dbd33

Only once did my Canadian card issuer contact me to confirm that it was really me, I was in Norway trying to get cash on the card and they asked me to name some bars in Toronto I'd recently visited. Otherwise I've had no problem charging large hotel bills (up to US$20,000) car deposits ($5,000) all manner of stuff and in all sorts of places. I don't think the country of origin of the card is the issue but the company that issued it.

Tiffin Tease

They asked you to name bars in Toronto as part of their security checks - LOL, I love it!!

dbd33

I mostly charge bar and restaurant bills so that made sense, but the conversation got a bit odd when I named Zelda's as a place I'd recently visited.

windward

My Barclaycard worked fine on several visits

Mrs Madmac

The problems with cards are either:

Security - your own bank are not sure it is you as various people have said before.

Business Accounts - the place accepting the money does not have an adequate limit on their own business banking account for foreign transactions.

The only way round the problems are to:

Phone your own card company and confirm where you will be and the type of spending pattern you are likely to adopt. (You should also do this with your bank as well as your credit card provider before you come over.)

Tell any shop or business to put large transactions through in smaller denominations so that their own accounts can process it.

Any problems with money we have had here have all been with the Canadian side of things. We are with the Nationwide back in Scotland and they have been great..... in fact because they offer the "business" rate of exchange and do not charge for transactions abroad you can actually save money while you spend!! Worth a thought if you are going to spend a lot. (It was several pence more than the rate of exchange for currency!)

As for the "security" side of things here - don't make me laugh - you know they do not even look at signatures here on receipts and have never heard of chip and pin.

Then the "security" questions on the phone when you phone a Canadian bank..................... suffice to say I started to doubt I was me by the end of the conversation!

Mr Lee

I found that if I tried to use a UK credit card for an internet or phone transaction it wouldn't be accepted. You have to have a Canadian card for transactions not dealt with in person it seems...

Andy_Jen

Thanks everyone, that's been very enlightening (particularly Mr and Mrs Madmac)! As I say, we hadn't had problems using the card until this larger purchase with a canadian store.....and as the fraud people at Barclaycard are very insistent there's no problem with the card...am going to work on premise it's due to shop. Tomorrow I will go elsewhere and try and make a smaller purchase with the visa and see if that goes through.

Just to say, I had actually informed the credit card people in the UK that we were moving and would be living in Canada and that we expected to be using the card a fair bit while we were getting settled. Their computer actually shows that the card user is in Canada (but I was told that the note on the computer is only on there for 3 months at a time). I just hadn't anticipated that this could be a problem....so that's a lesson learned.

It was really reassuring to hear from everyone, so thanks again. These first few months have just been a blur of change and unavoidable stress. Not having an explanation for the credit card problem was unnecessarily adding to the anxiety. So, really....thanks.

Jen

Mrs Madmac

Jen - we know how you feel! We had red faces when the shop said our payments would not work! Then it happened with our Canadian debit cards............... more red faces........... imagine it........... there is the money there to pay for it.......... but the bank have a limit on your own spending and you don't know about it!!!!!

It's a big learning curve with no brakes! :scared: Funny to look back on........ I hope!

dingbat

Canadian merchants have a floor limit on cards over which they have to ask for authorization. Foreign currency cards flag up immediately as "suspicious" if you try and buy more than an individual merchant's floor limit will permit. Once the card is flagged, it is flagged internationally to all networked banks and groups. Multiple declines increase the security risk on your card...you can see the issue. Get a new card with a new number or you may risk having your card cut up in front of you in the States.

Andy_Jen

Well, I used the card today for a much smaller amount and there wasn't any problems (thank goodness...you're right...can only cope with that embarrassment so many times in one week). Anyways, I'm off to the States in a few days where I will intend on using the card (but with a back-up planned). God help someone who attempts to cut it up in front of me..... we Americans have been known to cause scenes in that kind of situation. I will consider getting a new card if it happens again. I have no further intentions on making large purchases with the thing....so here's hoping. Failing that I will stop using banking institutions all together and store my money in boxes under the new beds

Jen

Piff Poff

My Hubby had a problem with his Barclaycard when we 1st got here. Because he was using it so much in a different country they put a stop on the spending, until he was able to speak to them. We had informed them we were moving to Canada but the right hand had failed to tell the left, we removed all our money and got canadian stuff - so Barclay's lost out in the end.

agibson6

When we moved here a few months ago we used our visa card to buy lots of household items including all the electrical goods for the house. Had no problem except when buying a computer and expensive TV. With these two purchases the store had to phone for clearnence but this was given after I answered a couplke security questions.

At that stage the registered address for the card was the UK and I had not informed them I was moving to Canada (have now!) although before moving here the card was used when I used to travel overseas (nmainly airfares, hotel and car hire)

Souvenir

I've only once had a problem using my UK visa card. I was trying to buy something from a company in BC over the internet. The system simply refused to accept the card number.

I had a slight problem yesterday buying a ticket with my (UK) company Amex on the Air Canada site. The first thing the site asks you is your country of residence. Obviously I put Canada. When I got to the part where you pay, I couldn't because the system wouldn't accept the residency/billing address discrepancy. I had to start over, this time giving the UK as my country of residency.

Biiiiink

Did your fare change? I used to put "Canada" instead of "UK" on a car hire site and found that my quoted rate dropped about 100 GBP for the week I think it was Avis UK if anyone wants to try...

Souvenir

No, I don't think so. I ended up paying £358 (not bad, I thought). My failed attempt at being a Canadian resident involved a comparable figure.