Non-Customer ATM charges

ATMs are everywhere people go just like in the US. Remember the locals use them more than tourists. My preference is always to use an ATM just after someone else has used it and attached to a bank when the open. I avoid most standalone ATMs but have used them in a pinch. My ideas are that an ATM attached to a bank is less likely to have been tempered with and, if there is problem, my partner can guard the ATM while I do into the bank to resolve the problem. Have no idea if that would work since we never had a problem in that situation.

Right, I am asking if there are bank-attached ATMs in the airports/train stations.

Not physically attached probably since I can't picture a bank branch anywhere - - bank - owned/affiliated, of course. You just have to know the bank logos/names for the country to make sure they're the real deal and not one of those imposters. Usually they're easy to tell apart if you just look at them for a couple of seconds and don't go sticking your card in the first slot you see. I don't know about Prague sincd I've never used a station/aiport atm there.

Anna, You just need to find a bank owned ATM. See http://visa.via.infonow.net/locator/global/ Frank's information on the networks, Visa andMasterCard, burying their fees in the exchange rate is about five years out of date. After being sued the networks agreed not to embed their fees in the exchange rates "MasterCard and Visa each agrees that it will not engage in Embedding with respect to issuing Members in the United States." From the bottom of page 28 http://www.ccfsettlement.com/documents/mdl_1409_settlement_agreement_1384141.pdf

Thank you, Ed and Henry!!

Hi Anna, I am in Prague right now. I took out money a day ago and looked at my bank statement today. I was charged a $5.00 non customer fee and $1.10 as well as my bank fee! Take a lot out at one time, not many small amounts! Happy Travels!!

I have not been charged a fee by the European banks. Any fees were charged by my own bank for not using their ATM's. I changed a few years ago to the Schwab checking account that offers free ATM withdrawls at any bank - foreign & U.S. When I use a US bank ATM and it charges me a fee, Schwab reimburses the fee at the end of the statement period.

My BIG Bank ATM card imposed all sorts of fees, so I didn't use it. Instead I opened a checking account with E*Trade and got free atm usage (other than the 1% over the exchange rate). This made it easy to use the ATM anytime I wanted, since there wasn't a "per-use" fee added on top.

There have been several discussions of this topic recently. European banks DO NOT charge you for using their ATMs, whether they are inside a bank or not. The charges all come from YOUR bank. If your credit union only charges you 1% then that is the only charge you will see. One of my credit union cards charges 1% and one charges absolutely nothing additional.

Don't know where the charges came from, my bank or the bank in Prague, just know that I was charged. I took quite a lot of money out so that I won't need to take any more out, along with using my credit card. Just wanted to pass along my experience.

Some European ATM machines will impose a surcharge. We only encountered one machine, in Spain, that was going to do this. I just canceled the transaction and went two blocks to a bank with an ATM on it's streetfront - no surcharge added.

In general, European banks do not charge fees for using their ATMs. I believe that is by law. I'm not sure the circumstances where in rare occasions people have been charged a fee, but it is very rare. I've never been charged a fee though I did get shorted at an ATM in Rome's Termini Station.

Thank you, everybody! Good to hear I am not crazy. My credit union doesn't charge to use other banks' ATMs, so it sounds like I should be able to avoid these fees. I will do some research into European laws re bank fees, but thank you all for the reassurance that they certainly don't ALL charge fees! The friends who were making fun of me, by the way, are all with BoA, so I wouldn't be surprised if they just blamed BoA's fees on the European ATMs.

My bank charges me a stiff out-of-network fee (so I have a small account with an internet bank that does not.) A few freestanding ATMS, which you might find at airports, also charge per-use fees (or so I have heard). I have never heard of a bank-affiliated ATM charging a fee in Europe. - - - So, the main thing you should do is talk to your credit union and learn what fees they will charge when you use an ATM in Europe. You should also avoid those freestanding ATMs.

This is very simple - ALL ATM charges are solely determined by your card issuer regardless of what you friends say. If your friends had read any of the hundreds of postings on this subject they would have been better informed. Or you need a different group of friends. The one exception is the network fee of about 1% that is buried in the initial exchange rate. After that all fees are clearly identified on your statement. There have been recent reports of private ATMs - not tied to a bank = that do charge fees. I thought it was report in England but could be elsewhere. Also, some currency exchanges in airport operate ATMs that look just like a bank ATMs. There will be no use fee if using an bank ATM in Europe.

Just to sum up:..., 1) Make sure it's a Bank's ATM (as Frank said, "some currency exchanges in airport operate ATMs that look just like a bank ATMs") 2) Not all of Europe is the EU. (I got extra charges in Prague too.)

Hi Anna. Ask your bank about ALL fees, including an out-of-network ATM withdrawal fee and an international withdrawal fee, so you aren't surprised when you receive your next bank statement.

After that last thread of a few weeks ago, I did investigate my "extra" ATM charges from past trips. Taking out money in the EU is surcharge free MOST of the time, however some private, non-bank ATM's look pretty legit. In Central, non-EU Europe, there were a variety of differing charges on top of the one's from my card provider. My local credit union's card was charging more fees than necessary, so I'm using one with no fees (Charles Schwab) for this upcoming trip.

Are there bank-operated ATMs (or a surcharge-free ATMs) in airports/train stations? We will be using Schiphol, Ferihegy, and Schoenefeld airports, and Brussels-Midi, Prague Holesovice, Munich Hbf, and Amsterdam Centraal train stations.

Harry like to make this point and he is most right but slightly wrong. It is very technical more of a matter of how terms are used. There is a charge for using the network - Plus, Cirrus - which are owned by Visa and MC as captured companies. That network fee, less than 1% is buried in the exchange rate that the network presents to VISA or MC. From that point forward all additional fees imposed by VISA and MC must be id on your statement thanks to the Harry's referenced lawsuit ten year ago or more. I have seen some branch banks in airports and train station but not very frequent.

From the referenced document ""Debit Cards" means all United States-issued Visa- and MasterCardbranded payment cards that enable cardholders to access deposits or other assets to pay for goods or services or withdraw cash. For avoidance of doubt, solely for purposes of use herein, Debit Cards includes, without limitation, cards commonly known as debit cards, stored value cards, and ATM cards. "Defendants" means the Bank Defendants and the Network Defendants."

"I have seen some branch banks in airports". I believe the ATMs I have used in FRA and MUC have belonged to German banks (Deutsche Bank and Dresdner Bank), and I think the one in FRA was right outside a branch of Deutsche Bank. When I used my 1st Bank ATM card last year in Austria, my statement showed a €350 withdrawal at $502 and a separate network charge (1%) or $5.02, plus $2 by 1st Bank for an out of network ATM, all separate line items. There was no charge by the German bank for using their machine.

There are few people that are fans of bank fees for instance out of network ATM fees, unless it's the bankers that reel in the profits. An increasing number of lawsuits have been initiated nationwide depending on an obscure law concerning ATM fee disclosure. The proof is here: <a title="ATM fees earn financial institutions lots of lawsuits" href="http://personalmoneystore.com/moneyblog/2011/04/22/atm-fees-lawsuits/&quot;&gt;Hundreds of banks slapped with lawsuittes for ATM fees</a>

Well, I hate to burst the bubble of the camp that states that all fees would be charged by your home bank as opposed to European ATMs, but alas this is no longer the case It may very well be that European laws governed these fees, but as everywhere, any regulation presents the opportunity to create loopholes. Part of the issue is that most European laws apply to European Citizens, not Americans and Canadians. Use of your debit card immediately identifies your personal information to the bank, so they know where you are from. I can relate two examples from a recent trip that shows how things are changing. Some one already mentioned Spain, this is where these occurred. The first was a transaction with a major bank, (At least a mojor regional bank in Barcelona) their ATM indicated to complete the transaction would incur a fee, do not recall specifying English, the ATM was in a well touristed area, and I used other ATMs from the bank that did not include the charge. The other was a situation where inserting my card revealed either my home bank or address. The machine then offered to make the transaction valid in dollars as opposed to Euro, Catch was the rate was much worse than the curreent interbank rate, meaning you are paying essentially a commission.

Then, Paul, it pays to have a card that reimburses out-of-network ATM fees, like Ally Bank does. Then even if a fee is charged (I've never seen one), it is reimbursed on your next statement.

For the record, I had no problem using my debit card and no surcharges aside from the 1% foreign transaction fee were assessed by any bank I used. Thanks for everyone's help. Oh, and Ofelliah's post should be deleted because it is clearly spam. This goes without saying, but I hope no one followed "her" links.

This is my favorite quote for today, from Paul, " any regulation presents the opportunity to create loopholes."

"... It may very well be that European laws governed these fees ..." No. Here in Germany it isn't even regulated by national laws.
There is just an "agreement" (since August 2010, in effect since 2011) between the central association of banks (ZKA) on one side and the federal antitrust agency and the ministry for consumer protection on the other.

Nancy, I agree, certainly in the first case I mentioned, your bank would have reimbursed the fee. The second may present some issues with the terms of your agreement, since they are handling it as a currency conversion fee rather than a service fee.