rileyman Posted November 18, 2020 Share Posted November 18, 2020 I do that with my two cards. Pay the balances before the relevant date - no interest. Link to post Share on other sites
SpecialK Posted November 19, 2020 Share Posted November 19, 2020 On 18/11/2020 at 12:37, KenTownley said: I would also like to know the card you use. One with zero interest on all payments sounds like heaven! We use a Halifax Clarity card. Last time I looked it was one of the best to use for foreign currency transactions. They use the money market rather than tourist conversion rate and do not build a transaction fee into the conversion rate. For those increasingly rare times we need cash, I also use it for getting money out of the hole in the wall when we are away. Using a credit card for cash goes against all we have been told over the years, but if you pay it off as soon as the bill arrives it is cheaper than using a debit card with their various fees or one of the travel money shops. Other than getting a new card, a MasterCard will give a better conversion rate than Visa. Link to post Share on other sites
David Williams Posted November 19, 2020 Share Posted November 19, 2020 (edited) 1 hour ago, SpecialK said: We use a Halifax Clarity card. Definitely the best generally available free credit card for worldwide use. There are a number of options for European or worldwide free debit card use, I find Starling the best and if you really want a clone of the BF card you can link a Euro account to that as well ( however the Euro account does cost 0.4% at time of currency conversion, the standard sterling account just uses money market rates at time of spending it. Note we are currently fortunate in the UK. My Britine French account costs a Euro a month to run and if I want a debit card it would cost extra to obtain and use. Edited November 19, 2020 by David Williams Link to post Share on other sites
wortley Posted November 19, 2020 Share Posted November 19, 2020 (edited) Halifax Clarity even worked faultlessly in Luang Prabang, and the ATM spewed out more than a million Kip for £100 sterling - but I found later that the local market traders preferred payment in Thai baht. All that after the immigration officer at the airport had requested I pay the entry fee in US dollars. Edited November 19, 2020 by wortley Link to post Share on other sites
Paully Posted November 19, 2020 Share Posted November 19, 2020 Whilst there is no doubt that Clarity and other such cards are great for use round Europe. We still have the old Santander zero card, which is very good. But the reason we took out a Fair FX type card was it in effect allows you to buy ahead, or hedge, your holiday currency. During the year when the exchange rate is favourable we buy. When we actually go away it may have collapsed (it does frequently) and no matter how good your CC is, it still won`t give you as much bang for your bucks.. Doesnt suit everyone of course, but it does us. Link to post Share on other sites
Penlan Posted November 25, 2020 Share Posted November 25, 2020 The card has just gone live again - so the email said anyway. Rhys Link to post Share on other sites
straightfeed Posted November 26, 2020 Share Posted November 26, 2020 On 10/07/2020 at 10:30, Millsy said: There are no value products from Nationwide any longer I think. Their deposit rates are derisory and over the years they have removed virtually every advantage from their cards. £156 for breakdown and travel insurance with additional health screening for pre-existing conditions? You're paying for that and they are getting commission too... Trying to get away from "travel insurance" and looking to get "medical cover" only in France for up to 5 trips a year. Does anyone do such a thing? I really don't want to get coverage for loosing a £13 mobile phone or losing my luggage in transit (its in the car!) and as far as cancellation delays- I just take the next available ferry! Simple medical insurance cover doesn't seem to exist. I want a "get me better policy with a "ship me back in a box" as an extra benefit! I also dont want a long conditions/omissions/restrictions pile of bumf to read. Toddle pip, Now wash your hands. Link to post Share on other sites
KenTownley Posted December 1, 2020 Share Posted December 1, 2020 Many thanks for the posts. Very helpful.👍 Link to post Share on other sites
KenTownley Posted February 6 Share Posted February 6 Can anyone tell me the latest situation regarding the card. The option has disappeared from the Property Owners section of the website, which I fear bodes ill for card holders. Link to post Share on other sites
David Williams Posted February 6 Share Posted February 6 A bit of googling shows that the BF pages are still there https://eurocard.brittany-ferries.co.uk/bf However Wirebank UK was meant to be wound down last year and the card services transferred to Railsbank by now, that does not seem to have happened. Note that any cash in the account is not protected. Link to post Share on other sites
Paully Posted February 6 Share Posted February 6 19 minutes ago, David Williams said: A bit of googling shows that the BF pages are still there https://eurocard.brittany-ferries.co.uk/bf However Wirebank UK was meant to be wound down last year and the card services transferred to Railsbank by now, that does not seem to have happened. Note that any cash in the account is not protected. The FCA acted with speed and froze Wirecard UK `s accounts straight away. Turns out that unlike the German fiasco the UK money was contained within ` ring fenced` accounts held at Barclays. They are now subject to surveillance by the FCA. Link to post Share on other sites
KenTownley Posted February 6 Share Posted February 6 The FCA acted with speed and froze Wirecard UK `s accounts straight away. Turns out that unlike the German fiasco the UK money was contained within ` ring fenced` accounts held at Barclays. They are now subject to surveillance by the FCA. So the money that I have on the card should still be available when I return to France, hopefully in September this year...? Link to post Share on other sites
mjturner Posted February 6 Share Posted February 6 It is still available as I paid a deposit before Christmas for a booking in France for this Summer which went through OK. I am the eternal optimist! Link to post Share on other sites
KenTownley Posted February 6 Share Posted February 6 Optimism has never been my strong suit...! Link to post Share on other sites
Penlan Posted February 6 Share Posted February 6 I just paid my EDF bill with my BF card. Rhys Link to post Share on other sites
David Williams Posted February 6 Share Posted February 6 It should all have moved over to Railsbank by now. https://www.wirecard-cardsolutions.co.uk Link to post Share on other sites
mjturner Posted February 26 Share Posted February 26 Received email to say that they are closing the scheme down and to withdraw the funds before 30th April 2021 at market rate. Will have to find an alternative now which can be preloaded when rates are good, any ideas? Link to post Share on other sites
David Williams Posted February 26 Share Posted February 26 (edited) 30 minutes ago, mjturner said: Received email to say that they are closing the scheme down and to withdraw the funds before 30th April 2021 at market rate. Will have to find an alternative now which can be preloaded when rates are good, any ideas? If it is Euros, I would recommend a Starling bank account with Linked Euro account. Withdrawals are free and it is only one tap to switch the debit cards between the Sterling and Euro accounts. It is also fully protected. ps, however it is all smartphone based. Edited February 26 by David Williams Link to post Share on other sites
wortley Posted February 27 Share Posted February 27 23 hours ago, mjturner said: Received email to say that they are closing the scheme down and to withdraw the funds before 30th April 2021 at market rate. Will have to find an alternative now which can be preloaded when rates are good, any ideas? Who sent the e mail please? Brittany Ferries or Railsbank or some other authority? Has Brittany Ferries made any public statement or put anything on their website? Link to post Share on other sites
DAB Posted February 27 Share Posted February 27 23 hours ago, mjturner said: Received email to say that they are closing the scheme down and to withdraw the funds before 30th April 2021 at market rate. Will have to find an alternative now which can be preloaded when rates are good, any ideas? I have received this email and when I go into the site to try to look at my account it says "To retrieve your balance or if you require any information about your transactions, please contact the customer services team at Brittany.ferries@exelaonline.com whilst essential maintenance is being carried out to ensure the security of your account. " So they are not making it easy to find out balance details or a statement. Also at the moment in London all of my nearest Euro cashpoint machines are closed to withdraw the cash in euros, due I suppose to Covid travel restrictions causing the cash machine owners to not refill the machines. Link to post Share on other sites
The Ferry Man Posted February 27 Author Share Posted February 27 2 hours ago, wortley said: Who sent the e mail please? Brittany Ferries or Railsbank or some other authority? Has Brittany Ferries made any public statement or put anything on their website? Email was from tuxedomoney at cmp.dotmailer.co.uk ??? Have emailed the exel email address to try and see what my balance is. Should only be a couple of Euros Link to post Share on other sites
KenTownley Posted March 5 Share Posted March 5 (edited) tuxedomoney at cmp.dotmailer.co.uk I have received the same email. They state that they will refund the card's balance to my bank account. Trouble is they ask for bank details. I am not prepared to put these in an open email. I have asked Tuxedo Money for a phone number to discuss but no reply so far. But...Tuxedo Money? ...Really? That sounds very dodgy to me. Any ideas, fellow Enthusiasts? Edited March 5 by KenTownley spelling Link to post Share on other sites
Trun Posted March 5 Share Posted March 5 38 minutes ago, KenTownley said: tuxedomoney at cmp.dotmailer.co.uk I have received the same email. They state that they will refund the card's balance to my bank account. Trouble is they ask for bank details. I am not prepared to put these in an open email. I have asked Tuxedo Money for a phone number to discuss but no reply so far. But...Tuxedo Money? ...Really? That sounds very dodgy to me. Any ideas, fellow Enthusiasts? A sensible precaution. Surely when the card was set up there was a nominated feeder account from which money would be sent / credited back, and these details would be held securely by the card issuer. This does sound like a scam. Link to post Share on other sites
Cabin-boy Posted March 5 Share Posted March 5 It does sound like a scam and presumably not one that BF want their name associated with. Why not email them asking for the bank details they believe to be correct and which you can then confirm? Ed Link to post Share on other sites
wortley Posted March 5 Share Posted March 5 Do these cards not allow you to withdraw funds from ATMs - whether you are in UK or in EU . Or have these cards died completely? Is Brittany Ferries doing nothing to help? Link to post Share on other sites
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