Mastercard acceptance in Madrid
 

I have just heard from a co-worker that there is problem with merchants accepting Mastercard in Madrid, as well as using MC in the ATMs. This seems to be new. I know that last year there was a problem with ATM's in Japan accepting Mastercard (some sort of banking dispute with the MC association) but I hadn't heard of a problem in Madrid. Is there anyone in Spain now that could let me know if this is true? Thank you.

The Madrid hotel I booked for this spring had no problem with my MasterCard. As for restaurants and shops, I can't say.

Haven't been there recently, but certainly had no problem using a MC in Spain several years ago. It's a very major credit card, that would be strange.

You shouldn't use a credit card in an ATM anyway, that's a very expensive way to get money, if you didn't know that. All CC companies I've ever read the terms of charge above-normal interest rates for that money from the date you get it, as it is a loan, as well as a very large flat fee per time you do that (up to around $5 per use).

Many European banks offer a Mastercard CC so it would be very odd if there was a problem with them in Spain. I have no experience I'm afraid (we only have a Visa card) but as I say it would be a bit odd.

Please note that many merchants (not hotels or restaurants, though) will ask you for identification with photo before accepting any credit card.

smaller shops (is that is what you mean by merchants?) do not accept CC due to high costs. If they do they may ask for a minimum amount.of good to be purchased.

Watch out for Dynamic Currency Conversion...Spain is one of the biggest users of this consumer rip off even a supposed honorable place like El Cortez Inglis and when you try to complain, they pull the No speak English garbage.

Are you sure it's Masrecard? I know Dicover card is useless inSpain

I've made about 20 trips to El Corte Ingles in the past two months (granted, all in the basement supermarkets, in at least 4 different locations) and never encountered any problem such as mentioned above. Do you mean that they charge your credit card in another currency?

ekscrunchy....maybe they've cleaned up their act. You can go through this forum and find various threads concerning a scam called dynamic currency conversion. This cancer started about 15 years ago in Ireland and has since metastasized to many other countries such as Spain and Italy. Normally when you use mc/visa, the charge is written up in local currency (in this case euro) and your bank follows a procedure to convert the amount to your own currency. MC/visa actually do the conversion and add a 1% fee to the official interbank exchange rate to protect against currency fluctuations. Many near criminal banks in the USA add a 2% fee to this even though they have nothing to do with the conversion. Other enlightened banks only pass along the 1% mc/visa fee (USAA) and there is even a bank that eats the 1% mc/visa fee and charges you at the prevailing intrbank rate (Capital One). But even with the 3% fee, it is far better than exchanging cash.

In any event, in this scam called dynamic currency convesion, the actual exchange is done by the merchant. When the card is swiped by the terminal, from its numbers, the computer recognizes the country the card was issued in. It then suggests to the merchant, using an exchange rate at least 5% above the in terbank rate, that it could convert the charge to US dollars and that would be the guaranteed charge. It would reaCH THE MC/Visa system already converted. Now here is where the illegality comes in. The merchant is supposed to ask you if you wish to take part in this scam that is pay a higher rate for the "covenience" of having the charge converted on the spot. The strongest recommendation is just say no but many people think how near it is the merchant is providing this "service". Of course the reason they do is they and their credit card processor split the profits from this overcharge. You most assuredly pay more.

Where the problem comes in is that mc/visa regulations allow dcc but state you must give permission. Many merchants just do it routinely and don't ask you if you wish it be done and pressure you into signing the sales slip where you waive your rights to appeal the conversion. If you notice, they have arguments ready why it can't be changed (local laws require dcc, once it's done it's done and the transaction can't be voided (it most assuredly can), they have no control over it, it was done by the terminal (as noted the terminal asks them if the sucker...oops customer wishes to be ripped off), the USD rate listed is just an approximation, and the famous no speak English).

A few times it has been pulled on me at this store but there's been a lot of bad publicity about dcc recently and maybe they've cleaned up their act (almost always in Ireland now, they ask). I used USD in this discussion but it can be any currency conversion. A Brit travels in euroland, they try to pull this converting euro to sterling..a Canadian they try to convert euro to Canadian dollars.

Finally, to add insult to injury. Many of the near criminal banks in the USA now charge 3% anyway, claiming the 3% fee is not a currency exchange fee but a foreign transaction fee.

You never win this game. Just say NO.

It's not only in Europe that DCC occurs - we experienced it in the US too.

But as ribeirasacra says many smaller shops and hotels won't accept any credit cards as the handling fees are too high for them.
In the Netherlands it is not normal to pay with a credit card in most shops. Some accept them, but many do not. I expect Spain is similar.

...sorry...I didn't mean to make it a European only thing....it goes on all throughout the world now.