andydunn

After 4 trips back to the UK with my old fashioned magnetic stripe only debit card I've finally had enough. Last summer I had 2 merchants tell me that my card had been 'rejected' though it was really just fine and 2 more outright refuse to take it even though I gather they are obliged to. Add in the rolling eyes and utter confusion on teenage shop assistants faces when you try to explain why you have no chip and PIN and I decided that this year I'm going to get myself a proper card.

I've lived in the USA for 12 years so I have no bank accounts left in the UK (bad idea... should have kept one) and opening one myself will be impossible since I have no ID with a UK address.

So what are my choices?

1. Get a family member to open an account and add me as a co account owner? There's a financial risk and right now none of them seem too keen on the idea

2. Some offshore banking account? Don't want to mess with my US taxes - plus I would only use it once a year or so and many have fees or require you to move to the UK 'soon'

3. Something else?

My requirements are that its easy for me to transfer a lump sum before my trip and to have a debit card with chip and PIN. I'm happy to manage the account 100% online.

dunroving

Why can't you use the PIN that comes with your US card?

Schnorbitz

There's no chip on his card presumably?

robin1234

I can address your #2 - get an offshore bank account.
You can get a current account at LTSB in the Isle of Man. It comes with a debit card. They charge 7.50 pounds per month for the account, unless you maintain a balance of more than 100,000 pounds. Ninety pounds per year sounds a lot; BUT if you continually use a US credit card & debit card in the UK when you are visiting, you could easily end up paying more than ninety pounds in currency and other fees. As for US taxes, not really a huge problem; you just declare any interest income on you 1040, same as if you have income from interest in the US, and you have to submit the Treasury Department Form 90-22.1 once a year.

andydunn

My US debit card works great with its PIN for getting cash out of machines but it doesn't have the chip that is required to be used in Supermarkets, stores and restaurants. It all changed in 2006 http://www.chipandpin.co.uk/consumer/index.html

The machines still support magnetic stripe/signature authentication but many stores either don't know or just don't want to handle it. I've been told they are all supposed to but like I said each time I go back I come across more places who make it hard. Its not too bad in big cities that see many tourists but when I'm in small towns visiting my family its like I've handed them something in a foreign language.

The worst thing is unmanned petrol stations - those don't accept stripe/sig at all. Thankfully my sister in law was with me and paid otherwise I would have been stuck.

neil

Why bother? Just take cash out of a machine using your US debit card, and use a credit card for anything else when necessary. For places you're spending a reasonable sum of money I've never had an issue with a swipe card, and for smaller purchases you have the cash.

ChelleyP

In the US they don't use that new "enter your pin number" system in credit card machines at shops (even if it is a debit card). You still sign your name (though now normally on an electric screen with a stylus).

I use my US cards every now an again in the UK and they always require an old-fashioned signature (those new machines won't read them or don't allow you to enter a pin anyway).

I have never been hassled in the UK though by any shop-keepers when I use a US card and have to sign though...

Bluegrass Lass

Whenever I use my card as a debit card at a store (in the US), I've always had to enter my PIN, and I never have to sign the receipt.

When we've visited the UK, we did not have too much hassle using our US credit cards. I think a few cashiers looked annoyed, but we were never denied our purchase or given huge hassle. I suppose the OP has had bad luck choosing shops where they apparently don't need his money.

Good luck!

SpoogleDrummer

Not true around here. Most places you swipe your card then enter your pin, it's only credit cards you sign for.

robin1234

I've had a different experience - I'd never used a debit card before, as we've always used credit cards for all purchases. However, our bank has started to offer a much higher interest rate on the balance in the checking account, if you use your debit card at least ten times a month. So, we've switched to using the debit card in gas stations, supermarkets, the drug store, etc. I was surprised to note that most places print out the slip and ask for a signature, rather than entering a pin number. Presumably, they don't have a pin number machine..

andydunn

I'm glad many of you haven't had the hassles I seem to have had but each trip back since they implemented the system has got worse and worse for me. I can only see it getting worse in the future.

Using cash for everything is certainly an option but not convenient and I really don't like carrying it.

Whether the US uses PINs on debit cards is irrelevant here. In the UK a debit OR credit card has a chip and requires a PIN. Without the chip their machines spit the card out and walk the cashier through the 'old' singature way of doing things. Some people are confused, or simply don't know how to do that. The worst is when you have eaten the food in the resturant and they bring you the card back and say 'it doesn't work - do you have another'. I give them the other and amazing - that doesn't work either... so I end up paying with all my cash or begging from family. Next day both cards work just fine in the next place I try.

So I still want a chip and pin card... looks like a $100+ a year offshore account is the only way.

[also looks like as a n00b all my posts are moderated even replying to my own thread so it may be a while before anyone sees my replies]

goatherder

Hi

Check out the Prepaid Mastercards and Visa Cards. Try 3v.ie, www.splashplastic.com.

There are hundreds of them out there - check out which combination of fees, etc... you like and go for it.

Goat.

Schnorbitz

Did you tell your card issuer that you were traveling abroad? On a trip back to the UK a few years ago I hadn't forewarned them so the card would be randomly denied. When I asked the issuer why they said it was to get me to call in and validate the transactions.

andydunn

Yes they knew, I almost always get some fraud warnings phone calls on my return still but its never actually been cancelled during the trip.

In last years visit a merchant (it was a small local supermarket in the Lake District) told me my card had been rejected and my initial reaction was that the issuing company had cancelled it due to fraud suspicion. But when my 2nd card - different company - was also rejected I was less convinced. When everything worked with both cards at the next merchant I knew it wasn't a cancelled card.

The same thing happened later in the trip in the Lake District where a pub told me 'the card doesn't work'.... 2 hours later it worked at a petrol station and when I mentioned it to the cashier he said words to the effect of 'Yeah - lots of people don't know how to do signatures any more so they will just tell you the card doesn't work'.

Like I said - never had a problem at the airport or in London or Birmingham but the smaller the place the more likely you will find someone who has no clue what to do.

andydunn

Thats something I hadn't thought about...

I found a nice comparison table here http://www.what-prepaid-card.co.uk/f...s-prepaid.html

Great to see lots of fees in there though...