dutyfree

Well,we just got the call from our son in Italy that his wallet was taken while riding the bus from a soccer game in Torino.We have cancelled everything(fortunately his passport was at his apartment) but he is now without an Id,money ,credit cards or his ATM card. It seems like the earliest we can get the replacements will be in 2-7 days delivered to our house here in the states.
Does anyone have any experience in sending replacements in credit cards,etc. overseas and what courier(DHL,UPS,etc.) would you use?Is it safe or do we have to personally fly over and deliver them to him? Thanks for any help-I am so disgusted with this!

StCirq

Sorry to hear this. I'd use Fedex. I use them frequently for shipping valuable things (though never credit/ATM cards). I've always found them very reliable,and quick. Your son does has to have a street address (i.e., a P.O. box won't do).

Good luck!

NYCFoodSnob

I send all financial correspondence by FedEx. I've never had a problem.

Christina

I haven't done it a lot or recently, but I have used DHL for important papers to Europe. I think both DHL and Fedex should be reliable.

dutyfree

Thanks for your tip St. Cirq.He cannot get anything like mail or deliveries at his apartment(basically,he has no address listed)-everything does through the university consortium that he is using. I am so disgusted as he had a waist belt and a leg belt to put stuff in but being 21 -had to do it" his way"(nickname in our family is Frank Sinatra because he has been this way every since he was a little guy).Hard to believe that he has traveled alot and his father got "bothered" by the gypsies in Florence the last time we were there. CALGON-TAKE ME AWAY>>>>>>>>>>>&g t;>>>>>Any other suggestions? Thanks alot!

Marilyn

Kids -- what are you gonna do? If he was mine I'd make him pay back the considerable cost of Fed Exing this stuff over and as compensation for my time and trouble I'd never let him forget about it(for a few years, anyway). Maybe he'll be a little more receptive to the wisdom of his elders now. We all have to learn a painful lesson or two.

Seriously, sorry this happened and what a drag for you. I hope the rest of his stay will be wonderful enough to erase the bad experience.

juliae

Hello,

Perhaps the university consortium could give you an address for Federal Express deliveries. Get in touch with the office here in the U.S. and tell them what happened and what information he needs to receive - ask them what they advise. His passport will suffice as identification - a passport is the best kind of identification in the world. Perhaps the credit card company has a local office in his location in Italy. Give all of these offices a call and ask them for their help and best advice.

Best Regards,
Julia Elzie
Cruising Co Etc.

TeaTime

One very important tip: DO NOT indicate that the contents of your parcel have any monetary value, or he (or you) will be hit with a huge tax after the package is delivered.

Our ditsy travel agent Fed-Ex'd rail passes to us in Italy, and declared a value of $400. The tax/duty was $125! OUCH! It's all just plastic and paper and has no actual value, so don't declare any.

You can wire him money through the US consulate or thru Western Union in an emergency -- WU will be expensive, the consulate should not be.

rhkkmk

at 21, HOW ABOUT LETTING HIM SORT IT OUT "HIS WAY".....not to be mean but i think he could learn a lot from this experience....he needs to think for himself, doesn't he??? he is not going to starve..his university program will take care of him...relax...

leslie

Before you send the ATM and credit card over to him, make sure that you activate them here in the states. For a credit card, you'll need to call the 800# that is posted on the card to activate it. For ATM cards, there's a possibility that the password will be sent to you separately from the card, but you'll still need to activate it on the phone. Then after you have activated both cards, write down the account numbers on the cards in case this should happen again and you need to cancel them. Then send everything off via DHL or FEDEX.

If he has his passport, your son already has his ID, unless you mean his college ID or driver's license. Depending upon which state you live in and how old his license is, the DMV may already have a digital photograph of your son on record so that you can replace the license here, but you may very well need a notarized statement regarding the theft and proof that he's studying abroad.

Luckily, this is all that has happened to your son, it could have been worse, he could have been a victim of violence instead of just theft. Count your blessings.

Can your son open a bank account in Italy so that you can at least wire him some money for the interim? Otherwise, you can always wire via Western Union, but that can be extremely expensive.

teach905

My son had problems with a credit card in Italy last year. The magnetic strip went bad, and no one would accept it. He was able to get an American Express Card pretty quickly from the office in Rome, but not many places use them. His Mastercard was sent to him, but took weeks to arrive. He was traveling and no longer in one place by the time the card finally arrived at a youth hostel he knew he was going ot go to. It was nuts. He managed. He had to make cash withdrawals for awhile. i know he was nervous and so were we, but it workied out ok. do not worry. The kids who are traveling help each other out even if they are not traveling together.

Diane

Patrick

When my partner discovered he had left his ATM card in the machine at our home town bank the night before we left, we called Bank of America from the airport. They sent the new ATM card to our hotel in New York -- no activation necessary and it worked with the same pin number. They said that even when a card is stolen or missing they can do that and make the old card invalid. I also mentioned I was glad we caught this since we were only in New York for a couple of days before flying to Europe. The girl said it would make no difference. They would have sent the new card to us in Europe as well. Is Bank of America that different from other banks? Incidentally they sent the new card overnight Federal Express to our New York Hotel -- we got it the day after we called.

leslie

Patrick, are you a private banking customer at Bank of America? If you are, then you are handled with kid gloves, and the bank will absorb these expenses and jump through hoops to keep you as a customer.

dutyfree

Thanks for the insightful responses. To clear up some things-the only thing that this university consortium is doing for him overseas is the academic portion of his studies. They found him an apartment for the year which he is sharing with a few others. We pay his rent every month and his food bill is straight out of his own wallet as the Italian university in Torino does not have dorms,cafeteria plans like a USA college would.The students in his program are scattered all over the city and he mentioned to us that "even though he is in the city he is almost an hour away from the university."He was using his ATM card for cash withdrawals and had two different Visa cards(Citibank and Capital One) which neither one said that they would send him a new one over there.(In fact,Capital One is actually charging us for a replacement).The nearest US consulate is in Milan which is about 2 hours away. The ATM card cannot be replaced by us (even though his account is through our employee credit union).They have to hear from him directly so I am hoping that he can take care of that sometime this morning. I think that it will take awhile for that to show up.I appreciate the tips about shipping. The school had said not to send anything to him because of this stupid duty tax on every and anything.Yes, I know that it is a great growth experience for him and I am very very grateful that there was no physical violence,etc. but this is another "gray hair" experience for me!We were going over next month to visit but I think that he is going to need the "bucks" before then?

dutyfree

One quick question-do you think that it would be safe if we sent him dual travelers checks through a courier(we still have some US dollar ones with his/my name on them? Thanks!

allovereurope

Have you called American Express? I have no idea if they have offices in Torino but if you are a Cardmemebr (particularly a Gold Card memebr) see what they can do for you. Maybe you could have them hand over some money to your son (they would charge your account and add a commision for services). All I know ois, in any European emergency, I have asked them to help and they have done so, no questions asked.

Secondly, don't get too worried about it. You are not the first parent to ghave their child lose a wallet while in Europe and you won't be the last. 21 year olds are surprisingly resilient...I was one not too long ago and I know I would have been able to handle it a lot better then than now, and you know he has a safe place to stay every night, so he will be OK. You don't need to fly out there just to get him what he needs.

flanneruk

This man - not boy - is 21. He's lost some money.

If you're kind enough to help him, fine. But it's his responsibility to organise his way out of the mess he's created. He's perfectly capable of finding his own way to his banks' correspondents in Turin or Milan. Of calling the local Visa numbers. Of doing all the things a grownup does when they get robbed in a big city in a developed country.

You're doing him no favours by treating him like a child. And you're failing in your responsibility to the rest of society.

If you're really overprotective of adults, lend him $100, sent by Moneygram or Western Union, and get him to sort the rest of it out for himself.

But, at his age, he'll be furious that you're expecting strangers to help you do stuff he wants to be doing himself anyway.

And if he ever finds out you've said - in public - you're even dreaming of flying across the Atlantic for something so trivial he'll be angry, embarrassed and will tell the story for the rest of his life.

Tere

Dutyfree, I am so sorry to hear that and I am also sorry that some people don't understand what your worries are. I also have a son who was studying in London for a year and is now going next month to study in Switzerland and I would be as worried as you are if it happened to him the same thing. This can happen to a lot of grown ups, not only to students! What I would do while he hasn't recerived his new cards was to make a deposit of some money in the account of your son's friend ( I mean some college mate or friend whom he trusts)so that your son can have some money while he awaits the cards.The other one can take out the money with his card for him.I hope you will sort this out quickly.

Queenie

I offer a couple recommendations:

1. He should call his bank at 1 - 1:30 pm. Italy time to sort out the ATM card replacement. I found that at this time customer service is least busy. He can use the 800#, but there will be a fee - it is not a free call but the number will work.

2. as soon as bank customer service answers (do not use the button method - hold till a live person answers), tell them you are calling from Italy, and would appreciate not being put on hold. I have found this effective.

3. They will send the replacement card to Italy. It will be in an envelope and there will be no need for duty/customs etc. Just a business size envelope to his address. I have all my American bank accounts, monthly statements of credit cards, mutual funds etc. etc sent to me in europe - this is no big deal - no extra charge. Credit card and ATM card replacement sent this way too - no need for Fed Ex etc.

4. Make sure he gets proper infor from bank on how to activate the card from Italy.

5. He can replace his drivers license in the states next time he is home. He does not need to drive with the excellent public transport in Europe. He has his passport for ID.

6. Get the credit card replacement yourself and take it to him next month when you visit. he can easily go one month without a card. If there is some kind of emergency, I am sure he will call you.

7.Teres idea of depositing $ in a friends account is a good one (hopefully he has a trustworthy friend there). Wire deposits of any amount from our american bank are $30, I am sure that is a lot cheaper than Western Union.

8. Let him sort out as much as possible, That way he will know the ropes when this happens again.

allovereurope

To get him cash immediately, try an Amex moneygram (www.moneygram.com, 1-800-926-9400). According to my Frommer's book, they can wire money in 10 minutes or less, and there are agents all over Torino, at least according to the website. The fee is $40 for the first $500 and on a sliding scale thereafter. It includes a short telex message and a 3-minute phone call from sender to recipient. It says the benificiary must present photo ID to receive the $$--and you say he has his passport so it shouldn't be a big deal.

Personally, after getting emergency cash to him so he can eat and pay the rent, I would let him sort out the credit card stuff on his own--or at your leisure. He'll have food and shelter. And even if he should start to look too hungry, I'm sure no old Italian woman would be able to resist feeding him a big plate of pasta.

Good luck--and don't worry! He's safe!