Using American Debit card in London and Paris (place, train, people)

[prince_ses]

Hi. My daughter will be traveling with her school to London and Paris. I keep getting contrasting information about her ability to use her debit mastercard for purchases. Can someone please let me know if she will be able to use her debit card for purchases or if she will have to go to an ATM and withdraw money for purchases. Thanks.

[BigCityDreamer]

For the most part, London and Paris are very well-equipped for debit card transactions.

I would keep cash on hand, but not much. There are a lot of pickpockets.

[CowanStern]

Give her a credit card to use, as a backup, in case of an emergency that the debit balance might not immediately cover, or in case an ATM eats her card, or the magnetic stripe gets corrupted, or it's lost or stolen, or anything else. (In other words, never travel with only one card.) And notify the issuing bank of plans for travel abroad, so they don't suspend the card for suspicious activity.

[swisswife]

or buy her one of those visa cards with a pre allocated amount of money on it ?? but as long as the debit card has an internationally recognized symbol visa/master/meastro for example it will be fine.
The only thing that might be an issue is that not all places are equipped to accept non chip and pin cards. Or it could just be that the employees don't know how to use them.... either way I have had issues with my US cards in the UK. sometimes getting a supervisor who knows how to override the system helps, sometimes I just pay with my UK card.

[mayhem_223]

Some banks like bofa have no atm fees if u use banks in global atm network.

Most POS will accept her card, but she may run into problem with smaller gas stations or restaurants outside large cities where merchants may refuse to take stripe card because they require pin-chip even though they can still swipe old fashioned American credit cards.

[Verseau]

Usually American debit cards will work fine, but there are occasional exceptions (for example, the train ticket machines in France only accept European cards with chips - but you can use your card at the staffed ticket window). Other places like supermarkets are usually equipped to handle both kinds of cards, but often the workers will instinctively insert the card into the machine rather than swipe it. On a few occasions in France I had to explain that my card needed to be swiped. Sometimes they couldn't swipe it and needed to type in the number manually.

I would always keep some cash on hand. If you have Bank of America, they're affiliated with HSBC (I believe) in Britain and BNP Paribas in France so there aren't any withdrawal fees with these ATMs. Other banks might have similar partnerships although they're not common. If your daughter will mostly be buying things in stores and restaurants the card should generally be OK. Smaller places like food stands and bakeries and some artisanal shops might be trickier.

[swisswife]

Originally Posted by mayhem_223

Some banks like bofa have no atm fees if u use banks in global atm network.

Most POS will accept her card, but she may run into problem with smaller gas stations or restaurants outside large cities where merchants may refuse to take stripe card because they require pin-chip even though they can still swipe old fashioned American credit cards.

A store manager explained to me that it was their company policy to only allow supervisors to override the chip and pin option. He thought it was their way to stop people committing fraud by tapping in a credit card number. If there is any truth to this I don't know but it does make sense..... I remember many years ago when I worked in retail and travelers from the US didn't sign their cards. It caused many problems as I was told never to accept unsigned cards... different systems.

[wikiwikirunner]

I'm an American living in London, and have also spent time in Paris. I have both USA and British accounts. Depending on her bank, ( I have BofA) they might have partners in the UK/France. She can withdraw cash for free from these partner banks. For Bank of America, they are partners with Barclay's. If not, there will be a fee, anywhere fro $1-$5 for withdrawing cash. UK and French debit cards have a chip on them, so the card can be inserted into a machine, and then the PIN is entered. USA cards don't have these, so she should ask if she can use a 'slide card,' and her signature will be needed (usually with ID) to validate the signature. Make sure you call the bank to place travel advisories for the UK and France before she leaves, or she will most likely not be able to use the card. Most places take slide cards in the UK, but when I am traveling outside the UK I generally use cash. As long as the travel advisory is placed by the bank, she should be able to at least withdraw cash from ATM's in both countries.

[citynomad]

Originally Posted by wikiwikirunner

I'm an American living in London, and have also spent time in Paris. I have both USA and British accounts. Depending on her bank, ( I have BofA) they might have partners in the UK/France. She can withdraw cash for free from these partner banks. For Bank of America, they are partners with Barclay's. If not, there will be a fee, anywhere fro $1-$5 for withdrawing cash. UK and French debit cards have a chip on them, so the card can be inserted into a machine, and then the PIN is entered. USA cards don't have these, so she should ask if she can use a 'slide card,' and her signature will be needed (usually with ID) to validate the signature. Make sure you call the bank to place travel advisories for the UK and France before she leaves, or she will most likely not be able to use the card. Most places take slide cards in the UK, but when I am traveling outside the UK I generally use cash. As long as the travel advisory is placed by the bank, she should be able to at least withdraw cash from ATM's in both countries.

Yes. You are correct!

[prince_ses]

Thanks for the information. I've already gotten her money in both currencies but the idea of her taking all of the money she's allowed to spend in cash scares me. A co-worker's adult daughter who has traveled to numerous countries and is very aware of all the things that can go, wrong got her money and credit cards stolen on her first day in Paris. Thankfully, her family had the resources to get her the money she needed until replacement cards could be provided to her. Should that happen to my child, her souvenir shopping is over...period. Which is why I want her to take her debit card. One of her chaperones does have a credit card for emergencies.

Adding to my stress...she's one of those females who can leave on a trip with $100 and come home with $60. Although I recognize that this is a wonderful quality, I will NEVER understand it...and it makes it hard for me to figure out how much she needs. I would hate for her to get there and see something she really, really wants but not be able to get it. If anybody has a right to splurge, it's my child..we're talking about a 16 year old who went on a school trip, bought a hat for $6 and felt guilty when she got home. To better explain her, with the exception of her meals which came to a grand total of $20, that was the only thing she bought.

I acutally was thinking about getting a prepaid Visa...you've helped me decide to do that. I will still notify the bank in case of an emergency. And an idea of how much the ATM fees are was very helpful.