LEE BOYCE: It’s never been easier to avoid big bank scam fees when using a debit card abroad
Expenditure data from major banks indicates that we have taken a lot of vacation time this year.
In January, household spending on travel agencies and airlines rose 83% and 76% respectively from a year ago, according to Barclays data.
Figures from Lloyds Bank and the Nationwide Building Society show a similar boom.
A surefire way to get scammed abroad is to spend money with your bank’s debit card.
Card sharks: A surefire way to get scammed abroad is to spend on your bank’s debit card. Often they are charged fees for expenses and even more so for money withdrawals
Often they are riddled with fees for spending and even more so for withdrawing money.
This is one of the reasons why having a secondary checking account is important. I use Starling because of its free spending abroad – and treat it like a savings jar so I can accumulate funds when a holiday is approaching.
I also like having half the money I will need in physical cash. I don’t know about you, but I still find it reassuring to have foreign currency on hand abroad.
Foreign exchange fees are on the long list of ways big banks manage to maintain their profits. But bucking this trend, HSBC has launched a Global Money account offering free spending and cash withdrawals abroad.
The bank has clearly understood the fact that Starling and Co attracts customers with this very attractive advantage.
An expert told me the account is a no-brainer for existing HSBC customers, although you can only apply for it through the bank’s app.
I wouldn’t be surprised to see other banks follow suit. They are already spending huge sums on kickbacks of up to £200 for customers who switch to their accounts.
But don’t wait for your bank to act. It’s essential to make sure you have the right card when you go abroad this year – you can really dodge this particular banking trick.
Avios Tip
On our honeymoon in Mauritius in 2019, Mrs B and I collected thousands of Avios points by booking with British Airways (BA).
When we got back, I decided to accumulate those points by opening a BA Executive Club membership and then continue to accumulate them by getting a rewards credit card.
The American Express Gold card offered 30,000 bonus points for signing up if you spent £3,000 in three months. I hit the target by putting every penny of my daily spending on the card.
After a year I canceled (to dodge the annual fee) and upgraded to a free version, where I get one point for every £1 spent.
Accumulating points has been difficult, and you have to play by the rules – i.e. pay the balance in full each month to beat the high interest that wipes out any potential financial gain.
That done, I then had to scratch my head as to how to spend the points. BA’s “clumsy” website certainly isn’t much help, as an expert here explains. And that’s saying it nicely.
However, a conversation with my brother-in-law finally revealed the secret to successful Avios flight booking – using the BA app.
It’s much easier to navigate and faster to use than the website – and I managed to get that crucial conversion rate of 1p per Avios on flights back to Dubai.
So if you’re also frustrated trying to spend points on the BA website, you’ll probably find the BA app a much better way to find value for money Avios flights.
Tesco problem
Money Mail continues to get more insurance renewal madness stories from readers in our mailbag every week.
One reader, Philip, wrote and attached his car insurance quote with Tesco Bank. Renewal was £990.80, down from £282.83. In disbelief, he says he called Tesco to cancel only to be told the renewal was “wrong” due to a “system error”. It was, of course, his responsibility to call Tesco to obtain this crucial information.
He then received a quote of £337.08. This begs the question. . . how could such a huge error be sent black and white to a client without any sort of flag?
And if he hadn’t seen it, would this amount have been taken from his account? Continue to watch for renewal shocks.
l.boyce@dailymail.co.uk
