Dynamic Currency Conversion in Switzerland
 

I know the dynamic currency conversion "scam" is rampant in Ireland, but haven't read about any occurances of it in Switzerland. Has anyone had trouble with this (being charged on your credit card in your home currency, e.g. USD, rather than Swiss Francs - and being charged an extra fee for the "convenience")?

Yes it happened to me in a souvenir shop in Zermatt.

If you do research on DCC you'll find it apparently was the brainchild of auto rental companies such as Hertz so if you are renting a car in Switzerland it might show up at that point.

What is interesting is when you tell the person you are dealing with that you do not want the charge to go through in your home currency and they, in turn, tell you they have no choice.

"What is interesting is when you tell the person you are dealing with that you do not want the charge to go through in your home currency and they, in turn, tell you they have no choice."

Which of course is an outright lie.

Actually, that happened to me at a hotel in London. When I asked the clerk who said the "no choice" words to contact the front desk manager, and she willingly did, he showed her which button to push, etc.

Was he covering for her? I have no idea.

I also experienced the possibility of DCC in Harrods in October of this year..but in that instance I was verbally offered the choice of my own currency or GBP before the transaction was finalized.

..I had this happen twice in Edinburgh. Apparently clerks are told to tell customers they have no control over this with the full knowledge if osmebody screams loud enough, the manager will come over and perform the transaction.

It is, of course, a violation of credit card rules to perform a transaction in other than the local currency without the permission of the cardholder. I've also been subject to lies such as the amount shown in my currency is just an approximation for my benefit (even though I am being asked to sign a statement saying I accept the currency exchange as final; clerks have no answer when I point this out to them), that it is to my benefit to have them do the transaction as that way I do not pay a fee to my bank (what a laugh that it). Luckily for me I have had no problems making myself known about this rip off as it has happened ot me only in English speaking countries but as I understand it this cancer has spread to places like Italy and Spain and some have reported the merchants suddenly claim they do not understand English when they complain...of course somebody here has the best idea when this happens...simply circle the amount in local currency and instead of signing the declaration write...DCC declined and dispute the charge with the credit card company.

I got clipped on the dynamic scheme at a HOTEL in Stalden Switzerland. From that point on I asked! If I was told US dollars, I told them I would pay in Swiss francs. I asked upon check-in rather than at check-out.

I rented from Hertz, and asked before hand as well. Had the man said US dollar conversion, I would have told him to just sit tight while I walked to the bank for money.

I have decided to have two checking accounts now (as a senior citizen I can get them with no out of pocket service charge) so that I don't run into maximum withdrawal limitations. True the amount of money is not great for any one person, but when you add that percentage onto several hundered million dollars worth of transactions, it adds up for the scammers.

The DCC is now spreading through Spain. It's been in the duty free since this summer, but there they do ask you which currency you want to be charged in.

The sales clerks at El Corté Ingles say they have no knowledge of how to override the system, which simply means that they haven’t been given the option by management and so we end up spending a lot less in cash when buying something in El Corté Ingles.

It's also starting to show up at many of the major hotel chains in Spain, including one of our favorites two weeks ago. We didn't realize we had been charged in USD until after we signed the receipt and had left the hotel. There was a notice on the receipt stated we had been given the option of being charged in Euros or Dollars and choose USD, which was just so much hogwash. It ended up costing us an additional 4-1/2 points on the exchange rate, which wasn’t that much, but with the weakened dollar, enough to make us a bit more cautious in the future when dealing with anyone in Europe.

The option is always there...the terminal before completing the transaction asks the clerk to indicate the customer has accepted the currency conversion...you don't need a degree in brain surgery to push the button that says no...I simply don't believe clerks who claim they cannot override the system...they are liars.

Happened to us at a shop selling tapestries in Rome last winter.

Well, phooey. I was hoping to learn that this never or rarely happens in Switzerland, but I guess it's better to be prepared. Now I just need to learn how to say "No, I really want you to charge that in Swiss Francs, not US Dollars!" in both German and French! :) And, I'll plan to use cash as much as possible.

Thanks, all.

Don't worry...chances are the clerks in Switzerland will understand English...and the possibility of them pulling this scam most certainly should not lead you to pay in cash....follow the instructions...if they refuse to do it properly (in CHF in Switzerland) simply write on the charge slip local currency not offered instead of your signature and circle the CHF amount, cross out the USD amount and tell them in no uncertain terms the charge will be charged back when you complain to the credit card company.

By paying in cash, you are playing into their scam and costing yourself money.

I plan to do some shopping in Basel, Switzerland, in two weeks, will let you know if anyone tries this (FYI, Basel is a GREAT shopping town). It has never happened to us before, but you never know...

Sorry not related to the topic of this thread, but BTilke, what are good items to buy in Basel? My total ignorance--always associated the town with financial institutions. I'll be there sometime early next year for business. Any stores you recommend?

I have some old favorites...the Globus department store, for example, for bedlinens and towels and for food items in their amazing food hall on the ground floor and basement level. Schiesser's on the Marktplatz for incredible chocolates available nowhere else.
Those are my primary targets whenever I'm in town, but since I'll be there in two weeks, I'll make note of the other places as well (there are a few places I always go to, but I don't know the store names or exact addresses offhand).

Thanks very much for sharing the tip. I shall definitely have a look the next time I'm there--sounds more interesting than meetings with bankers...

>My total ignorance--always associated the town with financial institutions.

Actually, most people associate Basel with the pharma giants Roche and Novartis that have their HQ as well as the R&D and part of the production there. But there is also much more to the city than pharma companies...