DW, ATMs abroad, USAA and problems

[chinaco]

You characterized the problem in the wrong way. It is not a USAA problem.... it has to do with the ATM network being used.

There could be any number of issues. For one thing... Europe has much more stringent security requirements than the states. Bank transactions and Credit card transactions might be handled differently because of legal ramifications or because different rules apply. Plus, there could be a technology incompatibility.


I read that Europe is experiencing an upswing in ATM fraud.

The weakness of storing information on magnetic stripe, which is simple to copy and counterfeit, has been partly addressed by Europe’s introduction of European Mastercard Visa (EMV) smart cards, also known as Chip and PIN cards or Chip cards, which have a microchip embedded in the card. “While these cards also have magnetic stripes,” the paper says, “the magnetic stripe alone is not sufficient to allow a transaction to take place at an ATM with a card reader that has been modified to read an EMV Chip…Thus counterfeit copies of these EMV cards cannot be used to withdraw cash from EMV-compliant ATMs.” Most countries in Europe will have EMV-compliant cards by the end of 2010

ATM Fraud Trends in Europe | Security Management



Still it is a lesson learned.... have a backup plan to access money.

 

[nun]

The only weird thing is when we got Pounds in England, they were different than the Pounds in Scotland. Why is that? Are they different countries, or what? (Sounds like another discussion of the Civil War )...

Yes England and Scotland are separate countries. In England and Wales the Bank of England issues the pounds. In Scotland there are several banks that issue bank notes. Scottish and English notes are accepted all over the United Kingdom. FYI the Scottish legal system is also quite different from that of England and Wales and also Northern Ireland. These differences continued past the 1707 Act of Union and when talking to someone from Great Britain or Ireland it's vital to get their country of origin correct either England, Scotland ,Wales, or Ireland.....if they are Northern Irish protestant/catholic there are whole other identity issues involved too.

 

[FIREd]

Yes England and Scotland are separate countries. In England and Wales the Bank of England issues the pounds. In Scotland there are several banks that issue bank notes. Scottish and English notes are accepted all over the United Kingdom.

In 1990, after a couple of weeks spent in Scotland, I stopped at a restaurant in Brighton while waiting for the ferry back to France. I happened to have a few Scottish notes left, so I thought I would use them to pay for my meal. Well, the waiter started howling that I was trying to use counterfeit money and urged the manager to call the police. Thankfully, the manager realized they were Scottish notes.

 

[kaneohe]

USAA now says the following:
Please note your spouse has a Maestro card, not a debit card. Due to this, she may not be able to withdraw internationally. She will need a debit MasterCard.

Edit to clarify: a "Maestro" card is an ATM card.

I prefer to get ATM cards too (rather than debit cards). They don't come w/
VISA or Master Card logos and I have often been warned by the credit unions who offer them that they may not (probably?) won't work overseas. Schwab doesn't offer an ATM card (only a debit card) but apparently they can tune it at your request so that it can't effectively be used for purchases of any significant size.

 

[chinaco]

Does USAA charge a fee for using the card in a foreign country?

 

[Rustic23]

According to their docs, Yes

Foreign Transaction Charge
�� Applies to debit card or ATM transactions with a merchant or ATM in a foreign
country, whether the transaction is originally made in US dollars or converted
from a foreign currency.
1% of the transaction amount

However, they also say they waive this fee for active duty deployed.

 

[Pajaro]

USAA waives the foreign transaction charge for military for 12 months per deployment (they will also extend it past 12 months if you ask for it). They consider an OCONUS tour to be a deployment for this purpose. They won't retroactively waive the fee (I tried), but they gave me a $35 credit for failing to notify me that I could ask for the waiver.

 

[MichaelB]

Got my cc statement. DW took one CC cash advance, for 200 euros. Total fees and interest were $26.90, or 9.4%. She was able to manage all her other needs with the CC (a measly 2%) and some cash her sister lent her.

 

[East Texas]

Got my cc statement. DW took one CC cash advance, for 200 euros. Total fees and interest were $26.90, or 9.4%. She was able to manage all her other needs with the CC (a measly 2%) and some cash her sister lent her.

Cash advance fees hurt no matter where you are....

 

[MichaelB]

Cash advance fees hurt no matter where you are....

I see. We've always paid the full balance and never took a cash advance, so even though I expected a substantial charge, this took me by surprise. Lucky for us only one was needed.

I can't believe people do this regularly - it is so much money.