Traveling with credit card chip and magnetic strip problems

Even my Andrews FCU card has a mag strip as well as a chip (with a PIN). So it will still work on train kiosks as well as toll booths, unattended gas pumps, etc. I just got a new Amex card with a chip on it, but it is chip and signature. It still has a mag strip on it. All the new credit cards will have chips in them as it is a mandate to have this method in place in the US next year, but the biggies (MC, Visa, Amex) want chip and signature, for whatever reason. It will be a while until the mag strip goes the way of the 8 track or floppy disk.

I used my chip/signature card in Cinque Terre, Pisa, Lucca and Genoa this past spring and sometimes had a couple of problems with the self-service machines at a few train stations but I think even people with chip/pin cards had the same problem. Otherwise, it was smooth going.

I've had no luck using my US credit cards at train ticket kiosks. I figured it's just easier to use cash. Takes as much time, and you get your change back. I'm so tired of trying and trying and end up not being able to pay after I've gone through all the steps to get the ticket. Save yourself some hassle and just have some Euro, use cash (make sure you look at the top of the machine to make sure it's not a credit/debit card only machine)

I just tried my new credit card when I was in Italy last month, and NO, it didn't work so after the first attempt, I just used cash.

I'm not positive, but my understanding is that American banking institutions are only issuing chip and signature cards and that the so-called 'new' regulations don't require them to issue chip and pin cards. US-issued credit cards may have a pin number for obtaining cash at an ATM, but that's different from chip and pin technology. Does anyone have more current information than that?

sulli4902-as Christine describes, there are Chip+P.I.N. cards and there are Chip+Signature cards. We have a Chase Visa with a chip (as well as a magnetic strip) but ours still requires a signature rather than us punching in a P.I.N. In Italy we were able to get gasoline at one automatic gas pump, and in Spain ours worked at a train ticket machine, but then it wouldn't work in another Italian gas pump.

Unless your card is a full Chip+P.I.N. card (regardless of having the magnetic strip, which I understand is still on all cards worldwide right now as a backup) using it in automated machines will be hit and miss, and in Italy probably more miss than hit. If dealing with a human, they can print out a receipt for you to sign if you aren't going to be punching in a P.I.N.

And in the USA, our card works fine by using the magnetic strip, regardless of the card also having the chip).

The chip and pin cards all have a magnetic strip as well. If you get one for use abroad, you'll be able to use them in the US as well as elsewhere. If it was otherwise, those from Canada or Europe wouldn't be able to use their credit cards in the US as all credit cards here and in Europe are chip and pin and have for years.

I use two Andrews FCU cards ( different accounts ) and a Barclay world MasterCard . All are chip and pin ( with a magnetic stripe ) , and all function the same way . In any situation where there is an attended online POS terminal , All of these cards default to signature confirmation . At POS terminals that are unattended and OFFLINE ( stand alone terminals , not connected to the internet ) they will ask for the PIN . In numerous situations when the PIN was required , they all functioned perfectly as expected .

I have a US issued chip and pin card. It also has a magnetic stripe. On a 30 day trip to Italy in May it worked everywhere including the train kiosks. There are now several places in the US that have pin and chip card readers including Sam's Club.

We just returned from northern Italy a couple of weeks ago, & I didn't have any problem using my credit card (
with chip & magnetic strip & no PIN) on any of the self- service train ticket machines.

However, I always had enough cash on hand, just in case.
I actually had a problem with cash once & when the machine kept spitting out my bills (Euros), I assumed that the machine had ran out of coins for change.

My cc is a Marriott Rewards Visa by Chase & it's a great card because it does not charge any international fees &

I get points toward Marriott Hotel stays!

My take is that more and more US companies are issuing card with chips, but have not enabled the PIN technology or capability that goes with it, that seems to be the hold up, not accessibility of chip readers.

I agree that the issue then prevents most US card holders (a few do have true chip and pin) from using them in self service kiosks and POS devices.

However, on my recent travels I did find that having a chip and signature card did make transactions easier. Our mag strip only cards were looked at oddly, some younger clerks were not even sure how to process. In every case they were able to process (some other clerk knew the drill, if the tableside card machine wasn't capable, the one up by the cash register was...)

In short, given that I have 3-4 cards, I am working to all of them have dual chip/mag strip, and I would really like one of them to be chip and pin only, from that, I do not expect any inconvienance.

The easiest way around the chip and PIN issue, is to use your regular, U.S. magnetic strip credit card with a PIN number. Every credit card has a PIN, but here in the U.S. most of us don't know what our credit card PIN is, as we rarely need to use it (unless you are taking out a cash-advance). If you don't know your PIN, you can contact your credit card company or bank and they will send you a new one. You can often change it to match an existing PIN you already have.

I have three different credit cards, none of them with chips. I just know my PIN's for each card and have rarely had a problem using them in Europe. The exception has been at automated ticket machines in Belgian and Dutch train stations, some gas stations and autostrada toll booths. In these situations, I had to buy train tickets from a person at a ticket window rather than a machine (and he was able to process my card fine), and at gas stations and toll booths, I've used cash. When you use your magetic strip credit card to make a purchase, you will often need to enter a PIN number, just like if you were using your debit card. If you don't know the PIN, the card won't work.

I was in Italy this past summer and used both my credit card and debit card to buy Italian train tickets from kiosks in several different locations - Florence, Rome and Venice, and never had a problem.

sulli,

U.S. financial institutions are apparently going to start issuing Chip & PIN cards, beginning in 2015. Typically they tend to wait until the expiry date of each card before issuing the new one. When I was faced with the same situation several years ago prior to the introduction of C & P cards here, I contacted one of my card issuers and requested an immediate replacement. I explained that I'd be travelling in Europe, so they agreed to issue the new card right away.

Hopefully U.S. institutions don't issue Chip & Signature cards, as those may only be of limited use in Europe. I know from past experience that some places in the Netherlands (ie: Amsterdam Central station) will ONLY accept C&P cards, and of course at automated facilities such as the ticket machines at CDG or fuel pumps, Chip & Signature likely won't be an option.

Good luck!

Thanks for all the responses from everyone! I called my bank (Bank of America) and the credit cards are only chip and signature but the debit cards are chip and pin. They are sending me new ones shortly. Too bad the credit cards aren't chip and pin too... I will also carry cash to be prepared.
This is such a great forum, people really care and help. Thanks again

If you have a Bank of America ATM card, you can go to BNL d'Italia/Paribas banks and get cash without a transaction fee. The bus companies in Silicy will not take credit cards as I found out a few weeks ago.

Just to add something because there is always confusion about it. All cards with chips have the same technologies. It is the validation protocol that is set by the card issuer. Most US banks still use the signature as the validation, even with a chip. Some set the signature as the primary validation and defer to a PIN as a secondary validation if the transaction is automated. So different people's chip cards will sometimes work and sometimes won't. You have to check with your bank (and it's highly likely the person you talk to won't have a clue...).

All chip cards will have a magnetic strip too. It serves as a backup and for places that don't have a chip reader. If you swipe a chip card through the magnetic strip reader, it will process that way, not with the chip. Most terminals will have a slot for reading the chip and a slide strip for reading the strip.

Sometimes a magnetic strip card can work with the PIN validation, as noted above. But I find that to be rare and likely depends much on your card issuer's protocols.

I used my TD Bank atm card with no problem buying train tickets in the machine in Naples, Italy last year, it is just a regular US issued magnetic strip card. The same machine didn't like my BofA chip and sign card, it required a PIN and according to BofA, the PIN that comes with the card is only for atm withdrawals not for purchases.
It seems to be hit or miss anywhere with US cards working or not.
In France last month, my BofA chip and sign card worked in most toll booth machines we came across, it was rejected in 2. It wouldn't work at gas pumps.

Bank of America now charges 3% on atm withdrawals on their debit cards even at their sister banks(BNP Paribas, BNL.....) There was no fee until Nov 2013. We intentionally opened BofA checking accounts for the no atm fees because my daughter has been living/studying in France since 2011, and that was the easiest, cheapest way to get her money when she needed it. Now I only have her use the BofA card for small amounts, under $100, for larger amounts she uses a TDBank debit card, $3 per transaction no matter which banks atm she uses or amount she takes out.
I paid a $9.65 fee to BofA for a 250€ withdrawal in Lille last month from a BNP Paribas atm.

I make sure to carry a few different cards with me. 2 bank debit cards(BofA, TDBank) and 2 Visa cards, one regular Visa and a BofA Chip and sign card. If one doesn't work, I can try another. At least at train stations you can always use a person to buy tickets from if your card/s won't work.

I am going to call BofA yet again. They told me they don't issue any Chip and pin credit cards or debit cards.

We just got back from Italy and our Bank Debit Cards (Visa) worked fine in all self service train station machines. However our Credit cards with magnetic strip and no pin did not work. At all self service machines you have to type in a pin to complete the transaction. Hence our Debit card with pin worked.

When we used our State Department Federal Credit Union cards with chips and swipe-strips last summer (2014) at attended POS machines, the result was always the same. They inserted the card in the stationary slot for "Chip and PIN" transactions, and after a rather long pause, got a signature slip spit out by their printer. They presented the slip to us for signature. This happened even in restaurants where the POS terminal was handheld wireless by the waiter. This happened in London, Rome, Sorrento, and Positano.

As a test, I used the same card to add a few pounds to my Oyster card with an in-wall London Transit machine, and it worked fine, using a PIN. I didn't buy any gasoline.

I did call SDFCU, and they told me that their protocol is nominally "Chip and Signature." I chose them because the card was no annual fee, 0% foreign transaction fee. The downside is that they are such a "small potato" that I can't pay the bill with Bank Of America Online Billpay as an overnight "ACH" transaction. B of A issues a paper check in four days, like they do with my lawn-mowing company's bill. SDFCU told me that it could be an ACH transaction, and I should call B of A to ask them to add that capability. Next time I see Brian T. Moynihan (the C.E.O.) at the mall, I'll mention it to him!

Hello everyone....first time poster but have been reading for quite some time. I'd also like to thank all of the regulars for the invaluable information that you've given on the forums. :-)

With that said, I'd like to add that although there is a lot of discussion on the use of the PIN, no one has mentioned the need to possibly have a 4-digit PIN for that cc or debit card. (Ken's link may have that info, though...I didn't check.)

Also, sulli, since you are getting new cards, the 4-digit PIN will probably come to you via mail but separate from the mail with your new cards.

I was in Italy in September, however, before the trip I got all of my ducks in a row, found the local BNL partner locations and had no problems using them with my 4-digit PIN. In fact, I had no issues with using my debit card or my credit card (has Chip+PIN and magnetic strip) at all. I can't respond to using them in the train kiosks as we (my daughter and I) bought our train tickets before we left (Milan >Florence>Rome).

And, it's good that you are getting a head start on what to do. That way you won't be perplexed when you get there. :-) That's how I travel...I plan ahead to avoid as many issues as possible.

I'm adding the observation that Bank of America has just sent me a replacement for my Visa Debit/ATM card that I use both in the USA every week, and when traveling to get cash from a bank account in foreign currency - but less since B of A increased the charge to me for doing this.

This red Bank of America card, in addition to bearing the photo of me that was on my last Debit/ATM card, has a chip on it. The insert in the envelope discussed chip-and-signature transactions. However, my real reason for posting is that:

The chip on the Bank of America card is smaller than, and has a different number of contact points, than the Chip and Signature VISA card (a revolving credit card) I got from the State Department Federal Credit Union. The B of A debit card has six contact points, while the real Chip card has eight contact points! Less importantly, the Visa "dove" hologram is on the back of the B of A card, instead of the front.

I'm going to GUESS that Not-Invented-Here has struck again. Can Bank of America possibly think their technology is better? What are the new Target cards going to look like?

Hi Tim - the credit card industry must have some kind of annual competition where they give out the "Most Beautiful Card Design" award, or maybe "Most Changed."

For what it's worth, our Chase British Airways Visa card was replaced this fall, when the previous card expired. Before cutting up the old cards, I noticed the array on the silver chip area looked a little different on the new cards, but don't recall exactly what the difference was. I trust it's what's under that silver patch that counts.

Also, I've currently got 3 different Visa cards from 2 different banks, and all have the dove hologram on the back side, same as the signature strip. My latest Discover card now has a hologram strip on the back, replacing a hologram spot on the front. I still have one MasterCard with a front-side hologram.

Target should put their mascot Bull Terrier on their cards, and design the chip to go over his eye, or on the end of his nose :-)