PBH / colombia (travelguide, pictures) / post

QUESTION???? BANK CHARGES... DEBIT CARD....

Hello, I have a question in regards to some new BANK CHARGES of $5 per TRANSACTION.. plus the regular charge of maybe $1something or $2something.. depending of the amount taken out of ATM IN COLOMBIA ... MAINLY FROM BANK OF AMERICA... and the ATM BANCOLOMBIA..???? recently my EX. ( who is colombian) went back to colombia and I am paying her bills and managing her bank accounts while she is in colombia and I am seeing a NEW $5 per transaction fee on her account for every ATM withdrawl... she told me her friends told her that it is a charge from Bancolombia??? I was just in colombia en OCT-NOV of the last year.. and I never had any charges.. from a different usa bank.. other than BANK OF AMERICA??

CAN ANYONE EXPLAIN WHO?? AND WHEN THIS STARTED??? years and years ago.. my credit cards.. always "dinged" me a $5 per transaction fee to access cash from ATM's in colombia.. but I have never seen anything THIS HIGH on DEBIT CARDS???

PLEASE RESPOND.. as I told her before I accessed her account online.. I had never heard of this charge.. and told her.. go ahead and use the debit card...now I see.. maybe.. 15-20 $5 dollar charges.. every time she acceses cash... WOWOW.. this is not good if THIS HAS CHANGED????... it is just adding more salt to the wound of the already lowering dollar and rising COP..
THANKS FOR ANY INFO ... from those who live there and know???

By gringokid on Jul 2, 2008, 20:32 in Friendly Talkzone.

viajero123 says on Jul 3, 2008, 01:22:

It is the American bank charging. Colombian ATMs do not charge for withdrawals with foreign debit cards. The other charge is a foreign transaction fee of 1% up to 5%.

Try opening a Capital One account. They have ATM cards that will not charge a fee for withdrawals or for foreign transactions. Their credit cards will also not charge foreign transaction fees on purchases made in Colombia.

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Gator says on Jul 3, 2008, 07:16:

Depends on the bank and it varies from what you paid to nothing. Decide what bank card you want to use and call first to determine the charge. If you intend to use the card ONLY for the ATM and NOT to make purchases usually a debit card is cheapest.

"Brevior Sltare Cum Deformibus Mulieribus Est Vita!" .

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larryrn says on Jul 3, 2008, 10:26:

Capital One has a foreign transaction fee of 1 percent. Most of the other American banks have fees at the normal rate of 3 percent. Regarding the 5 dollar charge, yes, I had this for some time now, however, someone here on PBH referred me to Citibank - so 5 dollars on 1 million pesos is nothing as compared on 5 dollars on 200,000 pesos (IMHO).

Larry

--- Larry Snyder - http://www.rn.org - Your Source for Online Nursing Education!

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viajero123 says on Jul 3, 2008, 11:28:

larryrn, are you sure Capital One has a 1% foreign transaction fee? I called them this week and they said none of their cards had that charge so I am going to apply for one. Do you currently have one and get charged that fee?

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rhydewithdis says on Jul 3, 2008, 11:37:

EVERYONE should bookmark this site:
http://www.flyerguide.com/wiki/index.php/Credit/Debit/ATM_Cards_and_Fo...

They said I couldn't play football I was too small / They say I couldn't play basketball I wasn't tall / They say I couldn't play baseball at all / And now everyday of my life I ball.

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ColombianoGringo says on Jul 3, 2008, 11:44:

I recently got a Capital One debit card and tried it out in Colombia a few weeks ago. I used it at a BanColombia ATM an the only charge I was assessed was a $1.50 ATM charge from Capital One . There was no foreign transaction charge. However, I should receive credit for that at the end of the month. I think you have to maintain a $1,000 minimum balance in order to get your ATM fees credited. There is no monthly fee on the account and I did not have to set it up with direct deposit.

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tomtom33 says on Jul 3, 2008, 12:45:

I have been using a CapitalOne credit card and a CapitalOne debit card in Colombia since October. There is no 1% international transaction fee and no other fees.

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ColombianoGringo says on Jul 3, 2008, 12:54:

I was assessed a $1.50 fee separate from the transaction itself, so it would seem that it is a Capital One fee. Other bank ATM fees are typically included in the transaction.

Here are the transactions as listed in my online account listing. The first is the actual withdrawal which did not contain any 1% transaction fee or ATM fees. The second is the related ATM fee. When I get a chance, I will call them to ask about the specific nature of that $1.50 fee.
--------------------------
Account: COMPLETELY FREE CHECKING ...####
Date: 6/17/2008
Description: ATM withdrawal ATM WITHDRAWAL 000773 BCO INDUST. COLOMBIANO PEPE SIE
Transaction Type: Debit
Amount: $###.##

--------------------------

Account: COMPLETELY FREE CHECKING ...####
Date: 6/17/2008
Description: ATM fee
Transaction Type: Debit
Amount: $1.50

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gringokid says on Jul 3, 2008, 15:14:

Yes I always use a local- regional bank and have maybe been assesed a percent of like 1.76 for 300,000 pesos... and never any more.... well my ex is using a bank of america debit. and they are smacking her $5 a transaction on the ATM.. just like credit cards.. and then the smaller minimal fee... WELL.. I told her.. before she left... BUT YOU know the Stubborn colombiana.. lol.. pues.. ya ella aprendera... HER FRIENDS that live there TOLD HER it was BANCOLOMBIA THAT HAD STARTED ASESSING THE FEE... WELL WHO KNOWS... THAnks for the information and INPUT

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ColombianoGringo says on Jul 3, 2008, 15:20:

gk, That transaction was at a BanColombia ATM. I use them all the time and have never had that $5 fee even with another bank's debit card. You should check with BofA.

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tomtom33 says on Jul 3, 2008, 15:20:

CG, my CapitalOne account is a high-yield money market account. I just checked my account. There are no $1.50 fees or any other fees.

I would suggest that you change your account.

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ColombianoGringo says on Jul 3, 2008, 15:24:

Thanks TT. I just got the free standard checking. It is a only an extra account I opened exclusively for transactions abroad. They do offer the money market account you mentioned at my local branch. Is there a monthly fee for that account?

In any case, they are supposed to refund all those fees at the end of the month. Of course, since that requires $1,000 balance, it would be better to have that money earning some interest, even if it only is a few bucks.

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tomtom33 says on Jul 3, 2008, 15:30:

There is no monthly fee. They pay money market rates on your balance. And I don't believe that there is any minimum balance requirement. Of course if your average balance stayed around US$50, they might not like that.

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viajero123 says on Jul 3, 2008, 16:42:

tomtom33, so have you tried to withdraw money with that card in Colombia, and get charged no fees at all?
Has anyone used their credit cards in Colombia and been charged a fee?
colombianogringo, they told me the money market account wouldn't charge any fees of that sort at all when I called them before applying. You should double-check with them. I don't think Bancolombia charges an ATM-owner fee, especially if the charge is exactly $1.50, I would guess they would do a charge in pesos not in dollars if they even had that charge. And anyway, all other ATMs in Colombia do not charge ATM-owner fees.
rhydewithdis thanks for the link!

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tomtom33 says on Jul 3, 2008, 16:48:

I have used that card since October in Colombia and have never been charged any fees.

My credit union credit card charges a 1% foreign transaction fee. My AA Citibank card charges a 3% international transaction fee. My CapitalOne credit card has no fees.

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