Should I pay in sterling or euro for flights to Ireland

Brendan Burgess

Brendan Burgess

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I was booking a flight from the UK to Ireland and the price all along was in sterling until I went to charge it to my credit card. At that stage, I got the following message, with the default option in euro.

Authorise Payment
I choose to pay in my own currency - Euro (EUR) This transaction is based on the Reuter's wholesale exchange rate plus 3.75 percent standard international conversion margin. Cardholder choice is final.

I choose to pay in Pounds Sterling (GBP) Cardholder accepts that exchange rate used will not be determined until a later date and without further consultation. Cardholder choice is final.


I suspect that I am better off paying in sterling and that Visa card will give me a better deal. Anyone know?

The options were £18 or €24.84

Brendan
 
I went to Bambridge a couple of months ago. The conversion was better for the items I used my Mastercard for (worked out at approx .73 as far as I remember). The cash price was .60 odd (can't remember actual price).
 
I too suspect that you will probably be better off with the VISA rate. In other circumstances (e.g. some hotels etc.) the option to pay in € rather than the local non € currency is a recipe for the payee to cream it in excessive forex margins. Who was selling the flights and what forex margin applies on your card (usually it's c. 1.65% to 2.65%)?
 
Yes - you should always opt to pay in the currency the goods/service is originally quoted in.. otherwise you'll lose as Clubman points out .. While you have the "convenience" of it being charged in your credit card's billing currency you will always get a worse forex rate in transactions like this.

As above Aer Lingus are basically creaming a 3.75% forex margin on the transaction - which is probalby at least 1% more than your € credit card would charge as a margin - so you'll lose out.

More information on this practice known as "Dynamic Currency Conversion" here - http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dynamic_currency_conversion

As far as I know the bottom line is
- A retailer may offer you this choice to pay in your home currency, but they cannot force you to take it - to do so is a violation of their merchant agreement with Visa / Mastercard and you should complain if they try this (I always do)
- Invariably you will be better off refusing tjhis choice - you'll normally lose out by agreeing to it and you certainly won't be any better off
 
Xe.com quotes 18.00 GBP = 23.86 EUR (at today's mid-market rates), which would seem to confirm what everyone is saying here.

Sure for that kind of money, you could get the train [broken link removed] to Limerick! ;)
 
In my experience, one should always pay in the local currency and let the credit card company do the conversion. The company/airline/hotel/shop/what-have-you will always add on a bit extra to the rate they offer you.
 
I know this is an old thread, but my query is similar. Paying for accommodation recently in Belfast, with my credit card, I opted to pay in sterling. I see on my credit card that the amount is higher than what was displayed as the euro amount on the credit card machine in the hotel, so in this instance I would have been better off opting to pay in euro. I had the opposite experience a few months back.
Is it better to opt to pay in sterling or euro when using a credit card?
 
Thanks CiaranT.

I usually do. (The previous time, I mentioned, it was kind of rushed at me, by the receptionist, and I only copped it afterwards).
 
I actually got stung in Gatwick airport - I picked up 2 shirts and didn't take too much attention to the card machine but it automatically set to euro rather than the sterling amount - the exchange rate was not good. I only realised when looking at the credit card receipt afterwards.
Will be more vigilant in the future.
 
[FONT=Times New Roman, serif]
peno said:
I actually got stung in Gatwick airport - I picked up 2 shirts and didn't take too much attention to the card machine but it automatically set to euro rather than the sterling amount - the exchange rate was not good. I only realised when looking at the credit card receipt afterwards.
Will be more vigilant in the future.
Click to expand...
[/FONT]
[FONT=Times New Roman, serif]This is dynamic currency conversion (DCC). Under the DCC rules, as regulated by Visa and Mastercard, .the customer must be given the choice to accept or decline DCC, i.e. to pay in the local currency, or in their home currency. [/FONT]
[FONT=Times New Roman, serif]Where I have had problems with this is in UK hotels where you book in GBP but are asked to swipe your card on arrival. The 'swipe' is frequently/usually/always in EUR, calculated at the hotel's rate, so you end up with a bill in EUR for all items including your hotel room, which you booked in GBP. So you have an argument. [/FONT]
[FONT=Times New Roman, serif]The problem is that if you are in a rush for a meeting or for a flight you may not notice it.[/FONT]
 
peno said:
I only realised when looking at the credit card receipt afterwards. Will be more vigilant in the future.
Click to expand...
[FONT=Times New Roman, serif]Did your credit card receipt contain text to the effect that you had chosen to pay in euro, that the exchange rate was based on an interbank exchange rate plus a conversion margin? And that your choice was final? There is a standard text to appear on receipts for DCC transactions so if it wasn't printed on your receipt you could take it up with your credit card merchant.[/FONT]
[FONT=Times New Roman, serif] And if it was there you must be as you say more vigilant in the future.
[/FONT]
 
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