why wouldn't my bank card work?

trailingspouse

On holiday in Australia. We told our bank (Santander) before we left home. We brought cash with us, and have been putting more expensive items on our Santander credit card without difficulty. I also drew out some cash from an ATM on my debit card without a problem earlier in the trip.

So, imagine my surprise when I went to withdraw some money and the machine informed my that my bank wouldn't authorise it.

I would very much like to know why this was the case - there were more than enough funds in the UK bank account; I was attempting to withdraw AUD1000, which is the maximum daily allowance here; and it was New Year's Eve. I don't know if any of that is relevant. After it refused my AUD1000 request, I tried to get AUD800, but that was also refused. I didn't want to try a third time in case it ate my card. The bank was closed, so couldn't speak to a cashier.

The following day, my OH was able to withdraw AUD200 on his debit card (same account), but from a different ATM.

Any ideas gratefully received!!

photome

bank system may have thought it was a fraudulent transaction .

only people that can tell you are your bank

Sicard

The banks have silly computers or they're programmed by silly people. I've experienced this and so have my family and friends. There should be a way in which you tell your bank in a secure way where you're travelling to and they program this info into the silly computer so it doesn't ring up 'unusual transaction'. My bank, Barclays, has a system that sends a text requiring a 'y' or 'n' to confirm or deny the transaction, but this is pretty much useless if your mobile is a UK number and you're in another country and don't have the stupidly expensive 'roaming' facility.

You just have to ring your bank up and get them to unblock the card. However, when I was in the Philippines it took over 30 minutes to sort it out with an Indian call centre.

agrinnall

It's almost certainly what photome says, which is why we always say on here that you should never rely on a single card when travelling abroad - personally I always take at least 2 debit cards and 2 credit cards (1 Visa and 1 Mastercard).

trailingspouse

As I said in my OP, we told the bank before we left.

We had an alternative debit card - for the same account. So why would it allow a transaction on one and not the other? I will be calling the bank when we get home, but doubt whether I will get a sensible answer from them.

agrinnall

An alternative card for the same account is fine in some circumstances (as it was for you) but what would you have done if Santander had a major problem and wasn't processing any transactions? The backup card needs to be for at an account at an entirely different bank.

JJG

The reason is the Santander daily cash withdrawal limit is £300. Which is just over $500 AUD at todays exchange rate. You attempted to withdraw more than this. The ATM limit does not mean that your account will allow you to withdraw that amount.

photome

trailingspouse wrote: »

As I said in my OP, we told the bank before we left.

We had an alternative debit card - for the same account. So why would it allow a transaction on one and not the other? I will be calling the bank when we get home, but doubt whether I will get a sensible answer from them.

That told me!

I always tell my bank, but it doesnt always stop their system from denying me a transcation because they think its fraud

why wont you get a sensible answer from them

agrinnall

JJG wrote: »

The reason is the Santander daily cash withdrawal limit is £300. Which is just over $500 AUD at todays exchange rate. You attempted to withdraw more than this. The ATM limit does not mean that your account will allow you to withdraw that amount.

Good spot, this is of course correct and is almost certainly the reason for the decline.

macman

Sicard wrote: »

The banks have silly computers or they're programmed by silly people. I've experienced this and so have my family and friends. There should be a way in which you tell your bank in a secure way where you're travelling to and they program this info into the silly computer so it doesn't ring up 'unusual transaction'. My bank, Barclays, has a system that sends a text requiring a 'y' or 'n' to confirm or deny the transaction, but this is pretty much useless if your mobile is a UK number and you're in another country and don't have the stupidly expensive 'roaming' facility.

You just have to ring your bank up and get them to unblock the card. However, when I was in the Philippines it took over 30 minutes to sort it out with an Indian call centre.

The Barclays system seems sensible to me. Roaming is usually enabled by default. And the cost of that 30 min call would have been far greater than the cost of sending a single text on roaming rates.

trailingspouse

Thanks for the replies. Yes, the Santander daily limit makes sense - it explains why OH was able to get AUD200 without difficulty, but I couldn't get a higher amount.

Lesson learnt.