Dynamic Currency Conversion (DCC)
#481
Ambassador, Hong Kong and Macau
Join Date: May 2009
Location: HKG
Programs: Non-top tier Asia Miles member
Posts: 19,807
This is a merchant get-out - I had Harrods charge me £50 in HKG and then refund me £50 in HKD while trying to fix it DCC at Harrods - unable to void transaction in home currency
Don't accept. Chargeback once merchant confirms void not possible.
I know that's not what you want to say, but a void button is not mandatory on Visa terminals.
Don't accept. Chargeback once merchant confirms void not possible.
I know that's not what you want to say, but a void button is not mandatory on Visa terminals.
#482
Original Poster
Join Date: Jul 2009
Location: SJC
Programs: AA, AS, Marriott
Posts: 6,068
I found that restaurants and taxis (combining data points from trips to Vancouver in June 2017, November 2017, and most recently September 2018) don't like contactless payments. I've been told the reason is because a tap will bypass the opportunity to enter a gratuity, which did happen one time in a taxi during the June 2017 trip, but I haven't found this to be universal. However, on this trip, every offer to pay via tap at a sit down restaurant (and the above taxi ride) was rejected. I saw no DCC in Victoria in June 2018 with Mrs. Majuki, but we didn't have too many non-tap card transactions (only the Empress Hotel, Butchart Gardens, and Hertz) to compare.
#483
Join Date: Jul 2012
Location: Canada
Programs: BA Gold (OWE), Star Alliance Gold, Hilton Diamond
Posts: 2,194
I found that restaurants and taxis (combining data points from trips to Vancouver in June 2017, November 2017, and most recently September 2018) don't like contactless payments. I've been told the reason is because a tap will bypass the opportunity to enter a gratuity, which did happen one time in a taxi during the June 2017 trip, but I haven't found this to be universal. However, on this trip, every offer to pay via tap at a sit down restaurant (and the above taxi ride) was rejected. I saw no DCC in Victoria in June 2018 with Mrs. Majuki, but we didn't have too many non-tap card transactions (only the Empress Hotel, Butchart Gardens, and Hertz) to compare.
#484
Join Date: May 2017
Posts: 2,017
This is a merchant get-out - I had Harrods charge me £50 in HKG and then refund me £50 in HKD while trying to fix it DCC at Harrods - unable to void transaction in home currency
Don't accept. Chargeback once merchant confirms void not possible.
Don't accept. Chargeback once merchant confirms void not possible.
If the merchant charges £50 in HKD, refunds £50 in HKD and then charges £50 in GBP, then an extra £50 is locked on your card until the refund is posted to your card. This could be a problem if it happens a lot and for large amounts.
#485
Join Date: Sep 2013
Location: East Coast, USA
Posts: 1,032
I think I have been DCC'd on an Advanced Purchase at a Hilton-family property in EU. From my credit card statement, it's not clear if I had indeed been DCC'd or just have a crummy exchange rate. Of course, you have no choice given and the only recourse maybe to dispute the charge, but I sort of anticipated this, and the damage is minimal (likely $6, I won't bother). Lesson learned though, use AMEX if this is an option even for an advanced purchase.
#486
Ambassador, Hong Kong and Macau
Join Date: May 2009
Location: HKG
Programs: Non-top tier Asia Miles member
Posts: 19,807
I don't know how many front-line staff are aware what they've done the customer and are empowered to offer cash comp like that.
#487
Ambassador, Hong Kong and Macau
Join Date: May 2009
Location: HKG
Programs: Non-top tier Asia Miles member
Posts: 19,807
I think I have been DCC'd on an Advanced Purchase at a Hilton-family property in EU. From my credit card statement, it's not clear if I had indeed been DCC'd or just have a crummy exchange rate. Of course, you have no choice given and the only recourse maybe to dispute the charge, but I sort of anticipated this, and the damage is minimal (likely $6, I won't bother). Lesson learned though, use AMEX if this is an option even for an advanced purchase.
More likely to be simple DCC than the more underhanded Multi-Currency Charging
Suggest if within 120 days of charging, you stay in the hotel as booked, then chargeback the wrong currency charging (making it clear you're only disputing the currency conversion alone, you are willing to pay the EUR amount)
#488
Moderator: Lufthansa Miles & More, India based airlines, India, External Miles & Points Resources
Join Date: Dec 2002
Location: MUC
Programs: LH SEN
Posts: 48,193
Recently I was checking out from the Renaissance in AMS using the app and it asked me if would like to pay in USD instead of EUR... with some blabla about how convinient it is.
#489
Join Date: Feb 2018
Posts: 182
Wanted to add some datapoints from my latest trip to Europe, using a mix of chip and sig, contactless, chip and pin.
Hotels were prepaid and not chains, so no chance to see DCC in action at checkout.
London - No DCC encountered, all charges in GBP without asking.
Eurostar to Paris was interesting, prices for onboard refreshments were offered in both GBP and EUR, with an insane markup on EUR (something like 1.5x to 1.75x the GBP price), but no DCC beyond that.
Paris - Only one instance of DCC in a high end fashion brand shop. Choice was offered on the pin pad and respected, but nearly a 4% markup on FX if accepted.
Spain - DCC is rampant as expected. All restaurants and most shops offered it. When I used my Chip and PIN Target Redcard Mastercard, the currency choice was after the PIN prompt. Markup was generally between 3-4% if accepted.
At the restaurants, I always told the waiters to charge in EUR, and the choice was respected. No BS.
Same with the shops, offered on the pin pad and choice respected.
At El Corte Ingles, using Samsung Pay NFC bypassed DCC, but DCC on regular cards was not forced.
Oddly the Barcelona metro and Renfe also offered DCC, first time seeing it in a mass transit system.
Overall, not as bad as I was expecting after reading the threads here.
Hotels were prepaid and not chains, so no chance to see DCC in action at checkout.
London - No DCC encountered, all charges in GBP without asking.
Eurostar to Paris was interesting, prices for onboard refreshments were offered in both GBP and EUR, with an insane markup on EUR (something like 1.5x to 1.75x the GBP price), but no DCC beyond that.
Paris - Only one instance of DCC in a high end fashion brand shop. Choice was offered on the pin pad and respected, but nearly a 4% markup on FX if accepted.
Spain - DCC is rampant as expected. All restaurants and most shops offered it. When I used my Chip and PIN Target Redcard Mastercard, the currency choice was after the PIN prompt. Markup was generally between 3-4% if accepted.
At the restaurants, I always told the waiters to charge in EUR, and the choice was respected. No BS.
Same with the shops, offered on the pin pad and choice respected.
At El Corte Ingles, using Samsung Pay NFC bypassed DCC, but DCC on regular cards was not forced.
Oddly the Barcelona metro and Renfe also offered DCC, first time seeing it in a mass transit system.
Overall, not as bad as I was expecting after reading the threads here.
#490
Original Poster
Join Date: Jul 2009
Location: SJC
Programs: AA, AS, Marriott
Posts: 6,068
Yes, that changed sometime in the last few years. It wasn't the case 3-4 years ago.
#491
Join Date: May 2017
Posts: 2,017
Please always request a chargeback. $6 isn't a lot, but the merchant is hit with a high chargeback handling fee (paid to the banks/card companies as compensation for the time they need to spend on this). If shops have to pay this fee a lot, then they'll maybe stop using DCC.AMEX has a higher exchange rate markup than most other cards (if paying in foreign currency), so it's better to use some other card.
#492
FlyerTalk Evangelist
Join Date: Jan 2014
Location: San Diego, CA
Programs: GE, Marriott Platinum
Posts: 15,508
#493
Ambassador, Hong Kong and Macau
Join Date: May 2009
Location: HKG
Programs: Non-top tier Asia Miles member
Posts: 19,807
Using Amex means suffering cherry picking exchange rates tho https://www.hongkongcard.com/forumSE/show/17994
#494
Original Poster
Join Date: Jul 2009
Location: SJC
Programs: AA, AS, Marriott
Posts: 6,068
#495
Join Date: Feb 2001
Programs: IHG Diamond, HH Diamond, BW Diamond Select, Accor Silver, Marriott Gold
Posts: 4,228
Using Amex means suffering cherry picking exchange rates tho https://www.hongkongcard.com/forumSE/show/17994
The rate AEEML uses is no more than the highest official rate published by a government agency or the highest interbank rate AEEML identifies from customary banking sources on the conversion date or the prior business day.
The exchange rate we use will be:
• the rate required by law or customarily used in the territory where the transaction or refund is made, or where this doesn't apply;
• based on interbank rates selected from customary industry sources on the business day prior to the processing date. We call this conversion rate the 'American Express Exchange Rate'.
• the rate required by law or customarily used in the territory where the transaction or refund is made, or where this doesn't apply;
• based on interbank rates selected from customary industry sources on the business day prior to the processing date. We call this conversion rate the 'American Express Exchange Rate'.
Last edited by Kremmen; Oct 11, 2018 at 2:27 am Reason: ETA UK T&C