eyeballer

This happens in the US too, gas stations are a prime example. Of course no card will reimburse those fees since it's bundled into the price you pay.

Diplomatico

Could also refer to places in other countries that employ Dynamic Currency Conversion on card transactions. Schwab is not going to reimburse costs associated with DCC.

tmiw

It would definitely be nice if they did, though it's probably better long term to get rid of the practice altogether (or at least punish merchants that don't at least offer customers the choice).

kayanco

I called Schwab, and specifically asked if there's a fee charged for balance inquiry, the rep (confidently) said they would reimburse that. Even for international.

He said this would happen automatically, but if it didn't, you could call them and they would do it. He also claimed that they were very good at reimbursing fees.

btw, does the Google doc need to be updated?
For TD bank it says they won't reimburse international ATM fee ... but I'm hearing that they do.

tmiw

Re: Schwab, that may have changed from since I first got the account. I can only mention my personal experience on fees for balance inquiries. Maybe some more data points are necessary to confirm?

kayanco

Funny update on TD Bank:

I called to ask if they reimburse the ATM fee charged by other institution (for Premier checking), rep said:
We reimburse our fee, but NOT other institution.

I said okay, and was about to hang up, but then I asked where can I read this on your website. The rep said, sure, here's the link.

I read it out loud on the phone:
"The institution that owns the terminal (or network) may assess
a fee (surcharge) at the time of your transaction, including balance
inquiries. You are reimbursed for this surcharge fee if you maintain your
$2,500 minimum daily balance."

So the rep was surprised! And said maybe the document wasn't updated. I requested to check, rep put me on hold, then came back and said, document is correct

For comparison, Schwab document says:
"Unlimited ATM fee rebates apply to cash withdrawals using your debit card wherever it is accepted. ATM fee rebates do not apply to any fees other than those assessed for using an ATM to withdraw cash from your Schwab Bank account"
(https://www.schwab.com/public/file/P...LS77378-01.pdf)

From these two readings, it sounds like TD bank would reimburse balance inquiry surcharge, but Schwab won't.
Although the Schwab rep said they would. Here's what the rep said about balance inquiry:

"It's a different type of fee with a different type of reimbursement, but yes. You can think of it this way - any fees you're charged by another bank when using your card will be reimbursed at the end of the month"

kayanco

Fully agree, would be nice to know if someone got or didn't get reimbursement for fee charged on balance inquiry.

TObject

I researched this about a year ago, and settled on a combination of Schwab Debit Card for ATM use, and FirstTech Credit Union chip-and-pin MasterCard for purchases. I have been very happy with this combination. Both institutions allow for on-line travel notices; and worked well for me so far.

Note that Schwab requires a brokerage account in addition to the checking account.

Sometimes there are offers floating around for opening the brokerage account; for example, I got $100 for depositing $1000. So, make sure to check what the current offers are. Also, I was told that, with Schwab, the checking account is automatically overdraft-protected by the brokerage account.

HTH

Dovster

Strictly speaking, I don't have a Schwab bank account. I do have a Schwab brokerage account and I get both the Visa Debit card and checks at no charge. I use the Schwab card for ATMs outside of Israel and my BoA Visa Travel Rewards card for purchases. Neither has forex charges but the Travel Rewards card also give me 1.6% back.

kayanco

Btw, Schwab told me that they need notice even for other states within the US.

kayanco

On Capital one:

360 Checking:
"We won’t charge you for using a non-Capital One-branded ATM to complete any transaction. However, you may be subject to other fees from the ATM owner"
https://www.capitalone.com/assets/ba...ecking-pew.pdf

High Yield Checking:
"We will not charge you for using a non-Capital One Bank-branded ATM to complete any transaction.
Plus, fees assessed at any ATM within the U.S. and at some ATMs located outside the U.S. will be reimbursed within five business days, and up to $15 per statement period."
https://www.capitalone.com/media/doc...-yield-pew.pdf

TObject

I tried to withdraw a small amount from an ATM in Aruba this year, without travel notice, just to see what happens. And the transaction went through fine.

But I do give travel notice every time I actually anticipate using the card abroad.

kayanco

That's now a bit confusing. Looks like Schwab gives debit card and checks for brokerage account (if you don't have a checking account with them). So then what's the use of opening a checking account with them??

Or in other words, what additional benefit/features do you get with a Schwab checking account (other than the interest rate)?

TObject

One benefit you get is no minimum deposit requirement, which I believe is $1000 if you have a brokerage account only (can also be waved with $100 minimum monthly qualified direct deposit).

But compare fee schedules for both cards, they are not necessarily the same.

Dovster

I have absolutely no idea. Perhaps a bank checking account comes with a credit card as opposed to a debit card but seeing as I always pay my credit card bills as soon as they become due and never wind up paying any interest, the matter is mostly theoretical for me.