Problem with US Credit Cards in automated ticket machines?

I'm not hearing of problems at train ticket kiosks with American credit cards. You're more apt to have problems at a gas station after hours when there is no attendant there. During regular business hours, the attendant can manually punch your card numbers if need be. It's best to carry sufficient cash to buy gas instead of relying on the credit card. I don't see the American credit card companies making any future changes in this. You can get a chipped card in the U.S., but at high yearly rates.

I have Capital one card and they do not have smart chip technology. I have a friend who Just returned from Italy he tried with his Mastercard/Visa to purchasing train tickets in the automated ticket machines/kiosks. He tried on different machines, on different days and in different stations but an error was encountered in all instances after he inserted the card when prompted. An error message popped up on the screen and a receipt with the message "Transazione Negata, data non ms using his card. I have the same card and have never had a problem.

You can have problems with credit cards at some automated ticket machines. It will depend on where you are going to be. All automated tickets machines in parts of northern Europe - Netherlands, Belgium - will require the chip and pin card. Italy is mixed. Newer machines yes, older machines no and there are lots of older machines. And in many areas of France including gas stations and toll roads. Most merchants, restaurants, etc., are happy to take US credit cards. However, no problems with debit cards and ATMs.

michael, When I was in Italy last September, my credit cards worked fine in the ticket Kiosks at Termini, FCO and other stations. Although I have "Chip & PIN" cards, the machines never asked for a PIN, so transactions were apparently processed using the magnetic stripe (without a signature). It's certainly possible that the Kiosks have been upgraded to newer versions since then, as the inexorable conversion to "C & P" cards continues. Based on other posts I've seen here, it appears that a few financial institutions in the U.S. are now starting to offer "C&P" cards, so perhaps this won't be as much of a problem in future. Cheers!

Paul, what you saw was the old and new machines. Unfortunately I think all of the automated tickets terminals, etc. in Europe will move to the chip and pin card in time. Last year in Rome all the machines by the south door to Termini was the chip and pin machines. And, I think, there was bunch on the far north side of the main entrance area. However, the majority of the machines - probably 50 or more - in the middle were the older style. Something is going to have to give with the chip and pin technology. Because it will be an equal problem for European tourists who come here only with chip and pin cards. Americans are not the only ones who travel.

"...Because it will be an equal problem for European tourists who come here only with chip and pin cards...." It's already a problem for European tourists; zip code verification at lots of merchants in the US makes using their cards problematic. They can't use the ticket machines on NYC Subway, lots of gas pumps ask for zip codes, and when I used my credit card at the Smithsonians in DC last year, the cashiers asked for Zips to finalize the transaction.

Thank you

All automated train ticket kiosks in France require a chip-and-pin card. At least I've never found one that didn't. But all you have to do is go to a manned ticket window instead.

My recollection of Italy was that there were two different types of machines, not sure anymore of the names, but one only took the Chip and Pin or a European equivalent of a non-visa debit card, and others took all types of cards, including my credit card. It took only a couple transactions to figure out which machine was which and how to identify it. I recall the busier stations having both, with the "chip and pin" machines intended for quick transactions by commuters, the other machines were usually located separately off to the side.

@Michael, "It's already a problem for European tourists; zip code verification at lots of merchants in the US makes using their cards problematic." I wonder if the machines are configured to check the "country" of the credit card against the zip code that is entered. The first four digits usually represent the issuing financial institution. I haven't had any problems yet with my "Chip & PIN" cards in the U.S., but I'd be tempted to simply use the zip code of relatives that live there. European tourists could perhaps use the zip code of the Hotel they're staying in. I'll be curious to find out if this solves the problem? Cheers!

@Ken - Your chip and pin also has a magnetic strip so it works most places in the U.S. There are a few places that also require zip code to be typed in. The zip code gets verified against your billing address so that causes the issue for those places. Personally, I've only encountered this at some gas stations. The zip code verification is part of the reason that the U.S. hasn't felt the pressure to jump on the EMV chip. It serves as a secondary verification, much like the pin. Both Mastercard and Visa have released roadmaps for upgrading U.S. infrastructure to support the EMV chip so we will likely get there someday (I think Mastercard's target was around 2015).