Is this DCC?
 

On Jet Airways website buying ticket SIN-BOM with AMEX:

It certainly looks like DCC in this case based on the wording. AmEx doesn't support DCC, so even if they give pricing information in USD, the charge will go through in INR. The fact that they mention Visa/MC don't have to worry about this indicates that if you use a Visa or MC you will be hit with DCC. It's impossible to know what the markup is without a comparison.

Perhaps others can help out here, but I don't think it's a case where the transaction is happening in the US but the acquirer is overseas. In that case I believe AmEx wouldn't do a conversion either since the native currency for the transaction would be USD. (However, some banks still nick you with a FTF even though the transaction never leaves the US because of the foreign acquirer. This doesn't matter if you have a 0% FTF card though.)

Amex = no DCC.

As simple as it is..

Sure, but the question is whether or not Jet Airways is trying to force DCC if you use a Visa/MC to book on its website. The language certainly seems to indicate that it's happening unless you use an AmEx, which implies that the native currency for the transaction is INR and is being dynamically converted to USD if you use a Visa or MC.

Air New Zealand's NZ website has DCC functions and you can opt out pretty simply. The full fare economy for 2 from Queenstown to Auckland is 466 NZD which is roughly 366 USD, and NZ's DCC quote in USD is in the amount of 376.

The currency choosing process is easy as press 1-2-3.

Living in Australia with CSP is so easy and DCC free. No forced DCC so far, and for over 100 swipes, only two came up with DCC options and you just hit CLEAR to avoid that. Having to sign almost every time is a little bothersome in Australian standard because people here just pin in, and merchants sometimes don't have a pen for me to sign.

Vending machines don't work so far with either US card I have. I'm gonna try my Amex Plat today with a vending machine to see whether that'll work.

Couldn't they still do something akin to DCC if they also have an acquirer in your country?

For example, a company has websites in the US and Canada, and you use a US-issued card to buy something on the Canadian site priced in CAD. Upon realizing that you are using a US card, they convert the price to USD and have their US acquirer charge you. This isn't strictly DCC, because each merchant is billing in their own currency. Does Amex ban this as well? If not, it may be what some of these airlines are doing.

The only case I've seen of this is where transactions never leave the US but are still counted as "foreign". There is no DCC markup in this case as the transaction is priced in USD.

What you're describing is probably technically possible, but I wonder if there aren't fair pricing laws or payment network regulations that might come into play in that case? That is to say, I don't know if they can add an arbitrary markup to the USD price in the scenario you're describing.

Back from Malaysia just now.

Experienced DCC at most stores and restaurants, could opt-out always, but the sheer fact that default is the CC's native currency (and not Malay currency) sucks. I have a card which is (almost) always forcing PIN, so I get the terminal handed to me - I can imagine if you've a signature card like many US-cards still are, and they do the "currency choice" for you, many will fall for it. DCC is annoying, and in my eyes it shouldn't be allowed to be set as the default choice ever. Even if you can opt out of it, it's just a scam.

Also, ZRH Airport Duty Free now apparently is actively trying to scam customers, not passively as before. When the customers in front of me this morning didn't know what to press, the scammer told them to press their own currency for "better rate". Very bad move ZRH :mad::td:

Did you tell the cashier off?

I'm usually doing this (if I see DCC being happening and I get a reasonable chance to help the people from being scamed) but in this case, I was simply too tired to actually have my body reacting on it (or the scammed guy was too fast of pressing it) - plus I guess that staff wasn't really understanding what she was doing (her ability to speak the local language and english too, imho, is rather limited from my experience at ZRH duty free (almost all employees are foreigners of some kind, it's low-paid jobs you'll barely find any swiss to do them)

I hope at ZRH there's the ability to opt out for those that know about the DCC scam? I would think that in Switzerland people tend to follow the rules, and it's not like some other countries where the cashiers will willfully disregard the currency choice.

Yes, it's possible to opt out. Basically, 95% of the screen will be filled with one button (DCC) where you've your own (foreign) flag, your currency with the scam amount in HUGE letters, and all kind of "hints" that you should chose to get scammed or else.. oh yeah, and then there is very tiny button on the side which says "CHF" in very small print. Unfortunately I can't show you a picture of it as you will understand, but it's probably "conform" with DCC rules, but it's a very terrible way to scam tourists coming to my country. If I'd be in charge, I would have the guys responsible for the DCC scam and it's introduction (at least on the "please press the big button to get "best rate") fired on the spot. Unfortunately, banks here are a disease like in most other countries.

I'm familiar with this design, and I've seen it in airport shops before. The entire setup is setup to trick you into accepting DCC. Most people don't even stop to think why the price is showing up in USD/GBP/EUR in a country that uses CHF. Immediately the price is familiar to them appears and makes reasonable sense.

It's probably not really compliant because of the emphasis given to steering the customer toward accepting DCC, but the payment networks have shown no interest in enforcing their own policies.

Perhaps I'm coming from a place where generally you do not expect help from strangers (up north you might even get into trouble for helping a stranger) but I find we don't stop strangers falling into tourist traps.

Even my attempt to prevent oreck's DCC transaction wasn't universally well received. I will try and advise if I have some proximity to the guy, but under many circumstances I'm really minding my own business.

Just got back from my 4 day stay in London and Dublin earlier this week and the DCC horror was much less than I thought it would be.

Was only in London for one day, didn't present the card at the hotel since it was a prepaid stay they said they didn't even need an authorization.

Only used my card twice in London, at a tube ticket booth and at five guys burgers in covent garden. Both times I stuck my card into the handheld reader, then a few seconds later the clerk presented me a recept to sign that had the charge in pounds. Easy and no fuss.

Then 3 days in Dublin and I only saw DCC a few times. First was at a Bank of Ireland atm at the airport but it was easy to avoid. I had two buttons I could press, one to debit my account by 20 Euro and the other to debit by about 25 dollars. All I had to do was press the button next to the Euro denomination.

Then at the hotel when taking my card the hotel clerk handed me the keypad and said press yes if I want to pay in US dollars, press no for Euros. Was easy there as well. The two other places where I encountered DCC was at a gift shop and the zoo and both of those played out the same way with the clerk handing me a keypad and saying to press one button for dollars, the other for euros, and didn't seem to care one bit what choice I made. All the others, supermacs fast food, Nandos restaurant, guiness storehouse, all only charged in Euros and at first when I handed over my card for lunch at supermacs and said to charge in Euros the clerk gave me a confused look until the person next to them said that their terminals don't have that capability and only charge Euros, so after that I never bothered to mention charging in euros. Most of the places just charged in Euros anyway.

I really did have thoughts based on reading this thread that I would have to argue with clerks about why I only would pay in Euros or Pounds but none of them honestly looked like they cared which choice I made so I reckon you all are talking it up worse than it is haha, which made sense if you think about it. If you are an hourly employee at a restaurant or shop, hotel, etc and get paid the same no matter which choice the customer makes why would you care? Just tell the customer press this button for your native currency, this other one for Euros. I imagine it is only when you shop at a small non chain store where the person operating the register is the owner or otherwise someone who would directly benefit by using a ripoff exchange rate where you would get arguments and deceiving instructions.

DCC was much less a problem than I thought it would be which was very pleasant.