A warning - stay way off Barclaycard when abroad

triteata

I'm sure many of you savvy folk know they charge 2.99% on non-sterling transactions so using them to spend abroad or draw cash makes no financial sense.

However I did use them for the deposit of a car rental because I wanted the section 75 protection and as it's just a deposit no real transaction takes place - they just block the money and then release it right?

Wrong!

Depending on the rental company, some actually take the money out as a transaction - don't just block it. And when they refund you later, Barclays apply their rate AGAIN so overall I'm charged 6% for a non-transaction!

What's worse than Barclays' greed is the Barclays phone rep incompetence: I called Barclays to check how come I received back 6% less than I paid. After a lot of hurdles in order to speak to a real human, she insisted that there are no fees on refunds and that both exchange rates are set by the central bank! Not Visa, not Barclays - by the central banks! And that simply the exchange rate became 6% worse overnight from Saturday to Sunday (yes I did only rent the car for 1 day on the weekend).

The facts that currency markets are closed on weekends, that 6% is amazingly similar to a 3% fee applied twice, and finally that each card+bank chooses their rate are irrelevant to this lady.

So I'm sharing here mostly because I'm amazed by her incompetence and thought some of you might find it entertaining.

And as a warning: Do not use Barclaycard abroad ever for anything!

Off I go now to find a better credit card for travel Please share if you have a favourite!

DullGreyGuy

triteata said:

I'm sure many of you savvy folk know they charge 2.99% on non-sterling transactions so using them to spend abroad or draw cash makes no financial sense.

However I did use them for the deposit of a car rental because I wanted the section 75 protection and as it's just a deposit no real transaction takes place - they just block the money and then release it right?

Wrong!

Depending on the rental company, some actually take the money out as a transaction - don't just block it. And when they refund you later, Barclays apply their rate AGAIN so overall I'm charged 6% for a non-transaction!

What's worse than Barclays' greed is the Barclays phone rep incompetence: I called Barclays to check how come I received back 6% less than I paid. After a lot of hurdles in order to speak to a real human, she insisted that there are no fees on refunds and that both exchange rates are set by the central bank! Not Visa, not Barclays - by the central banks! And that simply the exchange rate became 6% worse overnight from Saturday to Sunday (yes I did only rent the car for 1 day on the weekend).

The facts that currency markets are closed on weekends, that 6% is amazingly similar to a 3% fee applied twice, and finally that each card+bank chooses their rate are irrelevant to this lady.

So I'm sharing here mostly because I'm amazed by her incompetence and thought some of you might find it entertaining.

And as a warning: Do not use Barclaycard abroad ever for anything!

Off I go now to find a better credit card for travel Please share if you have a favourite!

If no money is taken then there is no S75 protection

Some hire companies take the money, most dont and just do an authorisation. There may also be a consideration on if the hire car company processed the return properly as a refund or not which can impact if fees are charged again. I remember with a NW card with the same 2.99% I did rather well from a cancellation/refund because of the movement in FX but fairly sure there wasnt a fee in both directions. 

PS Barclaycard are recommended for overseas spending but its the Reward card that has a 0% fee/no additional spread on the FX

daveyjp

I've used Barclaycard Rewards in at least 15 countries and never had a problem or paid a penny in fees as there are no Forex fees with that card,

So Barclaycard is my favourite.

The fact a car rental company takes a payment for a deposit isn't Barclaycard's fault.

zagfles

As above BC rewards is excellent for travel, you can even withdraw cash with no interest or fees assuming you pay in full by due date (though a lot of ATMs will charge you). The rate is set by VISA, but it's not far off the interbank rate. You can check the rate here. Currency Converter – Exchange Rate Calculator | Visa  but most cards inc some BCs add a forex markup, the VISA calculator lets you specify it. 

Car hire is one thing I try to avoid using a credit card for. There too many dodgy car hire companies, even some of the big well known names operating franchises, where they'll charge you a fortune for a small scratch that was probably already there, sometimes weeks after you've done the hire. They are far less likely to pull this scam if they haven't got an easy way to charge you. People think you need a credit car for car hire, you don't, particularly in European package holiday resorts where there are loads of small car hire companies who are happy with cash. 

Olenna

triteata said:

I'm sure many of you savvy folk know they charge 2.99% on non-sterling transactions so using them to spend abroad or draw cash makes no financial sense.

However I did use them for the deposit of a car rental because I wanted the section 75 protection and as it's just a deposit no real transaction takes place - they just block the money and then release it right?

Wrong!

Depending on the rental company, some actually take the money out as a transaction - don't just block it. And when they refund you later, Barclays apply their rate AGAIN so overall I'm charged 6% for a non-transaction!

What's worse than Barclays' greed is the Barclays phone rep incompetence: I called Barclays to check how come I received back 6% less than I paid. After a lot of hurdles in order to speak to a real human, she insisted that there are no fees on refunds and that both exchange rates are set by the central bank! Not Visa, not Barclays - by the central banks! And that simply the exchange rate became 6% worse overnight from Saturday to Sunday (yes I did only rent the car for 1 day on the weekend).

The facts that currency markets are closed on weekends, that 6% is amazingly similar to a 3% fee applied twice, and finally that each card+bank chooses their rate are irrelevant to this lady.

So I'm sharing here mostly because I'm amazed by her incompetence and thought some of you might find it entertaining.

And as a warning: Do not use Barclaycard abroad ever for anything!

Off I go now to find a better credit card for travel Please share if you have a favourite!

Sure, my favourite is Barclaycard Rewards - they don't charge anything for non-GBP transactions and actually credit 0.25% cashback for both GBP and non-GBP purchases. 

It wasn't a non-transaction; it was a debit transaction with a corresponding refund transaction.  If the rental company had either only authorised the deposit amount or reversed the original deposit transaction then you wouldn't have been charged a forex fee. 

triteata

zagfles said:

Car hire is one thing I try to avoid using a credit card for. There too many dodgy car hire companies, even some of the big well known names operating franchises, where they'll charge you a fortune for a small scratch that was probably already there, sometimes weeks after you've done the hire. They are far less likely to pull this scam if they haven't got an easy way to charge you. People think you need a credit car for car hire, you don't, particularly in European package holiday resorts where there are loads of small car hire companies who are happy with cash. 

This is really interesting - could you elaborate how a credit card makes it easier for a rogue car rental to charge you after they've already refunded/unblocked the deposit? After all they no longer have the card with them.

Thank you all for the Barclaycard Rewards suggestion!

zagfles

triteata said:

zagfles said:

Car hire is one thing I try to avoid using a credit card for. There too many dodgy car hire companies, even some of the big well known names operating franchises, where they'll charge you a fortune for a small scratch that was probably already there, sometimes weeks after you've done the hire. They are far less likely to pull this scam if they haven't got an easy way to charge you. People think you need a credit car for car hire, you don't, particularly in European package holiday resorts where there are loads of small car hire companies who are happy with cash. 

This is really interesting - could you elaborate how a credit card makes it easier for a rogue car rental to charge you after they've already refunded/unblocked the deposit? After all they no longer have the card with them.

Thank you all for the Barclaycard Rewards suggestion!

They still have the card details and the T&Cs will usually say they can charge it for damages etc, also stuff like fines of speeding/parking etc which they may not find out about for a while, and which they usually add an admin charge to and don't give you a chance to dispute. If you look at reviews for most car hire companies you'll see such tales. 

It's never happened to me mind, and I have used CCs to hire cars, if you book in advance you tend to have to use a card. But if I'm on a package to somewhere like Greece, Spain etc the resort will have loads of small car hire places, these are better value and even full no excess insurance is usually reasonable compared to the rip-off "Super CDW" the big boys will charge. I also have an excess policy anyway, but if the no excess option is cheap eg 5 EUR a day I just take it to avoid the hassle. 

The other advantages of hiring at the resort rather than the airport is that you're not driving after a long flight, you probably don't need a car for the entire holiday eg some days you won't go anywhere or get a tour etc, and you don't need as big a car as you don't have luggage to transport. Those saving usually more than pay for a transfer/taxi to get you to/from the airport. Obviously depends on destination, some places you will need to hire at the airport, eg if you're going somewhere remote.