New Lloyds Card Terms, no charges for foreign transactions, or are there?

converse

Received an updated terms from Lloyds today for my credit card, active from 30th June, including:

"we've changed the name of the 'non-sterling transaction fee' to 'non-sterling purchase fee' and we'll stop charging it when you use your card for cash transactions in a foreign currency. A cash transaction fee may still apply."

Seems to suggest no fees when these changes take place, which would be useful when traveling abroad (as they are currently charged).

In a further page "A5 section", it reads, "Non-sterling purchase fee, 2.95% of the converted sterling amount, when you make a purchased in a currency other than pounds sterling".

So there's still a fee to use this card abroad (paying for purchases, rather than withdrawing cash), is this deliberately confusing or have a misread?

CliveOfIndia

It is confusing.  Going purely by what you've quoted, my interpretation would be that they still charge an FX fee for standard purchases in non-sterling currency.  But if you use it to withdraw cash abroad (or make a cash-like transaction, such as gambling) then they won't charge the FX fee - but will still charge the cash advance fee.

I may be completely wrong, but that's how I read it.

Barkin

Yeah, I got that too, and struggled to make sense of it.

I'll just carry on not using my card abroad.

Voyager2002

CliveOfIndia said:

It is confusing.  Going purely by what you've quoted, my interpretation would be that they still charge an FX fee for standard purchases in non-sterling currency.  But if you use it to withdraw cash abroad (or make a cash-like transaction, such as gambling) then they won't charge the FX fee - but will still charge the cash advance fee.

I may be completely wrong, but that's how I read it.

Yes.

I am also a Lloyds customer, and also received this letter. After reading the whole thing, I understood the same: you can pay a fee for a foreign currency purchase, or a fee for a cash-like transaction, but will no longer be charged both fees on the same transaction.

CliveOfIndia

Barkin said:

I'll just carry on not using my card abroad.

I'm confused now, are you the OP?  Two different user-names, threw me a bit.  Apologies if you're different people !

Anyhow, if it were me, I'd play it safe and use one of the travel cards for foreign purchases.  No point in paying fees if you don't have to, even if they don't amount to much in the grand scheme of things.

Barkin

CliveOfIndia said:

Barkin said:

I'll just carry on not using my card abroad.

I'm confused now, are you the OP? 

Nope!

Anyhow, if it were me, I'd play it safe and use one of the travel cards for foreign purchases.  

Yup

Just making the point that I also got the same notification, and also found it confusing.

 Therefore I'll carry on as before, and not use it abroad. I have other cards for that.

CliveOfIndia

Barkin said:

Just making the point that I also got the same notification, and also found it confusing.

 Therefore I'll carry on as before, and not use it abroad. I have other cards for that.

Ah, I see !  Please accept my apologies

Nasqueron

FWI I got the same email sent at the same time for both Halifax (Clarity card) and Lloyds (cashback card).

callum9999

The email seemed pretty clear to me? They will no longer charge the FX fee on cash transactions, but if your card has a cash transaction fee (mine is 5%) that will still apply. 

Seems like a rather pointless change though. 

converse

Thanks for your replies, glad I wasn't the only one finding it a tad confusing, almost as if it's deliberate!