For ALL Pre-loaded cards / debit cards / credit cards - What is best for travel?

G&T said:
As for a debit and ATM card I was going to go down the Starling route as I can make my own foreign exchanges using Currency fair to load into Starling. No commission but purchases other than ATM is MasterCard exchange rate.

Is HSBC a better option than that?
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you will struggle to get anything better for card purchases than the Mastercard/VISA exchange rate

Also, are you getting your HBOS and HSBC mixed up? Halifax is part of HBOS. I don't think HSBC has any cards or accounts in the recommended lists and mostly adds 3% commission to overseas transactions.
 
I think G&T might be thinking of the new HSBC cash card (aka it's Global Money Account) which you load up with cash (it'll accept various currencies) and use like a conventional cash card.

I have one, sitting alongside my Caxton card.

But I could be wrong....
 
Wapping said:
I think G&T might be thinking of the new HSBC cash card (aka it's Global Money Account) which you load up with cash (it'll accept various currencies) and use like a conventional cash card.

I have one, sitting alongside my Caxton card.

But I could be wrong....
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Yep HSBC cash card. That Richard Ayoade from the ‘IT Crowd’, seems to get all over the place on it :D
 
I haven't used mine abroad as yet but I have mucked about loading currencies. It seems to work.

I guess the only places it will struggle will be the usual culprits of fuel pumps and hotels, which take a 'holding' deposit and take a day or two to correct them. For simple cash transactions it will be fine.
 
Wapping said:
I haven't used mine abroad as yet but I have mucked about loading currencies. It seems to work.

I guess the only places it will struggle will be the usual culprits of fuel pumps and hotels, which take a 'holding' deposit and take a day or two to correct them. For simple cash transactions it will be fine.
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Good to know. I’ll further compare Starling with HSBC. Thanks Wapping. :thumby:
 
Do NOT go anywhere near Barclaycard or Barclays; they are both a completely useless shower of shit.

I had forgotten why I closed my account with them over 30 years ago. The experience of the last four days has reminded me.
 
Hi Mr Wapping



There is a known issue with our Barclaycard online servicing at the moment and there are other users also experiencing the same issue . As soon as we have a fix I will let you know , however I am away for 1 week next week . You could try and see if you can log in some time next week as it may have resolved itself by then.



I hope this is ok .



I will email you upon my return.



Kind Regards
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Great, super, spiffing, could not be better, excellent, top hole, fantastic, crème de la crème, brilliant……


In the meantime, Barclaycard are bombarding me with emails, telling me to register my card . I can’t you stupid arses, not even your own staff can do it (and anyway they have now fecked off on holiday) and how great it is to use the card, protected with deep security and would I like a higher credit limit? I’d just like a feckin’ card that worked…… but, yup, the card is feckin’ secure, as it’s not feckin’ active and won’t be feckin’ active before the feckin’ app mends itself magically, hell freezes over or your useless customer services moron returns from feckin’ holiday.


Five feckin’ visits to Barclays in Fenchurch Street, EC3…….. I have now been photographed, allocated a telephone number that is not mine, sent away to fetch even more identification, been forced to remember what actual day of the week my last birthday fell on (the date not being good enough), told to dream up yet another secure word (apparently donkeydick is not acceptable) and feck knows what else. All for a feckin’ card that nobody seems to be able to get to function….. oh, and I haven’t received the PIN number….. but I can get it online….. no I can’t you vacuous cnut, because I can’t log in and neither can you, you pea brained arse.
 
I recently enjoyed my new CHASE card during my trip. Used it often for fuel and cafes, etc.

Silly me, I tested it in a random ATM in Hamburg. Just to check it worked ok.

It did. 40 Euros in my hand.

Fuck Me Backwards!

When I got home and checked my transactions the bloody ATM charged around 10 EU for the transaction.

I don’t remember any notice regarding fees, but I learned every ATM bank charges their own fee for cash.

Bastards.

Never again.

ps- my usual rate for fuel, etc. was 87p per Euro. Better than what I paid for Euro paper notes in my local High Street
 
Boxerboy55 said:
I recently enjoyed my new CHASE card during my trip. Used it often for fuel and cafes, etc.

Silly me, I tested it in a random ATM in Hamburg. Just to check it worked ok.

It did. 40 Euros in my hand.

Fuck Me Backwards!

When I got home and checked my transactions the bloody ATM charged around 10 EU for the transaction.

I don’t remember any notice regarding fees, but I learned every ATM bank charges their own fee for cash.

Bastards.

Never again.

ps- my usual rate for fuel, etc. was 87p per Euro. Better than what I paid for Euro paper notes in my local High Street
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every ATM I have used where there is a local fee has made it clear and you have the option to abort the transaction - most recently in Spain when Santander wanted 8 euros. Tried the Sabadell one next door and it was 1.80 euro. Some in Spain, usually the local regional bank, are still free.
 
Yeah there normally do make it clear.

I've not been charged in Germany can't remember which ATMs I used though. In Spain I try to use Deutche Bank, or ING as neither of them charge. In Portugal, the ones attached to the post office don't charge.
 
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Cash or card?

Whilst many places now prefer card transactions over cash, it is still possible to get caught out.

Last week, at Le Mans, we hired a wheelchair from a large store specialising in aids for handicapped persons. All jolly nice and helpful people, EUR 10 a day for hire and a EUR 150 deposit, refundable in full. I proffered up my card to do the necessary….. “Non, monsieur, only cash or cheque”. Luckily, between the three of us, we rustled up enough.

PS Cheques, quaintly obsolete as they are here, are still in use in France, where it is a heinous crime to bounce one.
 
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Wapping said:
Do NOT go anywhere near Barclaycard or Barclays; they are both a completely useless shower of shit.

I had forgotten why I closed my account with them over 30 years ago. The experience of the last four days has reminded me.
Click to expand...
I think exactly the same as you, I had been with them for 30yrs but over the last 6 mths they have got more and more like the biggest shower of shit like you say.
Went to Nationwide Flexi account and use Revolut abroad never had a problem. Yet !!
 
Whilst it might have been a one off, the Caxton app on my iPhone ceased to function last week, whilst away in France. It refused point blank to let me log in, whether via wifi or a phone connection. It similarly refused to recognise my email address. The real problem was that the crashed app meant that I couldn’t top up my card. Had I not had a spare card from another provider, I’d have been stuffed.

This continued through much of last Friday, only resolved when (lacking any other alternative) I bit the bullet and deleted the app completely, then reinstalled it. Of course I had no way of knowing if this would resolve the problem, but as sure as hell, it couldn’t make it any worse. The reinstalled app then worked.

Why the app crashed I have no idea, though I am guessing it was after an Apple update.

Moral….. Do not rely on one card provider.
 
Last edited:
Always have a second or third card. Given they are free there's no reason not to.

If you bank with one of the high street banks that has crappy rates, a Currsensea card will sort you out there. That can be your backup. Then open an account with Starling, Chase, Monzo, or Kroo for fee-free foreign spending. Whilst you're at it pick up a Revolut card.

Finally a Halifax clarity or Barclaycard Rewards. You've then got absolutely everything covered and have a selection of visa, and Mastercards, easy does it.

Might be overkill for a once a year holiday, but I travel a lot.
 
mikedefieslife said:
Always have a second or third card. Given they are free there's no reason not to.

If you bank with one of the high street banks that has crappy rates, a Currsensea card will sort you out there. That can be your backup. Then open an account with Starling, Chase, Monzo, or Kroo for fee-free foreign spending. Whilst you're at it pick up a Revolut card.

Finally a Halifax clarity or Barclaycard Rewards. You've then got absolutely everything covered and have a selection of visa, and Mastercards, easy does it.

Might be overkill for a once a year holiday, but I travel a lot.
Click to expand...
MSE has an affiliate link for the Kroo account where you get a £10 Amazon voucher. Apply by Friday then add £50 to the account to qualify.
https://www.moneysavingexpert.com/banking/compare-best-bank-accounts/#kroo

The account is an app based current account but would be pretty good as a savings account with instant access with 3.85% interest.

You get a VISA debit card. No fees for overseas transactions. Can be linked to iphone or android pay things.

You can set up a virtual whip to save using cash in restaurants even if your mates don't have a Kroo account, although they won't see the group messages, just a request to pay.

I set up the account using my phone in about 10 minutes and had it validated within an hour. You have to take a photo of your passport or driving licence then record a video. I've successfully added funds and transferred back via the easy to use app.

I will mostly use it as an instant access savings account as it has FSCS cover for £85k and I will be completing a house sale next week, a while before completing on my new place, so need a few accounts open to stooze the cash.

It will provide a useful back-up for travelling to Spain in September.
 
First Direct has now dropped all charges for foreign transactions and ATM withdrawals on its DEBIT cards only. Combined with its customer service and £175 it's now one of the best travel cards around.

It's still cheaper to use Chase (1% cashback), Barclaycard Rewards (0.25% cashback), Plutus (with Curve for 3% cashback and free travel insurance), but for those that can't be 'arsed' so to speak and prefer the backing of well established UK brand, then FD is a great choice.
 
Nippy Normans supply Touratech, Wunderlich, Desert Fox and many other makes of accessories.
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