ATM withdrawal Spain

LadyInBed

LadyInBed

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Joined
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Me - Zumerzet Boat - Wareham
montymariner.co.uk
When I use my UK debit card (Metro Bank, no commission) I get asked if I want the money at the euro rate or at (I think they call it) a transfer (or it might be a conversion) rate. Sorry to be vague.

What do they mean?
Which option should I opt for, without transfer/conversion or with?
 
LadyInBed said:
When I use my UK debit card (Metro Bank, no commission) I get asked if I want the money at the euro rate or at (I think they call it) a transfer (or it might be a conversion) rate. Sorry to be vague.

What do they mean?
Which option should I opt for, without transfer/conversion or with?
Click to expand...

Avoid their € offer it will cost about 12% (of interbank rate) for them to do the conversion for you.

Your debit card will either be on the Mastercard (Maestro) or Visa network and if it claims "no commission" will only cost you about 2%.
I've found Maestro tends to be less greedy than Visa.
 
When I use my Nationwide commission free card, using the euro option typically saves me about £8 on 300 euros.
 
PlanB said:
When I use my Nationwide commission free card, using the euro option typically saves me about £8 on 300 euros.
Click to expand...

Do you mean your Flex debit card? or the Visa Select card?

As the Flex card charges you 2% on the balance withdrawn plus £1.00 on each ATMS transaction and is already at a disadvantageous Visa rate, you are right that it always costs you money. However if you have only bothered to compare a couple of isolated transactions I'm afraid you're probably wrong - on every ATMS that has offered the alternatives, it's been cheaper to withdraw cash using the debit card.
If you're withdrawing using the credit card, I'm surprised that the premium was so small - but I'm sure no-one withdraws cash using a credit card ;-)
 
charles_reed said:
If you're withdrawing using the credit card, I'm surprised that the premium was so small - but I'm sure no-one withdraws cash using a credit card ;-)
Click to expand...
Uhm, we do! 'Er indoors did a load of research before we left. Turned out the cheapest way to pay for and withdraw cash was using a Halifax Clarity MasterCard. No fees and very low interest rate on cash withdrawals. Turns out cheaper than using a debit card, believe it or not. Also, a trick is to pay off any cash withdrawals straight away to avoid paying interest.
 
There is a new flexplus bank account, and I have carried out numerous transactions, doing comparisons.
 
PlanB said:
There is a new flexplus bank account, and I have carried out numerous transactions, doing comparisons.
Click to expand...

Ah, so you don't pay £120/year for the privilege of having the account?

Break-even comes when you draw more than £600, in the year, in cash over the normal Flex debit card. You also need a minimum pay-in to the account. However we are getting away from the OP's original question.

For those who draw cash, on ANY credit card, I suggest forebearing from crowing until you get the printed statements, even if you keep the account in credit.
 
OR4751 said:
+1
When I withdraw funds from my €uro account in Britain, most ATMs offer the same option.
Their exchange rate is a downright rip-off. :mad:
Click to expand...

As a tip, when paying for anything by card, keep hold of the machine after entering your PIN and wait to see if it asks the € or £ question. I have found it will usually ask something like "Do you wish to pay in £?" so if you just keep pressing "Yes", they'll stuff you with the local bank's rate. We've found the local shopkeepers tend to just keep pressing "Yes" or "Continue" for you, so will often unwittingly commit you to pay the extortionate rate.
Keep hold of the machine until the transaction is complete and the receipt prints out!
 
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