We will be driving from Paris to Italy and then down to Sorrento. I have heard you need a "chip" in your credit card in order to use it on the toll roads. Is this true? I called 2 of my visa card companies and neither had any special chip in the card. I have BofA and Chase.
Posted by
Portlandia
3313 posts
Lynda - Most of the toll stations don't accept Visa or Mastercard - at least US issued. Best to carry Euros to pay the tolls.
Posted by
DeWitt, MI, USA
199 posts
Lynda, no chip is needed. We have a standard MasterCard and Visa and always use it for tolls in Italy and France. It works just fine, and beats digging in your pocket for Euro change.
Posted by
Portland
3643 posts
Well, Lynda, now you have two completely contradictory pieces of advice. I'll add mine to the stew. Most of the toll plazas we saw in Italy this summer had booths that accepted cc's. We hedged our bets by keeping enough cash on hand in case our cc was rejected. Also, since most banks levy a foreign transaction fee, you might want to consider whether it's worthwhile to use a cc for a small toll. We did run into one place (can't remember where) where, early in the morning, the only lane open was unmanned and accepted only cash. We were awfully glad that we kept a supply in the car. Bottom line, the acceptance or rejection of chipless American cc's is quirky. It's best to be prepared for that. Since we're on the topic, be sure that you stay out of the "Fastpass" lanes. It often seemed that as we approached the booths, the lanes undulated, and what had seemed o.k. became a pass only lane. Buon viaggio!
Posted by
Creston, BC, Canada
16 posts
Are not most new issues of North American Credit card including chips? I know all of my Canadian issued ones do.