote: »

I agree it would be fine for a two week holiday , but we are away for 3 months.

Without internet access? Also you can set up a SO if you can plan your cash withdrawals ahead.

cautiousjon

GoinAbroad wrote: »

Would it be possible to "load" the Halifax Clarity card by paying say £1000 on it before going abroad? Then I could use it like a prepaid card to obtain cash with no withdrawal fee and no interest. I would only pay the curent days exchange rate. obviously needing to be aware of not going over my load limit.
Thanks

bigadaj wrote: »

No it's against the terms and conditions.

...

As bigadaj said, no, you can't, as it is against the terms and conditions. It could make Halifax block or (in some circumstances) even cancel the card.

grumbler wrote: »

Without internet access? Also you can set up a SO if you can plan your cash withdrawals ahead.

If you don't have secure Internet access whilst on holiday, you could possibly ask someone trusted (like a family member) in the UK to make payments to the card by Faster Payment. The payments to your card can be from anyone, it doesn't have to be you.

Biggles

GoinAbroad wrote: »

I agree it would be fine for a two week holiday , but we are away for 3 months.

That shouldn't make any difference. Just make sure the DD is set up to take the full payment each time. As already mentioned, the amount due will be low anyway but it will certainly be far lower than 'Plan B'.

chambta

You can 'pre-load' a Post Office credit card and avoid cash advance fees. I found out inadvertently.

jennifernil

We are away for 4 months right now, using Clarity for both purchases and cash.

The interest on cash works out at about £1 per £100 withdrawn for us. We have a DD set up to take full payment every month and don't bother worrying about paying off cash withdrawals.

The amount of interest is miniscule compared to the overall cost of the trip!

GoinAbroad

Thanks for the contributions, I think the best approach will be to use the Clarity card as suggested by Jenneifernil

Thanks again.