Chip and Pin Cards

BUT -- you are actually using a chip and signature card. Mostly they will ask for a signature. Usage will be spotty if a true chip and pin is required. It is not the same as the European chip and pin card. American card issuers think we are too stupid to remember and use a pin number.

This is a subject that comes up frequently so I suggest you do a search and read the numerous threads and responses.

By the way, just returned from 3 weeks in Europe and neither of us ever had a PIN required for any purchase any of the places we used our chip and signature cards, including a gas station in Chinon, Loire Valley.

A PIN requested is not the same as a primary validation PIN. Most of the world's credit cards issue PINs as the primary validation system. US cards are almost exclusively signature validation. A few automatically issue a PIN as a secondary validation in cases where signatures are not possible. The rest don't issue a PIN unless you request it and they are intended for cash advances. The OP has the latter type.

A US chip card will work almost all of the time in transactions with people. You'll get a slip to sign and sometimes have to tell the person "No PIN" or they have to push a button to print a receipt. Some merchants will not accept non-PIN cards though and it is less commonly accepted in non-touristy locations/businesses.

The "cash advance" PINs do sometimes work in automated machines. But that is not universal and depends mostly on the processing system, the machine itself and your card's settings. Sometimes it works with random numbers. Sometimes it works without a PIN entered. The only way to know is to try. There is debate whether using such a PIN for a purchase would result in a cash advance interest fee. Most likely not but I suppose it is possible.

I recommend getting your PIN anyway. You can always try it for purchases if needed. And it does give you an emergency backup to get cash with your credit card.

As a previous poster(s) have said,just get the PIN number before you go. I have US visitors here currently in Ontario (Canada) where we've had PIN numbers for years. There have been a couple of occasions where they were not able to use their cards such as parking meters, gas stations.

My wife called Our VISA provider requesting a pin for our upcoming trip. She was told that a pin was not needed as our VISA is a chip & signature.

Sorry Nancy, I didn't see that my first post had taken.

That is true, it is chip and signature card - common to the US. But that is not the question. The question is how well will a US based, chip and signature card work in the European world of chip and pin cards.

Just got back from France yesterday. Used my Chip & Pin (Signature) Credit Card in restaurants and merchant shops. They or I just inserted into the charging device, it printed out a receipt for me and one for them that I signed. No problems at all. Used my Debit card for cash withdrawals only from Bank ATMs, 4 digit pin and money received.

BTW, there was article in the US newspapers a couple of weeks ago about Wal-Mart (largest retailer in the world) suing VISA, for not allowing them to implement PIN usage at their US stores. That contradicts my assumption that it was retailers who were balking.

stan,

The Walmart suit is due to them wanting to force ALL debit card transactions to require the use of a PIN. Currently, you can select "credit" when using your debit card at many merchants and simply sign the receipt. This transaction gets billed as a credit card transaction instead of a debit card transaction to the merchant. The difference in the fee for credit vs. debit is huge with debit being around 12 cents max while credit is a percentage of the total. Walmart simply wants to minimize its card processing expense.

Yes, Joel, we heard you the first time. :)

Joel - please read my post. It explains things pretty well. Your card can still have a PIN but it will be what I call the "cash advance" PIN. How well that might work in automated transactions is explained in my post. Also know that customer service reps are not well informed on the intricacies of how PINs work and how the rest of the world processes transactions (and that is being kind).

What Douglas said.

Also know that customer service reps are not well informed on the intricacies of how PINs work and how the rest of the world processes transactions

Yes, that is certainly being kind.

She was told that a pin was not needed as our VISA is a chip & signature.
I guess she wasn't actually lying. The PIN isn't NEEDED, but it certainly might be desirable.

I appreciate your responses to my comment and I appreciate your concern that I was given bad advice. I do not feel I was given bad advice by the VISA rep. I must state that I have worked in the banking industry for 40+ years. Many in the POS environment. Our chip & signature will work fine on our travels.

Just spent almost a month in England and Scotland. Used my Chip & Pin (Signature) Credit Card in restaurants, hotels, and merchant shops. They inserted the card into the charging device, it printed out a receipt for me and one for them that I signed. No problems at all.

Just got back from Germany and France. Used our Chase Sapphire Visa Card (no foreign transaction fees) with the chip at hotels, restaurants, gas stations, and other places without needing a PIN. They just insert card in their hand held machine and a printed receipt comes out which we needed to sign. We used a debit card from a different financial institution at ATM's to get Euros and that required a PIN. If you are going to smaller towns or villages, they may not take credit cards, so get Euros in a larger town/city before you go there. I also preferred to have cash (coins) on hand for road tolls in case there is a problem with using a credit card there. We encountered drivers needing to back out of toll lanes because the machine didn't take their cards.

I really appreciate everyone's comments and advice - super helpful! It's sounding like in general that a PIN won't be needed but to have one just in case. So thank you!