ATM question in Italy?

Old Sep 10th, 2006, 01:11 PM
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ATM question in Italy?

Is it true that you can only withdraw from your checking using ATM in italy?
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Old Sep 10th, 2006, 02:19 PM
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It depends upon what kind of card you have. If you have an ATM card here in the States, it is probably tied into your checking account, so the funds would be deducted from your checking account if you use the ATM in Italy. If you use a credit card and take a cash advance, that's just charged to your credit card.

A lot of people on this board will caution you about using a credit card to get cash out of an ATM because it is the same as a cash advance, and interest incurs from the date of withdrawal. If you have a credit card with an APR of say 8 % with an APR of say 10% on a cash advance, and you pay off the balance when you return from your trip, the interest would be less than 1% on that cash advance. Depending upon your credit card fees, this may or may not be an option for you.
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Old Sep 10th, 2006, 02:33 PM
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And don't repeat my mistake -- I had a separate savings account for travel and the bank teller said "sure you can use the ATM card overseas." Of course it didn't work (card must be connected to a checking account) and when I reported this to a bank manager, she said "oh, yes - sorry - that's a training issue with our staff!"
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Old Sep 10th, 2006, 02:40 PM
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Hi bk,

Yes.

It is not hard to open a checking account.

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Old Sep 10th, 2006, 02:40 PM
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Budman,thanks for your post!! I have been meaning to sit down and figure out the true cost of taking cash from an ATM via my credit card (only if it was an emergency). I have been thinking, since I always pay my statement in full monthly, it shouldn't be "that big of a deal".
so you posting the percentage cost wise is appreciated and I am sure will be valuable information to other travellers. But I must remember to get PIN's for my credit cards!
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Old Sep 10th, 2006, 02:57 PM
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We will be using our ATM card in Italy. I was warned by our banker that some ATMs will NOT dispense cash IF your PIN number starts with a zero.

Also, be aware of your daily cash advance limits, if any, on your ATM. In our case, it is limited to $500/day, which is less than 400 euro. You'll have to know your cash advance limit in dollars and then do some math for the conversion rate, deduct a bit for a safety margin, and then you know how much you can get in euro that day. My banker asked if I wanted to raise our daily limit. I declined to do so. If anything happens and our debit card (ATM) card is stolen and somehow our PIN deciphered, we can't be drained in one day and will have time to notify our bank of the loss or theft of the card, as the case may be.
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Old Sep 10th, 2006, 03:12 PM
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CapriAnniversary, if your ATM card is tied into VISA as a check card, someone would not need a pin to make charges and empty out your checking account. I've disabled the VISA portion of my ATM card because I don't want to go thru the hassle if I lost the card.

Also, my ATM limit is $500 a day on my card, and my wife's is $500 on her card, same checking account.
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Old Sep 10th, 2006, 04:36 PM
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CapriAnniversary,
Your banker needs help. A PIN starting with zero will work in Italy just like at home. A debit card does not give you a cash advance, it is your money in your checking account. Not raising your withdrawal limit does not protect you from a large amount taken from your account via a purchase (if your cash limit is $500 your purchase limit can be $5,000). There is no need for a PIN on some purchases.
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Old Sep 10th, 2006, 05:25 PM
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Make sure it's a checking account and a 4 digit pin number and you'll be fine anywhere.
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Old Sep 10th, 2006, 05:50 PM
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You need to check with your own card regarding the cost of taking a cash advance. Many cards charge interest from the date you take out the cash advance, so you will incur high interest even if you pay the bill at the end of that month, because the interest on cash advances is usually much higher than on purchases. However, there are often large fees for doing that, also, in addition to the interest charges, so that isn't likely the only cost. I think my cards charge about 3 pct on cash advances (or a minium of $10). You have the fee even if you pay the bill off in full that month. That fee is in addition to the interest.

I wouldn't ever use a credit card for a cash advance except in emergencies.

I don't know what credit card Budman is referring to with those kind of minimal fees on cash advances (or none if you pay the bill at the end of the month), but that's not typical of any card I've had.
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Old Sep 10th, 2006, 06:01 PM
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Christina, actually, USAA is 11.25% for a cash advance, so that is a tad less than 1% for the month, with no fees except the 1% M/C conversion fee. I agree that everyone needs to check his/her card fees, because some cards do charge outrageous ATM fees and conversion fees.
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Old Sep 11th, 2006, 09:52 AM
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Well it seems I'll need to transfer funds from my Savings to my checking in order to take money out in Italy.
I only use my checking to pay bills. Also I have a plain old ATM without a debit attached to it. Will that be ok?
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Old Sep 11th, 2006, 09:58 AM
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This is not meant to be judgemental, but I'm really curious. I was unaware that people still had savings accounts in banks today. The last I knew most savings accounts paid almost nothing in interest. Then most banks started offering interest on balances in checking accounts. I have an interest bearing checking account and can't imagine what good a separate checking account would be for. If I have a substantial amount of money that I don't want to touch, then there are so many options that pay a whole lot more than a bank savings account. Are other banks totally different from mine?
 
Old Sep 11th, 2006, 10:11 AM
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A credit card is not a check or debit card!
A credit card is just that; you are allowed to charge or 'not pay' the bill until later.
A debit or check card allows you to withdraw funds from your checking account.
A credit card when used for an offshore purchase will entail a currency conversion fee.
A debit or check card when used to withdraw funds from an ATM machine will be charged for the ATM use. It will also be charged a currency conversion fee.
Confused? Go to your bank and ask questions. Read your card statements and figure out what you are being charged.
Check card withdrawals may be a least expensive way to finance foreign travels. USA cash is the least expensive. Credit cards are 'comfortable' and inexpensive: as long as they are paid on time.
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Old Sep 11th, 2006, 10:14 AM
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bkathyb2,
A plain ATM card using most networks (look on the back for plus, cirrus, etc.) will work fine.

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Old Sep 11th, 2006, 01:09 PM
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Neopolitan,

With respect to US banks, I certainly appreciate that they pay some interest on some checking accounts, but I have never seen a checking account that pays as much interest as a savings account, not that either will make you rich today.

Many of the checking accounts I have seen require that you maintain a certain balance to draw interest, indeed, you often have to maintain a certain balance to avoid service charges.

A few years ago I took the $1000 my local bank required as a balance to earn interest and put it into my savings account, where it now earns more interest.

It is true that banks and brokerages offer products that often pay more interest than a savings account, but there is always some cost to be paid for that higher interest. Cds pay higher interest, generally, but at the cost of losing access to your money for the term of the Cd. Money market accounts often offer higher interest, but with no guarantee of the interest, and I think many of them are not insured by FDIC, so there is some risk there. Money market funds often pay higher interest, but they are not insured, and they can actually lose money.

So I think to best manage your money, you have to carefully look at all options, and if you have some money that you may need at a moment's notice, a savings account is often your best option. My primary bank allows me to transfer funds instantly between accounts, so I keep a minimal balance in my checking account, with the bulk of my money that I may need right away in a savings account that pays higher interest, and transfer money to the savings account when I want to spend it, or when I am touring and need ATM access to my funds. I feel safer having only what I will need in my checking account, so if I lose my ATM card and PIN, my losses will be limited.
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Old Sep 11th, 2006, 01:18 PM
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When people state that the ATM card can only draw on a checking account in Italy (or other parts of Europe), that's based on someone having a checking & savings tied to the ATM card and the checking being set as the primary account.

If one has an ATM card that's only connected to a savings account, then one can draw on it as it's the 'primary' account.
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Old Sep 11th, 2006, 01:33 PM
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I don't think so Alan-- I routinely use a credit union for finances so opened a separate bank savings account for foreign travel. The ATM card tied to that savings account was not accepted last year in Rome. My bank said that European ATMs do not link to savings accounts. Luckily I had a good supply of leftover euros with me.
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Old Sep 11th, 2006, 01:47 PM
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I just had a conversation with a friend in Italy who works for a very large financial institution in Italy. I double checked with him regarding getting money from a US saving account. He told me that it is still not possible to do that at ATM's in Italy. The ATM card has to be connected to a checking account.
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Old Sep 11th, 2006, 02:06 PM
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I'm not sure if I can say this clearly, but I'll try:
Our blood pressure raising experience was that the ATM did not dispense cash unless we accepted one of the preset options for the amount of Euros (e.g. 100 Euros, 200 Euros). There was an "Other" option and we initially used it to calculate an amount that would be closer to our $500 limit (since there are flat fees associated with withdrawals, this seemed the most economical). When we tried this, the ATM card just returned our card and said contact our bank (and we were surely below the $500 limit). It could be that the limits overseas are lower, because (after a bit of a panic -- no one answered at "our bank" and they probably wouldn't have had a clue anyway given the situation) when we opted for the 200 E option, it worked like a charm and consistently so. To avoid the stress we encountered, choose one of the presets that also complies with your bank's limit.
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