Anyone know what the fees are for using Italian ATM?
Sep 12th, 2003, 09:28 AM
#7
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Thank you. I thought we would have to pay a transaction fee by both the bankomat as well as BofA....hopefully, I'm wrong! This is sounding like the best/cheapest way to get cash. Thanks!
Sep 12th, 2003, 09:46 AM
#9
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I stay in Europe a long time and use a lot of ATM's. My bank is also Bank of America. I try to use the banks they have an agreement with -- call them and find out what banks those are. I forget the Italian ones. But when I use any other bank, sometimes there is no charge (I think like mentioned above, no charge for the first two in a month and then only if not at one of their "partner" banks). Otherwise the most Bank of America has ever charged me is $1.50 per transaction. Why are they charging you $3.00???
Sep 12th, 2003, 09:59 AM
#11
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Even if there's no "fee" as such, often there's a hidden conversion cost when your $-account is debited. Visa/Mastercard network (Plus/Cirrus) charge 1%, and it's quite common for your own bank to add 1.5-2%. Ask your bank. You can also check up after your trip by comparing the conversion rate used with historical interbank rate published in such websites as oanda.com. Conversion normally takes place on the day of the withdrawal or the next day.
Sep 13th, 2003, 06:45 AM
#12
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big shock when i got home and checked my Bank of NY statement - they charged a $6 transaction fee for every withdrawl i made!!!! They actually put you on notice of this on the last page of your statement that you never read b/c it always just contains advertisements. My fault - i should have been more diligent in checking their terms before i went. Italian banks didn't charge anything though.
Sep 13th, 2003, 07:28 AM
#13
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Order a Visa TravelMoney card. It is supposedly free of charge for ATMs and doesn't charge to convert money. You can have any amount put on, order as many cards as you like, and its safe if lost or stolen!
Sep 13th, 2003, 07:43 AM
#14
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Jodalahh..
If I were you, I'd call the branch manager at your friendly Bank of America branch and tell him or her in no uncertain terms that unless these moronic charges were moved from my account, I will be taking my banking business elsewhere. You will be shocked to see how quickly the charges will be removed.
If I were you, I'd call the branch manager at your friendly Bank of America branch and tell him or her in no uncertain terms that unless these moronic charges were moved from my account, I will be taking my banking business elsewhere. You will be shocked to see how quickly the charges will be removed.
Sep 13th, 2003, 07:51 AM
#15
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Using my Washington Mutual Visa debit card was the cheapest way to get cash. No interest, no ATM fee, no charges. Just the official exchange rate. Let the bank know you will be in Europe so they don't put a hold on the account when unusual charges appear.
Sep 13th, 2003, 08:13 AM
#16
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I do love xyz123's approach and sometimes it has worked for me. Banks are ruthless these days and good service swings like a pendulum. What do you do if your bank says, "fine, take your business elsewhere" or worse, you only have a checking account and the balance is always under the free-fee minimum? Unfortunately, banks know who their favorite customers are and they're usually folks with lots of money tied up there. There's no easy way out on this one.
Sep 13th, 2003, 08:28 AM
#17
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Then you do take your business elsewhere. There are lots of banks on the internet today which give free chequing no minimum balance along with a free ATM card with free ATM withdrawals. You can set up direct deposit with any bank you want.
In this day and age, you rarely need to negotiate a check on a hometown bank. You use the debit card and in many cases you can get cash back at the grocery etc.
If Bank of America is going to charge $6 gor an ATM withdrawal, there is no way you should continue to do business with them.
In this day and age, you rarely need to negotiate a check on a hometown bank. You use the debit card and in many cases you can get cash back at the grocery etc.
If Bank of America is going to charge $6 gor an ATM withdrawal, there is no way you should continue to do business with them.
Sep 13th, 2003, 09:26 AM
#18
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Yes, I would love to have dinner with xyz123 because I adore people who take action. Even I hear ING Direct is worth looking into. (Now watch Fodors pull this thread because the foodsnob mentioned another business entity.)
Changing banks may become as comfortable and commonplace as changing cell phone service or long distance carriers but I have to say, my 30 years at Chase (originally Chemical) does provide me with some clout and, for important financial matters, I prefer to deal with a human, although in the world of banking I use this word with caution.
I unknowingly dropped my (then) Chemical Visa card in the backseat of a Rome cab one New Year's Eve due to the mad rush for an empty cab. I had a $50,000 credit limit and the account was wide open. I didn't notice the missing card until I went to pay my $3000 hotel bill on New Year's Day. The ATM's were empty of cash and I had no way to pay the bill. I had the hotel call Chemical's 800 service number and a supervisor gave the hotel permission to use my lost number and Chemical offered to FedEx a replacement card the following day. If an online bank will guarantee to treat me like that, I'd consider signing on.
Changing banks may become as comfortable and commonplace as changing cell phone service or long distance carriers but I have to say, my 30 years at Chase (originally Chemical) does provide me with some clout and, for important financial matters, I prefer to deal with a human, although in the world of banking I use this word with caution.
I unknowingly dropped my (then) Chemical Visa card in the backseat of a Rome cab one New Year's Eve due to the mad rush for an empty cab. I had a $50,000 credit limit and the account was wide open. I didn't notice the missing card until I went to pay my $3000 hotel bill on New Year's Day. The ATM's were empty of cash and I had no way to pay the bill. I had the hotel call Chemical's 800 service number and a supervisor gave the hotel permission to use my lost number and Chemical offered to FedEx a replacement card the following day. If an online bank will guarantee to treat me like that, I'd consider signing on.
Sep 13th, 2003, 09:29 AM
#19
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I agree with not considering business with any establishment that would charge $6 for an ATM transaction...but back to the original poster's intent..even at THAT cost it would still be cheaper to use an ATM to get money than one of the change bureaus, including those run by some banks, which not only get you with sometimes high commissions or bad exchange rates, or both.
