Profiting From Ignorance About Currency Conversion

I was just reading Chris Elliott’s highly entertaining analysis of the schedule for the annual Ancillary Revenue Airline Conference, which is where nickel-and-diming is celebrated as a high art.

One of the seminars that Chris mentioned really caught my eye: “Profiting from Dynamic Currency Conversion (DCC) — Paul K. Ackermann, Vice President, Head of Sales – North America, Travelex”

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Dynamic Currency Conversion: Still A Scam

I got nailed with a dynamic currency conversion charge at Schiphol Airport in Amsterdam last weekend, although I had sworn I wouldn’t let that happen.

I’m talking about the practice of converting a transaction in a foreign currency to the customer’s native currency for a fee – usually 2 or 3 percent of the transaction amount. Unless you’re getting spectacularly ripped off by a bad credit card, this is always a raw deal. Your credit card will give you a better rate, and some cards have no surcharge at all.

Paying for dynamic currency conversion gets you absolutely nothing except the illusory comfort of paying in a familiar currency. In other words, it’s a rip-off.

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Another Warning On Dynamic Currency Conversion

Carol Pucci at the Seattle Times has raised afresh some warnings about dynamic currency conversion. This is the practice, which I’ve mentioned before, of converting a purchase in a foreign currency into your home currency.

Sounds handy, but the fees are a total rip-off.

Pucci’s column also mentioned another pet peeve of mine, the AAA Visa TravelMoney prepaid card, which charges an outrageous 7 percent fee on foreign currency transactions. She reports that AAA will be getting a new vendor and that fee will drop to 3 percent in February.

Better. Still not great.

Don’t Fall For Dynamic Currency Conversion

We were annoyed by the poor service, lousy food and ridiculous prices at a restaurant in Toledo, Spain, but I would not have caused a scene if the management had not tried to finish it all off with a pernicious practice called dynamic currency conversion.

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