While in Venice last month, we used our ATM card as much as possible to try and avoid any additional credit card charges. Without applying for a new card (Capital One?) which we did not want to do, all of our cards carried the standard 1%, plus an additional percent or two (and even 2 1/2!).
We had seven ATM withdrawls (all different) throughout the city over the course of our 12 day trip.
Interesting, when balancing our checkbook yesterday, I found two of the seven withdrawls showing a separate 1% charge, with "Visa International Service Assessment" as the explanation. When I called my credit union to ask about it, they were unable to tell me what this charge was for and why it was deducted for only two of the seven withdrawls. Also, there was no explanation of this at the ATM when we were withdrawing the money.
Has anyone else had this experience and I'm wondering if there is any way to know in advance which ATM's to stay away from in the future (or is this the wave of the future for all)? I know it's not that much money but it just irks me to have to pay an "assessment" for nothing.
Our credit union ATM card withdrawals show the 1% charge separately which I am told to be the VISA charge for managing the program for foreign transactions. There is no other charge for the withdrawals and we get market rate.
Posts: 834 | Location: San Francisco | Registered: 22 April 2005
I wonder if it's possible that they all actually had the 1% VISA charge, but only two of the ATMs were set up to break it out when reporting the transaction. It might be possible to compare the exchange rates on all the transactions if you wanted to spend a lot of time tracking it down. But then again, a 1% difference may not even be big enough to be sure about if the rate varies within the day.
By the way, I have a Visa Gold Check Card (through Fidelity) which doesn't show any 1% charge on recent transactions in France or Italy. But I don't know whether that means it just wasn't spelled out.
We used our Etrade and Charles Scwab ATM cards in Venice, Florence and Rome last October and did not have any separate transaction fee charges. I also checked the conversion rates and they were right on, so I know there was no additional fees deducted.
Some institutions charge and others don't--or maybe it is the type of account you have. We have tested withdrawals with our two cards doing them one after another at the same time. The cards showed the same conversion into $'s but the credit union then showed a separate 1% fee. For instance: we took out €250 and both statements converted to $355 but the cc charged an additional $3.50.
Why the same card would sometimes charge and others not, is a mystery, though.
I think if the card has, for example, both Visa and Cirrus logos, it works one way if the ATM you use goes through the Visa network first, and another if it goes through Cirrus.
Originally posted by Dianne: The conversion rates were not the same. They were less favorable on the transactions with the fee (approximately by the amount of the 1% charge).
Interesante. Dianne, did you mean to say the ones "without" the fee?
To clarify, the conversion rates were about the same for all seven transactions, but when you added in the 1% fee that was charged on two of them, the cost for the $$ on those was higher.
I called my bank ahead of the upcoming trip to let them know where we will be and what cards we may use.
The person at the other end made sure that I am myself aware of the fact that an ATM withdrawal will carry (a) a flat $3 charge per transaction; (b) the rate of exchange will also include a %-based adjustement.
Visa may be different; this involves the Debit Card (ATM) only.
Nothing new for me, since I was familiar with these charges, but I appreciated being asked if I am aware of them before departure.
P.S.: I will link this topic to our Everything about Travel forum, since its relevance is not restricted to Italy.
(Sigh) This can get very complicated. First, you used a credit union card. A credit union is not, of course, a bank. This might impact assessed processing fees and costs. The NCUA has been fighting for decades to end what they consider "discrimination" by banks against credit unions. But...a CU is not a bank, and unless things have changed, the networks are owned by the card companies (Visa and Mastercard) which are owned by...banks. Whether they impose a fee on credit union cards used at foriegn ATMs should be something your credit union should be able to tell you (if you can find the right person).
Then there is the issue of what network each of the ATMs is connected to and whether their charges differ. For example, two might have been Star and the others Plus. If your card can access both you might only see a difference on the two done at one and not the others...but this will show nowhere on anything you get to look at, like your statement.Usually I would not expect a customer to see a difference based on this factor, but that doesn't mean it can't happen. And if those two ATMs are connected to a network owned by Visa, it really could be Visa who is imposing the fee.
Finally, many credit unions do not do their own transaction processing, but contract it out to...a bank. Thus the charge may be assessed at this point in the processing by the bank that actually handled the transaction on behalf of the credit union. And they may be simply passing on a fee imposed on them for handling a "non bank" transaction.
As networks, processes, and products grew "organically" over the 40 plus years since BofA invented the bank credit card things have gotten rather tangled. Add in the number of lawsuits filed by banks and non banks regarding card processing practices and the resulting changes from settlements of these suits, toss in some congressional additions and other regulatory changes, stir for a few decades, and there is more than an adequate basis for total confusion.
Posts: 440 | Location: Sierra Nevada foothils, California | Registered: 04 May 2009
After several years of paying fees I discovered that if I use the ATM card for our home equity account there are no fees! Saves at least $60 each trip! I keep money in the checking account for "in case" and only use credit card for major purchases, like a one week stay at a hotel. We try to pay cash for most things.
Posts: 1 | Location: Eagle River, Alaska | Registered: 17 September 2009
Dianne, All the charges come from your credit union. The ATMs and VISA do not charge you although the CU may pass along the charge to them from Visa. Your ATM card terms and conditions should specify any charges to you. That is the fine print folder they send with your statement. If you don't have it ask for one at the CU. If no 1% fee is listed in the terms and conditions don't pay it. Of course I wouldn't pay any fee that the CU couldn't tell me what it was for. You probably need to move up the CU food chain to find someone that knows the answers.
I don't know if this will help, but...if you keep a minimum balance in your savings account of $5,000 or more Wells Fargo will issue you a Gold ATM card which has no foreign ATM fees. I use my Wells Fargo ATM and a CapitolOne card which also has no fees (no exhange fees either) and I figure I save a around $200-300 per trip (depending on the length of the trip)
