ATM Caution

[SRF]

On 9/22/2019 at 2:22 PM, mom says said:

Non bank owned ATMS often use a less favorable exchange rate compared to banks, even without the DCC; that's how they make their money.

 

As for the withdrawal limit- it's twofold. Your bank sets a limit on the maximum they allow you to withdraw on your card. You can ask for this limit to be raised if you want. But the ATM machine will also have its own limit set by its owner. This may be lower than the one on your card.

 

What difference does it make what the ATM exchange rate is, if you don't use it?????  If I withdraw money in smoots (a technical term 🙂 ), MY bank makes the conversion.

 

As for limits, yes, the ATM could have a lower limit than my bank.  But people forget the conversion.  $300 limit, does not allow you to withdraw 300 Euro. 🙂

 

[navybankerteacher]

On 9/25/2019 at 11:58 AM, caffeine_demon said:

I think it was brussels, but on my last europe jaunt, one of the stations only had travelex atms - not only was it an awful rate, but you could only withdraw it in 500 euro denominations! 

 

Accidentally got an awful rate at heathrow, trying to get a few euros - pressed "yes please" instead of "no thanks" adn got a rate of about 0.9...

My last time through Heathrow there were only proprietary ATM’s - with their bad rates - all the bank ATM’ s seem to have vanished.

[K32682]

18 hours ago, navybankerteacher said:

My last time through Heathrow there were only proprietary ATM’s - with their bad rates - all the bank ATM’ s seem to have vanished.

 

Airports are always the worst places to change currency whether by man or machine.   What has to be measured however is the cost of convenience and certainty.  Travelers who don't arrive with local currency can either pay the higher rates at the airport or hope they can find an ATM in the city and not need cash in the interim. 

 

It is the somewhat the same with independent ATMs.  They are more expensive but are often more available.  The price you pay is for the availability and not having to fritter away free time on holiday seeking out a bank ATM just to save a dollar or two.  

 

FWIW, the only time I use a currency exchange at an airport is to avoid departing a country with currency I can't exchange at home (e.g. Namibian dollars, Armenian dram, Serbian dinars, etc.)

 

 

Edited October 2, 2019 by K32682

[iancal]

Timely advice.  We are in Greece at the moment.  

 

Two days ago we withdrew 400E from an Alfabank ATM.  

 

At the end of the process the ATM bank offered to do the conversion to CAD.  They listed the rate.  It was terrible.  So I said no.  That was fine but then I had to scroll through two more screens where they were more or less implying that I was taking a risk by doing this.   

 

I kept on indicating no.  Two days later I see the exchange from my own institution.  I would have paid AlphaBank an extra $50 Cad or so had I let them do the conversion.  The ATM charge was 2.5 E.  

[SRF]

1 hour ago, K32682 said:

 

Airports are always the worst places to change currency whether by man or machine.   What has to be measured however is the cost of convenience and certainty.  Travelers who don't arrive with local currency can either pay the higher rates at the airport or hope they can find an ATM in the city and not need cash in the interim. 

 

It is the somewhat the same with independent ATMs.  They are more expensive but are often more available.  The price you pay is for the availability and not having to fritter away free time on holiday seeking out a bank ATM just to save a dollar or two.  

 

FWIW, the only time I use a currency exchange at an airport is to avoid departing a country with currency I can't exchange at home (e.g. Namibian dollars, Armenian dram, Serbian dinars, etc.)

 

As I stated in the OP, I have not run into ATMs that did the conversion themselves.  Even the non-bank ones in airports.  If I asked for 100 smoots, it gave me 100 smoots, and charged my bank 100 smoots, and MY bank did the conversion.  And in fact, unlike the US, I have found that most ATMs outside the US do not charge fees, but that seems to be changing.

 

I use any excess foreign currency left to pay part of my hotel bill.   

[wheezedr]

22 hours ago, navybankerteacher said:

My last time through Heathrow there were only proprietary ATM’s - with their bad rates - all the bank ATM’ s seem to have vanished.

This has been a problem at Heathrow now for a few years.   We usually save a few £ for connections to town or travel by some means using a CC.  Once in London finding an ATM is generally quite easy.

[Underwatr]

4 minutes ago, wheezedr said:

We usually save a few £ for connections to town or travel by some means using a CC.

That's how I ended up with some deprecated £5 notes...

[K32682]

3 hours ago, SRF said:

I use any excess foreign currency left to pay part of my hotel bill.   

 

Not always the best practice unless your hotel is close to the airport.  I keep enough local currency until I'm within walking distance.  It's come in handy a couple of times. I only exchange uncommon currencies at the airport as I get acceptable rates on GBP,  USD, EUR and ZAR at home or they are saved for the next adventure.      

 

 

Edited October 2, 2019 by K32682

[navybankerteacher]

1 hour ago, wheezedr said:

This has been a problem at Heathrow now for a few years.   We usually save a few £ for connections to town or travel by some means using a CC.  Once in London finding an ATM is generally quite easy.

We always save a few GBP and Euros for next trip - last year I had to impose upon my nephew to swap out my outdated 20 Pound notes - because banks wanted no part of handling the swap. For what is something of a “nanny state”, their government can sometimes be a PITA.  

 

Five years ago, we wanted to make a cash wedding gift to another nephew - no banks were permitted - supposedly for security reasons - to sell checques for cash for non-depositors.  But the Post Office was perfectly happy to sell their money orders (identical in purpose to checks) without even asking for identification.

 

I have many Brit relatives and friends - but the country as a whole is barely competent (witness Brexit) - I’m afraid that one morning everyone in England might tumble down the stairs and, with no one around to help them up, that will be the end of them.

[CPT Trips]

59 minutes ago, navybankerteacher said:

 

 

Five years ago, we wanted to make a cash wedding gift to another nephew - no banks were permitted - supposedly for security reasons - to sell checques for cash for non-depositors.  But the Post Office was perfectly happy to sell their money orders (identical in purpose to checks) without even asking for identification.

 

 

 

We have expat nieces. One of them seems to change countries a couple times a year.

Amazon gift cards are perfect! They can be bought anywhere and are easy to send. Try that. 

[K32682]

3 hours ago, Underwatr said:

That's how I ended up with some deprecated £5 notes...

 

Depending on how long the notes have been removed from circulation some banks will take them.  The Bank of England central branch on Threadneedle St. in London will take any former legal currency regardless of age whether by mail or in person. 

 

https://www.bankofengland.co.uk/banknotes/exchanging-old-banknotes

 

 

[ilikeanswers]

10 hours ago, K32682 said:

It is the somewhat the same with independent ATMs.  They are more expensive but are often more available.  The price you pay is for the availability and not having to fritter away free time on holiday seeking out a bank ATM just to save a dollar or two.  

 

There are many apps now that can help you track down specific ATMs. I used a track down an ATM app in the Baltics which is notorious for its proliferation of independent ATMs and always managed to find a bank owned fee free ATM either in a direction I was heading or not far from my hotel. 

[navybankerteacher]

4 hours ago, K32682 said:

 

Depending on how long the notes have been removed from circulation some banks will take them.  The Bank of England central branch on Threadneedle St. in London will take any former legal currency regardless of age whether by mail or in person. 

 

https://www.bankofengland.co.uk/banknotes/exchanging-old-banknotes

 

 

There was a fixed time during which discontinued notes could be exchanged for new by banks - a year or so, I believe.  But once that time expired, no banks would accept them, and the only option was at Bank of England (essentially the counterpart to the US Federal Reserve Bank — it was not a matter of “some banks”.

[SRF]

19 hours ago, K32682 said:

 

Not always the best practice unless your hotel is close to the airport.  I keep enough local currency until I'm within walking distance.  It's come in handy a couple of times. I only exchange uncommon currencies at the airport as I get acceptable rates on GBP,  USD, EUR and ZAR at home or they are saved for the next adventure.   

 

I keep enough for some tips and the taxi (if not billed to the hotel).

 

And I always have some dollars or Euro, which is accepted for tips just about everywhere.

 

Inside the airport, they always seem to want dollars.

[SRF]

12 hours ago, navybankerteacher said:

There was a fixed time during which discontinued notes could be exchanged for new by banks - a year or so, I believe.  But once that time expired, no banks would accept them, and the only option was at Bank of England (essentially the counterpart to the US Federal Reserve Bank — it was not a matter of “some banks”.

 

Yeah, I have one 5 pound note I need to either give up, or take into BoE.