Please learn from my stupidity re currency exchange

firefly1818

Hi All,
I made the big mistake of stopping at the ChangeGroup currency exchange booth at 550 Oxford Street, W1C 1LY (opposite Marble Arch) and got flimflammed a couple of days ago. I wanted to exchange Euros for Sterling and asked the woman at the front their rate for the day. It was below par so I began to walk away.

She called me back and said her manager would give me a better offer.....He came over and verbally agreed a better exchange rate. Then came a flourish of overly long fingernails on her calculator, et voila, the figures on the screen were better than I'd seen at other bureaux so I gave her my Euros through the slot in the window.

As she counted out the pound sterling notes, I read the receipt upside down and realised that the rate printed on the receipt was NOT the rate I'd just accepted and told her that was not the rate her manager gave me a minute ago. She said it was and so did her manager. An argument ensued and I thought about calling the police but wasn't sure it was a police matter.

What I should have done is told the woman to WRITE DOWN (on a piece of paper and then handed it to me) the Sterling equivalent for my Euros before agreeing to the exchange. Anyway, lesson learned.

EveryWhere

You could have gone down the road to Victoria.
Even High St. Ken

https://www.thomasexchangeglobal.co.uk/exchange-rates-check-exchange-rates.php

Alan_Bowen

I am sorry for your loss but everyone should avoid Oxford Street exchanges, they are out to fleece overseas tourists, and like most of the shops there, to be avoided by sensible people.

londoninvestor

Alan_Bowen wrote: »

I am sorry for your loss but everyone should avoid Oxford Street exchanges, they are out to fleece overseas tourists, and like most of the shops there, to be avoided by sensible people.

The rates are of course awful when buying sterling, though it does strike me that structurally they will have a big glut of foreign notes to deal with, and a thirst for pounds...

Maybe they would give you a decent deal if you were selling GBP and buying, say, AED?

nickcc

Sounds like the OP was deliberately misled. Just come back from the Czech Republic and warned by the tour guide against changing money at the money exchanges as many will offer you one rate but give you a much lower rate and that the police aren't interested. We paid for everything by clarity credit card.