Credit Card Fees & Charges

Hi All,

I have a credit cards (visa) with Tesco Personal Finance. Today when i was advising them that i will be abroad for certain dates they advise me that there was a 2.75% charge on all transaction abroad.
Note : my card is a euro card in the Republic of Ireland and i will be in Spain. I tried to explain to them that i have used me card on numerious occasions in spain before and never been charged any fee's. I checked their website and looked over the Ts & C's in details and there is no mention of any fee of 2.75% or mention of any fee relating to transactions within the Euro Area. There is mention of a 1.75% charge on transaction in a foreign currency - which i would have expected.
They are insisting that this charge applies and that it always has ... and that i was lucky if i didn't get charged in the past which they say i should have.
Is this simply a case of poorly trained staff who dont actually know what they are talking about...?

Many thanks for any insights.

Codogly.

It does seem that way. I couldn't see how they could impose a surcharge on a Euro transaction either way and I think if you spoke to someone else there (Tesco's) they would probably tell you the same.

My understanding of SEPA (Single European Payments Area) rules is that charges/fees cannot be applied to EUR to EUR transactions.

I think the person you spoke to did not think correctly there and gave you the info that is Applicable to their £ card.

I use my card all over the world and all € charges are not having any fees on top of it, that is EU regulated.

However any other foreign currency charge has a 1.75% fee (even if done in the EU).

So as long as you pay in € you should not have a problem.

Thanks all ... i did stress that point to both the people i spoke to that perhaps they meant 1.75% for foreign currency transactions , but they both insisted that it was definately 2.75% on transactions in euro in the euro area. They even said that they deal with this query all the time from customers wondering what these charges relate to.

Maybe thirdtime lucky i will try again tomorrow and see if i get a different answer.

Codogly.

Hello,

I previously held a Tesco Visa Card and while I enjoyed the benifit of the clubcard points, their terrible customer service ultimately resulted in my moving.

I'd not give this a second thought, don't waiste your time calling them again, you've checked your terms and conditions to ensure your correct ... go and enjoy your trip now, if they do attempt to apply inappropriate charges then there is always the Financial Services Ombudsman

Regards

Mr. Earl.

Tesco cards are issued by Ulster Bank and all of their staff are based in NI or the UK so maybe they thought you had a sterling CC rather then a euro one. I used mine in Croatia last June and there was no charge so they are misinformed.

Third time luck ... they are now telling me definately no charges within the EuroZone.
You should have heard how definate the first two administrators were that charges did apply... unbelievable.

I would write a letter of complaint. If they are offering a product in the Republic of Ireland then the least they can do is ensure their staff have the correct information specific to that country.

I wonder did the person who told you there were charges was referring to the charges for cash withdrawals within the euro-zone, I think 2.75% sounds about right.