They Just Don't Read or Listen about DCC Scam
Aug 27th, 2010, 07:03 PM
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They Just Don't Read or Listen about DCC Scam
Just completed a two week tour holiday with CIE in Scotland and Ireland. Tour was great, hotels were great, food was great. But throughout, I was flustered watching person after person getting ripped off at various places, especially in Ireland when the clerk asked if they wished to pay in euro or US dollars allowing themselves to be ripped off and saying US dollars (or whatever currency their credit cards were issued in). And some of them were my tourmates who I explained to about this scam and they insisted they were not getting ripped off, they were getting a good rate....
Oh well.
Oh well.
Aug 27th, 2010, 07:13 PM
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Plenty of people are too lazy or too intimidated to do any research and you can't do anything for them. Too bad for them. Even when they receive their bills, they probably will not understand what happened or that they were ripped off.
Aug 27th, 2010, 07:24 PM
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There was a good thread here a little more than a year ago about DCC. At first I didn't get what all the fuss was about but after reading and re-reading the thread I understood. Maybe you have planted the seed of doubt in their minds and hopefully they will look into it for their next trip. But if not, you did your good deed for the day and tried to help them. 
Aug 27th, 2010, 08:28 PM
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Well, you've certainly planted the seed of doubt in my mind. What's DCC?
We'll be in London next week and in various European cities over the next few months. I expect to be using my (Canadian) credit card a lot. In past travels in Europe, no one has ever asked me if I wanted to pay in Euros or dollars.
Please explain in the simplest terms possible. And thank you.
gtg
We'll be in London next week and in various European cities over the next few months. I expect to be using my (Canadian) credit card a lot. In past travels in Europe, no one has ever asked me if I wanted to pay in Euros or dollars.
Please explain in the simplest terms possible. And thank you.
gtg
Aug 27th, 2010, 08:35 PM
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DCC=Dynamic Currency Conversion. A hotel or other vendor will ask you if you would like your payment to made in the local currency or your home currency. If you choose your home currency, a third party steps in (electronically) and adds an commission to the charge - essentially you pay two commissions - one to your cc provider and one to the third party. This could amount to 6%. The rate is generally crap.
Aug 28th, 2010, 09:04 AM
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It happens in the UK but nowhere near as often as Ireland. This cancer was born in Ireland and has becme very prevelent n Spain and in Italy where language may be a problem.
Let's make it clear to everybody, just say no. Tell the merchant to process the charge in local currency and if they fail to do so, tell them to void (not credit) the transaction and do it properly. If they refuse, ask to speak to the manager (the no speak English comes up here outside of Ireland and the UK). If the manager still refuses to do it properly, just circle the local currency amount and write local currency option not offered and tell the merchant you will be disputing the charge and then do so. This is a cancer and has to be stopped.
Let's make it clear to everybody, just say no. Tell the merchant to process the charge in local currency and if they fail to do so, tell them to void (not credit) the transaction and do it properly. If they refuse, ask to speak to the manager (the no speak English comes up here outside of Ireland and the UK). If the manager still refuses to do it properly, just circle the local currency amount and write local currency option not offered and tell the merchant you will be disputing the charge and then do so. This is a cancer and has to be stopped.
Aug 28th, 2010, 09:47 AM
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Zurich airport's duty free shope have an innovative version of DCC:
After your CC gets swiped, the cashier asks you to prompt a small touch screen. The "touchable" field for your home currency is in a bright color and twice the size than the black/white field you have to touch for Swiss Franks.
Once I did not notice and I made a purchase in my home currency (Euros). But when the item appeared on my CC invoice, it did NOT come with the 1 pct conversion charge. It was treated like any purchase in the Euro zone. Just the exchange rate was worse than the interbank rate + 1% charge, I'd have paid normally.
After your CC gets swiped, the cashier asks you to prompt a small touch screen. The "touchable" field for your home currency is in a bright color and twice the size than the black/white field you have to touch for Swiss Franks.
Once I did not notice and I made a purchase in my home currency (Euros). But when the item appeared on my CC invoice, it did NOT come with the 1 pct conversion charge. It was treated like any purchase in the Euro zone. Just the exchange rate was worse than the interbank rate + 1% charge, I'd have paid normally.
Aug 28th, 2010, 11:05 AM
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A lot of people are terrible with math and don't understand anything about it, which I think goes with not understanding currency exchange rates, or finances in general. There's nothing you can do about, who cares, if they are happy, so be it. A lot of people actually would think they would prefer to see the bill in dollars because they are dumb, so if they want that, let them pay for it.
Aug 28th, 2010, 12:01 PM
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"A lot of people are terrible with math"
Well, that describes me perfectly. But it doesn't stop me from taking good advice from people who are better at it than me. When I read a thread like this, I have to have someone boil it down for me in the simplest terms possible which is exactly what sarvo and nuke kindly did.
Well, that describes me perfectly. But it doesn't stop me from taking good advice from people who are better at it than me. When I read a thread like this, I have to have someone boil it down for me in the simplest terms possible which is exactly what sarvo and nuke kindly did.
Aug 28th, 2010, 12:45 PM
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xyz--Thank you for bringing it up one more time. The more people complain about it, the better hotel and restaurant staff people have to back down a bit.
It almost ruined my "trip 'tude" in Ireland, and that's HARD to do. It got to the place where we'd just hit the ATM and carry wads of cash rather than deal with one more hotel or restaurant who would insist that it could not be undone.
I had a lovely stay at the Best Western Atlantico in Madrid, and when I was checking out, I said, "I SO enjoyed our stay here. Everything was so lovely. Please don't ruin this wonderful stay by trying to charge me in US currency." The man said, "Don't worry. I'll give you plenty of opportunity to see you've been charged in Euros." Phew!
My husband and one daughter are math/financial wizzes, but I'm the person who gets miffed if I feel someone is robbing us. They aren't the ones budgeting for the trip. I am. They don't reconcile the cc bills at the end. I do. So in a way, it's a good partnership. My husband and one daughter always knows what the currency exchange is at any given moment; I know what I should have paid in the local currency.
And last year when we checked out of an equally lovely stay at the Palace Bonvecchiati (the one on San Marco, Calle dei Fabbri 4680 between Rialto and St. Mark's Square--not to be confused with Hotel Bonvecchiati) the desk clerk printed out a summary of my bill in dollars. I went red and was just about to go ballistic when my daughter said, "She is telling you that this is for your reference only--the bill will be in Euros." I calmed down and said, "Thank you. I have been so angry about Dynamic Currency Conversion." And she said, "We have been pressured to buy into that. And we know it makes guests angry."
As some of you know, there are whole internet agencies selling DCC to hotels and restaurants. Those agencies portray it as a positive to the hotels/restaurants (create some profit while making your guests happy). Customers need to be the people who say, "This is NOT making me happy."
And that's why, XYZ, you've done everyone a big favor again. We are grateful.
It almost ruined my "trip 'tude" in Ireland, and that's HARD to do. It got to the place where we'd just hit the ATM and carry wads of cash rather than deal with one more hotel or restaurant who would insist that it could not be undone.
I had a lovely stay at the Best Western Atlantico in Madrid, and when I was checking out, I said, "I SO enjoyed our stay here. Everything was so lovely. Please don't ruin this wonderful stay by trying to charge me in US currency." The man said, "Don't worry. I'll give you plenty of opportunity to see you've been charged in Euros." Phew!
My husband and one daughter are math/financial wizzes, but I'm the person who gets miffed if I feel someone is robbing us. They aren't the ones budgeting for the trip. I am. They don't reconcile the cc bills at the end. I do. So in a way, it's a good partnership. My husband and one daughter always knows what the currency exchange is at any given moment; I know what I should have paid in the local currency.
And last year when we checked out of an equally lovely stay at the Palace Bonvecchiati (the one on San Marco, Calle dei Fabbri 4680 between Rialto and St. Mark's Square--not to be confused with Hotel Bonvecchiati) the desk clerk printed out a summary of my bill in dollars. I went red and was just about to go ballistic when my daughter said, "She is telling you that this is for your reference only--the bill will be in Euros." I calmed down and said, "Thank you. I have been so angry about Dynamic Currency Conversion." And she said, "We have been pressured to buy into that. And we know it makes guests angry."
As some of you know, there are whole internet agencies selling DCC to hotels and restaurants. Those agencies portray it as a positive to the hotels/restaurants (create some profit while making your guests happy). Customers need to be the people who say, "This is NOT making me happy."
And that's why, XYZ, you've done everyone a big favor again. We are grateful.
Aug 28th, 2010, 01:07 PM
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Car companies also use DCC. Sign off, agreeing to pay for potential damage (to be covered in the future by your CC) and you will pay using DCC. But the CC company reimburses according the day's going rate. It's very difficult to avoid unless you refuse to sing the rental contract.
Aug 28th, 2010, 01:09 PM
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>Just the exchange rate was worse than the interbank rate + 1% charge, I'd have paid normally.
Get a decent card, there's no need to pay the 1% charge or monthly/yearly charges for the card. All you need to do is to pay your bill on time.
http://www.gebuhrenfrei.com
The card exists for about 3 years now, never had a problem or was charged a conversion fee in excess of the interbank rate anywhere. The card is based in Luxemburg, but you can pay by money transfer to a German bank account.
Get a decent card, there's no need to pay the 1% charge or monthly/yearly charges for the card. All you need to do is to pay your bill on time.
http://www.gebuhrenfrei.com
The card exists for about 3 years now, never had a problem or was charged a conversion fee in excess of the interbank rate anywhere. The card is based in Luxemburg, but you can pay by money transfer to a German bank account.
Sep 12th, 2010, 03:55 AM
#19
I didn't encounter DCC at all on my trip to Italy the past few weeks. I charged most things as was having trouble with my ATM card at first.
On my last trip to Spain, my hotel pulled the DCC and then all of a sudden didn't speak English. I had a taxi waiting and a train to catch so didn't get to straighten it out.
gtg - The credit cards require the business to get your permission to charge in your home currency before the transaction (at least US cards such as Visa require it) . Many just do it without asking to make money and then say they can't change it.
On my last trip to Spain, my hotel pulled the DCC and then all of a sudden didn't speak English. I had a taxi waiting and a train to catch so didn't get to straighten it out.
gtg - The credit cards require the business to get your permission to charge in your home currency before the transaction (at least US cards such as Visa require it) . Many just do it without asking to make money and then say they can't change it.
