Credit Card Non Sterling Transaction Fee

TC56_803_9

OK so when you use your credit card abroad most cards make a "Non Sterling Transaction Fee". My Visa card does.


This year we made multiple purchases from the same supermarket near the camp site in France. Some transactions had a single fee. Some had two fees and one transaction had three fees associated with it ! All from the same store.



In some cases the duplicate fee was identical in some cases eac of the two fee differed and the case of the three fee item, all three were different. Everyone of the trasactions has the same name for the source of the primary charge.



I rang Visa and asked why from the same store I was being charge up to 3 fees and at other times only 1 fee. They spent a long time trying to find an explanation and came back with the statement that they could not explain it.



They offered to refund all the excess charges which is fine, but what the heck is going on.



The worst case was a transaction for euro 1.50 which came out at £1.35 but then attracted three line items for Non Sterling Trasnaction Fee which they checked were all linked to this single exchange
£0.04
£2.50
£2.97


Awesome, so a £1.35 transaction attracts £5.51 in fees !



Is there anyone here expert in this matters to explain what might be going on and how it can be avoided?

Nebulous2

I've no idea what is going on with that. Maybe a quirk with the campsite payment processor.



However, many of us don't pay any fees abroad at all.



You need to get yourself one of these.

Ergates

Raise it with your card provider. It *might* be an error and you *might* get some of the fees refunded.

eco_warrior

Haven’t heard of anything like that before to be honest. Sounds like a glitch

jonesMUFCforever

You paid a 1.50 euro transaction with a card?

TheShape

jonesMUFCforever wrote: »

You paid a 1.50 euro transaction with a card?

I've paid lower value transactions on a card.

18cc

You could consider applying for a card that does not charge transaction fees and gives you the visa or MasterCard wholesale exchange rate ie a much better one. such cards are Halifax Clarity or tandem there are others