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Banks Tips
Banks Tips
ATM's:
This is the easiest way to get cash as a foreigner. The rate you get depends
on your bank.
This said ATM fraud is rife and tourists are the easiest target imaginable.
Common
sense is not enough. The MO is as follows
and normally happens at any outside ATM:
On approach
either your fraudster is pretending use the machine and displays a wad of notes
for you to see or will be queuing right behind you. He will be extremely well
dressed and normally a rainbow person. (Umm; colourful) He will also have at
least one accomplice. There are about 5 variations. There will be either a match
stick or toilet paper stuck in the slot. Your card will either get stuck or
it won't read the pin but in the meantime you will punch it in. Now you will
get distracted by 2 rainbows from both sides. One magician will press cancel
& before you know what is happening, your card will get switched. Another
card will go into the ATM and get retained or swallowed. You will be sleeping
well & be under the impression that the bank will give you your card back
in the morning. Ummm; it's not there. So there will normally be 2 withdrawals
done for the max amount; sometimes 3. One Japanese visitor lost US$2500 in Feb
2002.
Criminals are
inventing ever more ingenious methods of relieving you of your cash.
The previous scam involves thieves putting a thin, clear, rigid plastic 'sleeve'
into the ATM card slot. When you insert your card, the machine can't read the
strip, so it keeps asking you to re-enter your PIN number. Meanwhile, someone
behind you watches as you tap in your number. Eventually you give up, thinking
the machine has swallowed your card and you walk away. The thieves then remove
the plastic sleeve complete with card, and empty your account. The way to avoid
this is to run your finger along the card slot before you put your card in.
The sleeve has a couple of tiny prongs that the thieves need to get the sleeve
out of the slot, and you'll be able to feel them. For skimming
below, you should also grip the slot and see if it comes loose.
The secret
of the rainbow guy's success is that they are fast - you do not get time to
think.
The latest scam is card skimming at ATM's and wherever you swipe your card - http://mybroadband.co.za/news/banking/114873-how-criminals-steal-your-credit-card-info.html
So
what to do:
1.
Always; always draw inside a bank if possible. If not; then in a centre
that has security/guards nearby. NEVER draw on a street and never draw
at the 1st atm near the station or wherever tourists flock to.
2.
Let no-one into your space. Especially not well dressed gentlemen.
If they do, grab your card and back off - go somewhere else. Make sure
you get your card though.
3.
Don't hesitate; if you do you are lost. Scream, yell for the police,
hit a rainbow person if you have to, but then run for the middle of the
road as they work in teams. So; attract attention at all costs. If you
are wrong you can always apologize. But if you get done it takes up 3 days
of your travel (as well as half a day of my time if you come stay with
us!)
4.
Ask about the ATM's at your place of accommodation. Locally it has only
happened to 3 of our guests over the last 7 years (9000 guests) and that
is not bad odds. However, in some places it is much, much higher.
5.
The latest trick is to put a plastic strip in the slot. So run your finger
along the slot when you get to the ATM.
6.
Only take out your card at the last moment, just before using it.
7.
If there was only 1 person in front of you (gangster no 1) and all of a
sudden there are 5 people in the queue you are being set up. They are all
there to distract you. OK - sometimes there are real queues!
8.
Block the sight of the keys when you punch your pin in. If you have a friend
let him watch your back.
9.
Just use common sense like not to draw excessive amounts and then walking
around with it.
10. If you
are paying a huge amount of cash for a tour; think nothing of asking someone
from your accommodation to walk/go with you.
Before
and after you leave home:
1. Decrease
the daily withdrawal limit on your card temporarily. The limit on a card in
SA is between R1000 and R2000 rand and normally you can only take R1000 at a
time from an ATM; but you can use it several times. The limit in your country
is valid. So; if £500 is
your limit bring it down to £100
- this way you can limit your losses if any. Yeah, you owe me big time... So,
bring me some duty free Jack Actually duty free Jack Daniels at Heathrow costs
about double what you can buy it for in SA.
2. Consider travelling
with 2 cards or a debit as well as a credit card. Set it up that you can
transfer to the debit card but not vice versa. Use only the debit card
at ATM's.
3. If you are travelling
like a year or so consider seriously instruct your bank to transfer a set
monthly deposit to your credit or debit card or both. Don't ask your
mum if you have the same type mother as my x-girlfriend. And don't trust
your friends. Sad, but true. This is the only case where I will actually
trust my bank!!!
4. Make sure you
have card protection insurance.
5. Most important,
if you have a dispute, put everything in writing
even
if the credit card company tells you no worries. And get an acknowledgement.
A friend lost US$3000 as the above happened to her.
6. Have a card company
that allows collect calls if possible.
7. Keep the numbers
with you in duplicate places. Memorize if possible.
8. Check your card
charges regularly with online banking so some obscure charge doesn't happen.
Banks Themselves:
Changing Forex
Note that changing
forex at the airports costs you slightly more than listed below
Normal hours Mo - Fr 9h00
to 15h30; Sa 8h30 to 11h00. Foreign exchange at banks are NOT open on Saturdays
as the JSE is closed and the rand is extremely volatile. Rennies, Thomas Cook,
Amex and other bureaux especially at the Airports are open though.
FX exchange charges
vary. Less than 3 years ago the charges were between R15 and R20 per transaction.
Currently they are either R30, R34-20 or R50(ABSA). Charges are calculated
on 2 fronts; 1st you get the bank buy rate, that is about 3% less than
the official rate. This is for fluctuation and is fair. 2ndly you pay either
another commission of av. 1,71% or the minimum charge like stated above.
Either way you will get a minimum of 3% less than the official(middle)
rate for cash and 2,5% less for TC's. If you just want to change US$10
at Absa and the rate is R10,00 for the $; then you should get about (10-
3%) 9,7x$10 -min charge R50= R47....this is making foreigners feel extremely
welcome. Especially if R50- R70 is about what you pay for a dorm night
or equivalent to restaurant prices for a 500g rump steak/7 beers. There
is also no disclosure, no signs stating what the charges are. If you ask
you will be told but I haven't even found forex charges on any of their
own websites.
The big banks are
ABSA, Standard, Nedbank, First National Bank(FNB)
There is anothere particular
reason I don't like banks much. When the Reserve Bank dropped the repo rate
with 1 % some years ago, all banks followed by dropping the rate to the public
with only 1/2 %. Greedy is an apt description.
Also: "SA bank charges may be world’s highest" - as per Consumerfair
Cheques:
No one will accept
a cheque from a foreigner if he can help it. It takes 6 weeks to 3 months
to clear. To open a local cheque account as a foreigner is just about impossible.
You are only successful if you deal with the right person and they seem
to be extinct
Credit card charges:
Banks/ Financial institutions
charge Merchants between 4% and 7,98% per transaction, Nedbank wanted to charge
me 8% + vat, so 9,12%. On top of this there is a monthly fee as well. This is
excessive and is of course carried over to the buyer. In tourism it is standard
that the budget operators add this to the transaction when they charge you.
Please note that this is technically legal if stated on the booking form. With
upmarket operators this cost is of course included. My personal feeling is that
banks in general not only stunt economic growth, but tourism as well.
Travellers Cheques:
You can cash Amex
TC's at FNB at "no commission" aka rate after fluctuation; so at the same
rate as Amex themselves. Please note that all the other banks will charge
you commission to change; and FNB will charge as well for Thomas Cook and
others. So; if you buy any tc's buy Amex.
A small observation;
ATM's are everywhere. If you take my ATM advice to heart you will only
need a bank card. In addition you will not get any interest on your money
spend on tc's. You also have to pay a commission to acquire them &
you lose as well when cashing them. If you add the fact that merchants
are mostly unwilling to accept them tc's lose out big time. I myself can't
except them - there is huge and stringent controls by the Reserve Bank.
Of course I can't cash them at Rennies or Amex as they are not mine.
Lastly; mentioned
elsewhere as well - In certain parts of East Africa you will get charged
up to 25% commission to change TC's.