Wells Fargo foreign ATM alert
 

I have been travelling a lot over the last couple 2 months and have Wells Fargo ATM card. It has worked all over the place in the past, but in the last 2 months I tried using my ATM card in Korea, Spain, and the UK with no success. The card works fine when I am in the US and as a credit card. I called Wells Fargo customer service today and asked if I was doing something wrong. Their answer was that the card was fine, but that there was something wrong with the network. That they were aware there were issues with withdrawing from foreign ATMs. I asked when it would be fixed and they said they had no timeframe. Of course they didnt tell anyone this.

So another friend tried and was unsuccessful as well, but his Citibank did work. I was wondering:

Has anyone been successful in using a Wells Fargo ATM card in a Foreign location and if so where?

Dont you think Wells Fargo should notify customer when they are having problems with the international ATM network, especially since they emphasize how using an ATM in another country is better than taking travellers cheques.

sambwani,

Welcome to Flyertalk. As your posting is not specifically about "Miles or Points", I'll move it to a more general travel forum.

A few weeks ago I had the same problem, but intermittently, in London. I'm about to go to Melbourne and will report on whether it happens again there.

Thanks for the heads-up! I'll bring more USD cash.

Though it's been a while since I've tried, I've never had problems with my Wells Fargo ATM card in Canada or Europe. That said, however, I won't be using it overseas anymore, what with the $5 withdrawal fee that is now tacked onto non-US ATM withdrawals.

Mike

How long is your PIN? Some non-US ATM networks don't work if it's more than four digits.

I have heard the same thing. Oh, yes, my comment is more general in nature for withdrawing money in overseas ATMs. The alphabet in other countries is not like ours. Because I can remember in which sequence I punch the pad (the number affixed to my alpha passcode). UNTIL I GOT BRAZIL! The ATMs there have the keypad go ACROSS in a line -- they don't do the normal US keypads! And the instructions were in Portguese -- I couldn't see an English option.

What I do now is order my foreign currnency on wellsfargo.com. I get the money the next day and there's an $8 service charge. I order all the currency upfront rather being gouched by the overseas ATM charge, WF's ATM charge and then, I think, 3% for privilege being able to withdraw money from an overseas ATM. I don't paying a fee -- people need to make money -- but I resent being gouched.

David

What kind of exchange rate are you getting from Wells Fargo? They may be gouging you on that as well!

Getting cash with foreign cards is difficult in Korea--most local ATMs won't take your card. You have to find the ones that bear the MC/Visa logo. They are available in airports, and pretty plentiful in Seoul, but it can be pretty tricky in small towns.

Generally, you shouldn't use a Wells Frago card abroad--the fee is $3, and they charge 2% for foreign exchange. There are much better cards out there.

You are losing big time on Wells Fargo's exchange rate. Though not the safest in some countries, you will always get the best exchange by taking nice clean 100USD bills and exchanging them yourself in the country you are visiting.
My first trips overseas, I too ordered currency from WF. After my first trip, I realized how naive I was, and now take 2 ATM cards, WF and my CU, and 1000-2000 in cash. I charge all I can, unless the merchant wants to surcharge CC's like many in Asia do, and use cash for the rest.
BTW, WF charges a 5.00 fee when using a foreign ATM. There is no % fee on top of that. There is a % fee now in the conversion rate on a charged purchase.
Terry

While it's important to have cash as a backup, credit and ATM cards are the best way to go, as long as you are using the right credit and ATM cards. See the FlyerTalk wiki for more detailed info on the pros/cons of various cards.

Don't bother with WF abroad. Totally not worth it. Find a no fee card that refunds transaction fees (Like Merrill+).

Wellsfargo Debit/ATM card Sucks!!! I used my Wellsfargo card at the countries I visited below last year. Some places worked and some places did not work. I hate Wellsfargo, they charge you $5 everytime you pop your card into ATM machine. I am still looking for alternative bank. Call Wellsfargo so they know you are oversea using the card. Sometimes they block you from using it.

Check the back of your Wellsfargo ATM card and make sure ATM machine has the same logo things (Pulse, Star, PLUS, etc....) as back of your ATM card.

My experience with WF atm card:

1. UK - worked sometimes, did not work in Scotland
2. Ukraine - worked
3. Italy - worked
4. Czech Republic - didn't work
5. Hungary - didn't work
6. Germany (Frankfurt airport) - worked
7. Brazil - worked in some ATM
8. Uruguay - sometimes
9. Argentina - worked sometimes

Hello FTers,

My method might not be for everyone. When I buy overseas money, I know someone has to make money. I try to limit how much money they make.

1. Hotels rates are horrible. Banks are -- from what I've been told in all travel magazines -- better.

2 WF charges $5 for each ATM use. Fine, then I order all money at once for $8 rather than $5 each time for each country.

3. Those money changing carts have high fees. So I avoid them.

Taking into account the above situations, I think ordering foreign currency online at WF.com is OK with me.

Also, someone mentioned that WF's rate are horrible. Well, I haven't compared. And I don't have time to see how much I'm losing. What would be anyway: lose $5 for each $100? 20 cents per $100? As a generalization, I don't have the time to shop and compare. It sort of reminds of me of a friend who drives 15 miles to get to a gas station that's 5 cents a gallon cheaper. So, what did save $1 for a tank of gas?

I have no idea how WF's foreign exchanges compare to the above. But, let's face it folks, you can't get something for nothing.

My way of buying foreign currency may not be for everyone, but it works for me. And I'm willing to listen to what other's are doing and perhaps I will adapt their way.

David

Ah, but you can. Many banks offer ATM cards that charge NOTHING for withdrawals overseas. And in fact, many will even rebate the ATM fees charged by the ATM owners (although those fees are rare outside the US). See the wiki linked from post #10 above for a list of such cards, as well as the forex fees charged by credit cards.

I use my CapitalOne Cash Rewards Visa (interbank rate, 1% cash back) whenever it's possible to charge something without incurring additional fees.

I use my Commerce Bank (of NY/NJ) ATM card to withdraw cash from fee-free ATMs overseas (interbank rate, but no rebate of ATM owner fee), and my Umbrellabank.com ATM card to withdraw cash from ATMs with fees overseas (interbank rate + 1% fee, but rebate of ATM owner fee).

And I carry a couple hundred bucks in greenbacks just in case I can't find an ATM and get stuck with the hotel concierge or a bank. But that rarely happens.

If you have a "total relationship value" of $25,000 or more with Wells Fargo, you can get a "Portfolio Management Account" ("PMA") for no monthly charge. The PMA has all kinds of benefits, including no fees for withdrawals from non-Wells ATMs or for travelers' cheques. The total relationship value includes savings and checking accounts, credit card and home equity line balances, investment account balances, and (oddly) 10% of mortgage balances. In particular, if you have an IRA of more than $25,000 held by the investment side of Wells, you qualify for a PMA and all kinds of benefits. I moved my IRA, which I manage myself anyway, to Wells just to get a PMA. The transaction fees for a self-managed online account are competitive, so why not?

Disclosure: I don't work for Wells Fargo, though I own a few shares of WFB stock.