Feedback needed on Bureau de Change providers

schristine06

Hi just thought I would post to recommend TMS. Ordered US$ from them approx 1 mth ago at $1.55 and despite a nail biting morning my currency arrived as promised all in a good mixture of notes and AMEX TC. Phewwwwwwww:T

auntyS

I bought US Dollars from The Change Group at a good rate of $1.50. They were posted free of charge by recorded delivery and my order arrived within two days from initial registration. I am very happy with the transaction and would certainly use them again.

khrest

I Also used The Change Group via mail and got 1.52 delivered within 20 hours of my ordering it.

The only negative for me was that all the currency was sent in 100 dollar bills, which will be difficult to break at some smaller places on our road trip.

they could do with a field for notes, so that you can request high or low denomination as you can with the Post Office.

nlg0504

I recently used the Travel Money Maximiser to decide which company to purchase Canadian Dollars from.
I ended up going with Best Foreign Exchange based in London. I ordered the currency online from their website. You complete their online form and they email you with a reference number. You have to transfer your sterling by internet transfer into their account at RBS, London Victoria Branch.
I ordered my currency on a Saturday and on the following Wednesday they emailed me to say I would have the currency the following day by Royal Mail special delivery. And it duly arrived as promised.
There is a £5.00 admin/delivery charge but, they still had the best rates.
I was a bit nervous about transferring the money as I purchased almost £2000.00 but, it was easy to use and hassle free. Would recommend. :rotfl:

Deal-Hunter_2

Hey guys and girls, quick question here. I thought the Post Office generally had close to the best rates with no commission or admin charge? I've always gotten my money changed there, but if it turns out I'm getting ripped off I should probably change. Anyone else have an opinion on this?

Miss_Laid

Is there anywhere that will cash dollars for free I have a $20 bill

harz99

Deal-Hunter wrote: »

Hey guys and girls, quick question here. I thought the Post Office generally had close to the best rates with no commission or admin charge? I've always gotten my money changed there, but if it turns out I'm getting ripped off I should probably change. Anyone else have an opinion on this?

Up to a year ago I always used the Post Office as I preferred the face to face transaction, however after making several requests when ordering for small denomination notes, and not receiving any at all, I changed to online.

I have since used both CCE and TMS for a variety of long haul currencies and found no problem with either.

harz99

Miss_Laid wrote: »

Is there anywhere that will cash dollars for free I have a $20 bill

Next time you're in the US.............

Seriously though, I doubt it. Best just to try your local Thomas Cook and swallow the charge if you are not going back to a country where the USD is king.

Lezanne26

I've just used The Change Group for £2000 of euros. I did the transaction online - received an email confirmation straight away - then did a bank transfer. I had an email request to contact them which I did the next day. They said at the time of sending the email they had not received my money but on re-checking found they had now received it. However before they could send my currency they required proof of address and asked me to send a copy bank/credit card statement or utility bill via email or fax. I don't really like sending such information to someone I don't know but needs must - they had my money! Once they received this information my money was despatched immediately and I received it on Saturday morning (began ordering process Thursday).

I was pleased with the service but one slight niggle - I received 2400 euros - 2000 in 100 euro notes and 400 in 20 euro notes. Why do they do that! We're going to be popular when we hand over a 100 euro note at the local bar in Cyprus. I've tried to change some here before we go but understandably no-one wants to know.

MJG_2

ICE - high credit card charges

I recently used a 0% Tesco Clubcard Credit Card to buy £502's worth of euros online from ICE, the rate was good and they delivered promptly even phoning the day before to ensure someone would be around. However, have just returned from holiday to realise that the credit card company have regarded this transaction as cash rather than a purchase (equivalent to taking money from a cash machine) and have therefore charged a high interest rate and a £15.09 'cash handling fee'. Going back and doing a bit of research I now see that in the T&C ICE detail that some cards treat such transactions as a cash advance. I understand that this was in the T&C of ICE and the credit card but if I'm honest I hadn't understood the idea of a cash advance or that purchasing foreign currency would be regarded as such, this is obviously my lack of understanding but I can't be the only one and hope this might help others avoid similar charges. I have contacted the card company on the off chance, particularly given that it is a significant amount of money but given it's in the T&C the charges still stand, also had to clear the balance of the card to stop accruing interest. An expensive mistake.