France Bank ATM Fees: Wow!

I too find this strange as European banks almost never charge ATM fees. Not sure if it is illegal or just not the custom, but even if they did charge fees, $40 is way beyond anything standard. It seems either there was an error or they charged you for something you didn't intend. For example, sometimes banks or retailers will give you the option of converting the currencies for your "convenience." Of course, what that means is they get to charge you a fee or bad conversion rate to do so and make money. Do you have more details or the receipt? You might try going to a branch of the bank and inquiring.

Did you use a credit (instead of a debit) card to withdraw the money? If so, the $40 might be your card's charge for a "cash advance". In many years of traveling to Europe, I've never had any charge at an ATM other than those imposed by my own card issuer.

I, too, have never been charged a fee by a European bank ATM anywhere. Perhaps you should go into the bank involved and ask them about what you were charged. They should at least be able to explain it - and it might have been an error.

Are you sure it was a bank ATM? Private ATM owners can and do charge a lot. I hear that at Heathrow, for example, there are Travelex ATMs that might charge 7-10%.

I'll dispute the charge when I get home. Very odd, indeed. Could well be my own bank trying to nickel and dime me. After having a ton of difficulty accessing money from my Andrews Federal Visa card credit line, I've concluded it's best to carry a huge wad of cash with you and keep it well hidden. Andrews charges no fee; just the standard Visa one percent of the transaction fee. In any case, France is still great and the Loire Valley is still wonderful. Tomorrow, on to the Dordogne!

Do I understand correctly that you were using a credit card for a cash advance? Or was the ATM charge from a debit card transaction? If you were doing a credit card cash advance, all bets are off. There are different rules for that than for ATM card transactions.

I too am curious as I've just completed the process of applying for a GlobeTrek Visa thru Andrews FCU and am awaiting it's arrival. Have you had any troubles with your card and them denying your transactions when you used it as a normal credit card?

Ken, please do come back with a line-by-line recreation of your ATM receipt; perhaps we can decode it. If not, we sure want to know what it is...and I know you do!

Two different cards. My bank's ATM card was the one with the weird fees in addition to the standard $5 fee for every single foreign ATM withdrawal. My Andrews Federal Visa card only carries the one percent transaction fee, which I feel is very fair.