I read that some US tourists are having difficulty using Visa cards in Europe because Visa credit cards in Europe often require a PIN (and PINs aren't required in the US).

Is this really a problem? If so, is there a solution?

Your card has a PIN. How do you otherwise verify that it is your card? Signature? Signature is still valid in many places, but more and more often there is a little machine next to the cashier that requires your PIN.

elina...

The systems are completely different and incompatible....US cards lack chips and the pin is located in the computer of the issuing bank, not on the non existant chip on the card. It will not work in the chip reader terminals being installed throughout Europe at the urging of the eu. The new European cards are called chip and pin.

However, all these new terminals still have provisions to swipe the cards and use the magnetic stripes...in this case you would not enter a pin but rather the clerk is supposed to verify the signature...interestingly enough I have a lot of experience with this in the UK and the clerks are very efficient in at least looking at the signatures...in the USA rarely in this day and age do they check signatures on the cards.

Now having said that, US magnetic stripe cards lacking chips are 100% valid everywhere in Europe; the only thing is that once you stray from the usual tourist haunts, the clerks may not be aware of that and when they insert the card in the chip reader and it doesn't work, they tell you the card is not valid. WRONG WRONG WRONG WRONG...in that case they are supposed to swipe the card through the magnetic stripe reader but often these clerks, like clerks throughout the world, are noext to illiterate and of course if you are in a country other than the UK and Ireland where American is widely understood, you may have a problem communicating this to the clerk but the store owner should be aware of this.

However, be aware that non chip and pin cards issued by US banks will not work in many unmmaned locations in places such as France.

Also don't hold your breath waiting for chip and pin to arrive in the USA...the banks have done a study and found that their losses due to fraud by continuing to use the outdated magnetic strips are far less than it would cost to convert the system to chip and pin.

So as with some other things, the USA remains in the technological dark ages.

I had to use my credit card PIN number to get money out of the ATM machine. As far as purchasing items, I just gave them my credit card and had no problems. However, the Metro/Subway station in Paris could not read my card because of incompatibility.

France - 2007
Italy & Greece - 2005

...good point and I didn't elaborate on that....if you use a US based credit or debit card in an ATM, you will need a PIN but again it doesn't reside on a chip on the card...you enter the PIN and it is communicated to your bank and if it is correct, your bank authorizes the transaction....and yes many of the automatic machines in France especially only recognize chip and pin but the clerks in the metro have terminals that do indeed accept magnetic strip cards.

unless it is an emergency <u>never</u> use a credit card to get cash out of an ATM. It is considered a cash advance and besides the extra conversion and possibly cash advance fees, you get hit by high interest from the moment the cash is taken. No grace period.

Now as for credit cards w/o a chip/PIN - they are still good everywhere except some automated/un-manned gas stations, some automated ticket machines, etc. When a train ticket machine won't take your card - just walk a few feet to the staffed ticket window.

And for gas - mostly a problem on Sundays when gas stations can be closed except for the automated pumps.

I had 30 or so credit card purchases on a recent trip to Italy. Not once did I have a problem with using my MasterCard. No PIN, just a signature.

I used cash for everyday purchases at the grocery, snacks, etc.