ATM's

[Robert E. Spenger]

Some do charge fees. It seems to depend on the local state or department.
When I was charged a fee, it was always one dollar, which puzzles me.  If the
fee depended on where I was, why wasn't it some fixed amount in the local
currency?  Another puzzle: this year I was charged a fee for a transaction in
Santiago, but I was not charged for one there last year. This year, I was
charged a fee for each transaction made in Galicia - at Tuy, Redondela,
Pontevedra, Padrón, and Santiago. In Portugal, I was not charged fees in
Lisboa (initially), Porto, and Braga, but was charged fees at the points
between Lisboa and Porto. On my return to Lisboa, I made two transactions and
was charged for both. Those really hurt, since I was making small withdrawals
in order to avoid having too many escudos left at the end. As a result, the
fee was about 5% of the amount of the transaction. This opens another puzzle,
of course: why were there charges in Lisboa on my return and not when I first
landed there?

There was no way for me to know whether or not a fee was charged until I got
home and got my statements for the account that I was using as a money
supply.

For the record, the only fee that I was charged in France was for a
transaction at Salvetat. Last year, in Spain, fees were charged for
transactions in Canfranc Estacion, Jaca, Yesa, and Puente la Reina. From
there, west to Fisterra, there were no more charges.

I got a word of warning from one of the clerks at my credit union. He
suggested getting a fresh card before any trip. The cards are susceptible to
mechanical damage and an old, worn card may fail to function. If a traveler
is totally dependent on just one card, it is quite a shock when that card
doesn't work any more.

The four digit recommendation is more than a recommendation - it is a
requirement.

Diane Grust wrote:

> The only thing you need to remember is that your pin should be a number as
> they don't have the letters on the key pads as here, I think it is also
> recommended that it be only four digits for some reason.  Every ATM I used
> had an English option and none that I encountered charged a fee.