Just back from Tuscany- ATM card didn't work

Does your card work at non-Bank of America ATMs in the US? Could you go to a...Citibank or WellsFargo ATM and get money? If not then it's apparently some BoA only card which would not work where there aren't BoA banks.

Otherwise I have no idea. I have never heard of an ATM card without a network. There's no cirrus or plus or star logo? I think these networks are how the various banks communicate with each other so the bank in Italy can "tell" your bank you took out 200 euros so your bank can deduct it from your balance. Without a network I don't know how they communicate so it makes sense it wouldn't work. I'm just guessing here though.

Hi thanks for the reply
I never tried the card at other atms in the USA
I am going to contact bof a

i have a debit card/checking account specifically for travel and have never had a problem. Charles Schwab Bank Investor Checking. No ATM fees worldwide, no foreign transaction fees. I also like having a place to set aside money for travel each month so I can save up for the next trip!

I'm sorry your ATM card didn't work. What did you end up doing for cash?

Like Carol, I use a Schwab bank card. It works great. It's important to try the card before you go to Europe. That way, you will know if it works in a bankomat at all.

I brought cash as backup.
Was unable to change cash at Italian banks- need account

I had friend change

bie, ten years ago, B of A sent me a debit card I didn't request. A platform officer told me that if I insisted on keeping my ATM-only card, it would stop working outside the country. Because I travel a lot, I reluctantly accepted the Debit Card associated with all my deposit accounts.

I will suggest that maybe the person who told you your card should have worked was not properly trained, or perhaps ... ... has NEVER seen a plain vanilla ATM card like you have?

By the way, although I pay all my bills on time, I don't have a revolving credit card at the same bank. That's because they would have right of OFFSET if I did not pay my bill. Same with our mortgage (which we always paid on time.) There is a lot to learn about basic personal finance!

As an aside, it is in my experience nearly impossible to get valid, truthful info from American banks about overseas anything, other than fees.

A platform officer told me that if I insisted on keeping my ATM-only
card, it would stop working outside the country.

That's interesting because I also had to switch from a plain ATM to an ATM/debit card a few years ago for the same reason. When I went to my credit union to alert them that I'd be traveling outside the U.S., they said they'd heard from other members that they'd starting having trouble abroad with plain ATM cards so recommended ATM/debit combo: no trouble reported with those.

I'd used that plain card on a previous trip with no issues but was told that this problem had arisen since. My credit union is GREAT - been with them for over 30 years - so I'm inclined to trust them.

My card is Mastercard branded with Moneypass, accel and Co-op logos and I haven't had a problem with it. Machines often have a limit on the amount they'll dispense so if it refuses a withdrawal of, say, $400, reducing that amount usually works.

As an aside, it is in my experience nearly impossible to get valid, truthful info from American banks about overseas anything, other than fees.

True that! Also applies to phone companies. It's probably because employees aren't really listening to your questions. Instead they're trying to sell you one of their products. Going overseas? You need our travelers checks or our travel card or our identity theft prevention or our European calling plan or a new phone or....

It's best to do your own research and then tell them what you need. Ignore what they try to sell you.

I have a plain ATM-only card (not a debit card, I have one of those from another financial institution) that I've used all over Europe at ATMs. I used it in Italy just this May. No problems using it anywhere.

My ATM card is from a credit union. I suspect the problem was with Bank of America, not with the ATMs in Italy.

I think the basic question is, "What network??" In order for any credit card/debit card/ATM card, etc., it has to be associated with a network so that your card, your ATM card, and your bank can talk to each other -- "Yep !!! he has enough money in the account, go ahead and give him some." It is the network that actually transfers the cash from one identity to another. You need to check on the network associated with your card. Cirrus and Plus are the most common networks in the US and Europe.

Network issues may or may not have anything to do with the problem. Some years ago, we had a similar experience. Our Wells Fargo debit card had worked in Portugal. As soon as we crossed the border into Spain, it stopped functioning. 3 calls to WF got the same response. The know-nothing people we spoke to told us they could see no reason why the card wasn't working. To this day, it remains a mystery. Fortunately, we were traveling with friends whose WF card was working. We put restaurant and hotel bills on our cc, and they gave us cash for their share.
Since then, we always carry atm cards on 2 different accounts and 2 different cc's. It seems the way to insure against a repeat of that inexplicable glitch.

On the back of my ATM card it is blank. No networks etc.

My credit union ATM card has Cirrus and Star logos on the back - so perhaps that's your problem.

A Debit card, one with a Visa or MasterCard emblem on it, should work anywhere in the world as long as you inform your bank of the destination you are traveling to and they allow their cards to do international transactions (some don't).

An ATM only card is no longer guaranteed to work anywhere other than the ATMs of whoever you have that account with. Whoever issued you that card should now also have Debit cards they can replace the ATM only card with. Most banks will no longer issue ATM only cards because of these changes. Things are a changing, and not always in the customer's favor.

Ok. So with debit card it draws money from my account? I.e. Checking etc. it's not pulling money from visa etc as a cash advance?

Bie, call the bank ask about the network. Credit unions commonly use the STAR in the US but that network is not available in Europe so Cirrus or Plus is the alternative for credit union. (I used a credit union debit card with the same two networks.)

Bie, is the front of your card branded with either Visa or Mastercard? If not, then I think you have card that only works on a BofA network. Also the card to be linked to a primary - generally checking - account. It cannot be linked to multi accounts - say both a checking and saving account at the same institution. I think the issue is probably the ATM use card only and not a debit card.

This example shows why it's a good idea to always carry at least one backup ATM card (I normally carry more than one, along with several credit cards).

Yes, if you put a debit card in an ATM, the money will be taken from the linked bank/credit union account. The suggestion to test this out at non-BoA ATMs in the US ahead of time is a good one. That will relieve your mind as to how it all works.

We just returned from Italy and one of our traveling companions had an issue with one bank ATM but she tried a second bank and was able to get cash no problem. I have a BOA ATM card and had no issues. Did you tell the bank before you left that you would be traveling abroad?

Yes, Debit cards work exactly like the ATM card you already have in that they draw the money directly from whatever account it is tied to. A Debit card transaction is never treated as a cash advance. Debit cards you will want to have to use when traveling will have either the Visa or MasterCard emblem on them. Others, AmEx and Discover, are available but have extremely limited functionality outside the US.

The main difference between a Debit card and an ATM only card is that you can make purchases with the Debit card just like you would with a credit card. The main difference between the Debit card and a credit card is you can only spend the money you have -- there is no credit line with a Debit card.

I learned in 2002 I needed Debit ATM card that is part of international network for example Cirrus (mastercard) and Plus(visa)

I don't agree 100% with Frank. My State Department Federal Credit Union ATM/Debit card bears a Visa logo on the front, and has three logos on the back, Plus, Co-Op, and STAR. I would also add that my Bank of America Debit card (that was substituted for my old, ATM-only card) is linked to both my checking and to my Money Market Savings account. In that respect, Frank may have been referring to the old rule that some European ATMs are unable to offer a choice between two accounts when you make an overseas withdrawal.

I used both of these cards during a recent trip to Germany and Italy. (I avoid the B of A card because of their punishing 3% fee to get money that I already own. But as another post noted, I need a backup, just in case.)

My credit union ATM card does not have a Visa branding on it explicitly. It is linked to my savings account (do not have a checking account).

Andrew, are you saying that it works in Europe?

Well, that gives me something to check -- I used my ATM-only BofA card in Italy in 2012, but now carry it overseas only as backup to my no-fee Schwab debit card. But if it no longer works ... what's the backup ?? (Use it regularly at home, where there's a BofA branch on almost every corner.)
On the back of the card it has a "From Outside US call collect" number.

Yes, Sam, I have used my credit union ATM card for years in Europe: France, Netherlands, Belgium, Germany, Italy, Russia, etc., as recently as four months ago. No real issues anywhere. I mean, occasionally you find one ATM in one place that rejects your card for some unknown reason...but the one across the street would work. I had the same occasional issue like that with my old debit card.

Andrew, does your ATM only card have a logo for a network like star or plus? My thinking here is that ATM-only (non-Visa/MC debit) can work IF they have a network affiliation. If there's no network then the ATM that isn't your bank can't communicate with your bank to withdraw the money. That's my guess but if your card is non-network (no logos at all) then I'm wrong!

As I said above, my credit union ATM card has Cirrus and Star logos on the back.

Because you use Bank of America?

Seriously, they did this to me once. They "forgot" to do something so my card didn't work.

I now "forget" to give them cash.

I now bank with USAA. where I do get truthful information

The thing that makes your card work in foreign ATMs is the syndicate labels on the card. If it's got a Visa or MC it will work virtually anywhere. If it has no syndicate labels on the card, there's no connection for the machine to get information on your account/balance. Anyone who told you it would work probably didn't realize that non-debit ATM cards still exist for some people.

BofA charges too much for foreign ATM withdrawals. I'd suggest opening another account, even if only as a travel account, with a credit union that will charge a fraction of what BofA wants. Typically you can find a flat one percent charge vs. BofA's $5 per transaction plus 3 percent (it might be higher now). BofA tries to sell its customers on free ATMs in Europe but those are few and far between and rarely worth the effort to locate. I doubt you could use an ATM there either, they just won't charge the fee to use your debit card.

Good point. Fees. I saw Charles schwab high yield investor checking account has no fees

"BofA's $5 per transaction plus 3 percent (it might be higher now"

I just returned from Italy and here are some ATM withdraws and the fees applied

ATM Withdrawal
ATM VENEZIA 09/24 140.00 EUR Or $167.46 + $3.35 Int.Trn.Fee

ATM Withdrawal
ATM BERGANTINO 09/28 70.00 EUR Or $82.82 + $1.66 Int.Trn.Fee

Not sure where the "$5 per transaction" idea came from and it looks to me that the fee is 2%

"Not sure where the "$5 per transaction" idea came from and it looks to me that the fee is 2%" I am guessing that it comes from B of A's website: https://www.bankofamerica.com/deposits/resources/personal-schedule-fees.go. But maybe not every customer is charged that fee. I use CapitalOne360 for my travel banking but I could use my account at another bank which states on its website that the fee is 3% but my particular account type is not charged the fee.

Well, here are THREE B of A lines from the last time I used my ATM/Debit Card to get my own money in Italy:

07/06/2016

BANCAMONTEPASCHIS ORBETELLO FEE as Reconciled
-5.00 (i.e. $USD 5.00)
07/06/2016

BANCAMONTEPASCHIS ORBETELLO... as Reconciled
-13.42 (i.e. B of A's vigorish of 3% .... )
07/06/2016

BANCAMONTEPASCHIS ORBETELLO as Reconciled
-447.32 (Probably 300 Euros, but I forget)

Now, I forget if they had a partner bank (Global Alliance) in Italy that year, but we did not have a lot of bank choice in Tuscan villages. Obviously this was not at a Global Alliance partner.

I just received my State Department FCU statement for my September, 2017 time in Germany. I am annoyed to report that both of my ATM/Debit card withdrawals of my account funds on deposit had a second line, after the value of the withdrawal. Those lines were for 1% of the amount, labelled:

Withdrawal VISA ISA CHARGE
Visa International Service Assessment

The fact that SDFCU did not "receive" any of this fee does not lighten the sting of being charged to get my own money!

Practically speaking, the Euros you withdrew weren't your own money. Your bank had to reimburse the bank that owned the ATM via the Visa network so Visa charged a fee for the privilege and currency conversion (the European bank doesn't realty want your dollars, only their value.).

If you want to access your own money for free bring it from home - and then pay more than. 1% to convert it to Euros.

Well, Peter, although my post was on-topic and related to most of the previous posts in the thread, I do have another choice:
I could switch banks to an Imperialist bank that reimburses all (or up to some monthly amount) of ATM fees. I do wonder if that includes VISA network fees, which are not, after all, charged by the bank that owns the ATM. But First Republic and HSBC have an upmarket clientele that would not stand for any fees at all. Also Chase Private Banking, and so on.

I wonder if your acerbic statement about how I really "owe" the 1% is actually correct. I believe that the 1% fee quoted in my post two items above goes, entirely, to VISA - which ALSO gets money from the bank (a fractional amount) simply for operating the network. Of course I "received" Euro bills that were the property of a bank in Italy - one of those that had to be bailed out because of its incompetent operators! That's what happens when you cash a check, or withdraw from a Credit Union network ATM. But somehow, they manage to run their business without collecting the 1%.