# Good bye to Capital One



## x3 skier (Nov 28, 2011)

I have had a Cap One card for many years to avoid the foreign exchange fees. But, on my last three European trips in the past year, even though I have been diligent about notifications, I have gotten email notices about potential frauds. This necessitates a collect call back to Cap One to Katmandu or wherever their call center is located to speak to a non-native English speaking "Peggy" in order to tell them, "Yes, those are my charges".

I always ask "Don't you know I am traveling?" and they say yes but we want to make sure. Escalation to "Peggy's boss" results in the sane BS about making sure. I had even got an email thanking me for the notification after I had left The States and had made the charges they questioned. 

BTW, they also keep sending me transfer balance checks even though I had requested twice over a year ago to stop. 

Since other cards are now deleting the charges, the Cap One card is headed to the shredder when I get back from Spain.

Cheers


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## WinniWoman (Nov 29, 2011)

*Oh no!*

I just recently applied for the card for my upcoming trip to Scotland. I am so "worried" about handling the currency and was hoping this was the "answer". What other alternatives exist?


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## Quiet Pine (Nov 29, 2011)

x3 skier said:


> I have had a Cap One card for many years to avoid the foreign exchange fees.



Same for me. This summer I told Cap One I'd be traveling to the Netherlands, Germany, France & Switzerland and no one questioned the charges.

Has increased fraud caused them to be more cautious? Were you traveling in an area that is suspect? I wonder what was different. Perhaps more TUGgers will report their experiences.


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## am1 (Nov 29, 2011)

Capital One is fine in Canada, Mexico and Panama.  3 points on every travel dollar.


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## Carolinian (Nov 29, 2011)

Living and working in Europe, I use Cap One as my main card over here.  In four and a half years, I have occaisionally run into the problem of them freezing my credit over purchases here.  I have found that only happens with several purchases in a short period.  Annoyingly, they have no mechanism for a long term notation on accounts that the holder is abroad, even when the mailing address on the card is outside the US!  Putting a notation on the account that one is abroad is good for up to 3 months, then you have to do it again.

Still, Cap One overall works well for me, and I am keeping it.


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## riverdees05 (Nov 29, 2011)

Any other good option for a card that does not charge the 3% on international purchases?


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## elaine (Nov 29, 2011)

my premium Marriott card (don't reember what it's called--the one that gives a free night certificate every year) does not charge the foreign fees. You also get extended warranty coverage--which I have used with no issues. Elaine


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## jlwquilter (Nov 29, 2011)

I used my Cap One card af ew times when in Europe this summer and also in Canada just before that trip. No issues.

The OP may somehow have his account flagged...? Maybe a call now that you are home might uncover some underlying issue?


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## x3 skier (Nov 29, 2011)

jlwquilter said:


> I used my Cap One card af ew times when in Europe this summer and also in Canada just before that trip. No issues.
> 
> The OP may somehow have his account flagged...? Maybe a call now that you are home might uncover some underlying issue?




I pay in full every month. Whenever I call there is NO rationale given to me for the "suspicious activity" that triggers this annoyance. It's not as though I am buying a Bently or a Ferrari. The biggest charges have been a couple of hundred for hotels or tickets for the train and the smallest is to top up my Euro phone for 10 quid or so.

If they would just tell me what trips the wire, I would fix it. 

Since they have been non responsive, it hits the shredder tomorrow when I get back from Spain. At least I think they are non responsive since I usually have to go through two or more representatives before I get one that is semi intelligible. Maybe "Peggy" explained somewhere along the line and I missed it.


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## x3 skier (Nov 29, 2011)

riverdees05 said:


> Any other good option for a card that does not charge the 3% on international purchases?



Some credit unions do not charge the fee. AMEX Platinum also has waived the fee but it is a cool $450 a year. Since it includes both AA and DL airport clubs and I pay that much for each one very year, I will likely get that one. 

Cheers


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## sue1947 (Nov 29, 2011)

I had the same experience as the OP.  I was in Canada and they allowed the hotel charge, then froze it so the gas station refused it.  I called (this was 10 am) and talked to somebody who didn't understand or speak English very well and she unfroze it.  I told her any charges in Canada were good.  That afternoon, I checked into another motel and they ran the deposit and then froze it again so I had to pay cash at the grocery store.  Same day.  Another person with a worse accent and I just kept asking for a supervisor and somebody without an accent.  They had a whole series of questions to verify my identity based on data mining and some of the pieces of info were incorrect.  I figured out what was going on and finally got to a supervisor who could straighten it out and she did something so that the trigger didn't hit.  However, the amount of time spent on this and the aggravation factor means I am also looking for an alternative.  

On the one hand, I like that they take security so seriously.  On the other hand, I don't know why using a credit card at a motel, gas station and grocery store would trigger suspicious activity.  This was in Sept and I was in Canada again in October and used it without any problem.


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## x3 skier (Nov 29, 2011)

Quiet Pine said:


> Has increased fraud caused them to be more cautious? Were you traveling in an area that is suspect? I wonder what was different. Perhaps more TUGgers will report their experiences.



Here's the list. Copenhagen, Malmo, London, Paris, Berlin, Lisbon, Madrid. No clue if these are hotbeds of fraud.  

BTW, I just payed my Madrid hotel bill and checked into the Barajas Airport Hilton with the same card and so far so good. :whoopie: OTOH, who knows about tomorrow?:ignore: 

Cheers


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## rickandcindy23 (Nov 29, 2011)

I was annoyed by Capital One recently for the same reason.  I went to buy groceries at our local store and had my card turned down.  Groceries?  Really?  It was the only card I took with me, and I did not appreciate the way the gal looked at me after the card was rejected.  I said, "That cannot be right," and she handed me some little piece of paper with the reason for the block of the card (couldn't read it, it was so small).  Then she rolled her eyes at me.  Apparently she was annoyed, but not as annoyed as I was, I promise you that.  

I called Capital One when I got home, and because I charged $4,000 in MF's that day, it was enough to flag the account.  They gave me a $20 account credit for the inconvenience, which was a nice gesture.


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## nsstampqueen (Nov 29, 2011)

*Not Just Capital One*

I use my Capital One when travelling and have never had an issue - Mexico, Florida, Jamaica, Dominican Republic - hotels, restaurants, tours, shopping etc. However, my hubby and I were travelling to the next province over last month, we charged gas every day and they froze his Chase Manhattan Mastercard - really??? He called and they said it was because he charged fuel every day in the same country??? 

One thing that's always surprised me when I call Capital One to notify them I will be travelling - they always act like why are you bothering me with this, why are you calling and telling me this??? CIBC our bank is the same way - we notify and they act like why are you bothering to do this??? I am sure if we didn't they would cut us off the minute we hit the airport and buy something at duty free on the way out of the country! Makes no sense does it!


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## Talent312 (Nov 29, 2011)

Am-Ex once rejected a car rental in Anchorage (l had a Visa-CC alternative).
Then, a few months later there was a bogus charge for a car rental in Vegas.

IOW, I can't rent myself a car in Alaska, but "I" can rent someone else a car in Vegas?

The CC industry clearly needs better programs to figure out what's suspicious and what isn't.


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## akp (Nov 29, 2011)

*Don't Cancel!!!*

Don't cancel that Cap One card if you've had it for years!  Put it in your sock drawer instead.

I recently canceled a BofA card I'd had for 15 years...stupid.  I didn't realize the impact that your older cards have on your credit.  I'll be in AARP before I have that length of credit history back!  Credit is still excellent, but we were in rare air territory well over 800 FICO scores with that card on the credit reports.

There are lots of cards now that don't have FOREX fees, fyi, so just shop around.  

But hang on to your old Cap One!

Anita


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## Blues (Nov 30, 2011)

*Yep, not just Capital One*

I had my Discover card frozen after I bought $10 (!!) worth of gas in Chicago.  Yeah, I know, that's about a thimbleful of gas.  But I only used the car for a couple days, just to get to and from the airport.  I called to complain, and they said it was an anti-fraud measure (obviously).  Yes, I was 2000 miles from my residence.  But, as I pointed out, people do use credit cards while travelling.  And 10 bucks?!!?  I tried to get the card flagged to be able to be used for travel, but they said I'd have to call before every trip.  10 bucks?!!

-Bob


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## Maple_Leaf (Nov 30, 2011)

*That's how they do it*



nsstampqueen said:


> However, my hubby and I were travelling to the next province over last month, we charged gas every day and they froze his Chase Manhattan Mastercard - really??? He called and they said it was because he charged fuel every day in the same country???



Not surprising.  This is a common technique that criminals use to test the validity of a stolen card.  Every day they will charge gas at a pump and if the charge goes through, they will then get a big screen TV at Best Buy.


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## jlwquilter (Nov 30, 2011)

x3 skier said:


> Here's the list. Copenhagen, Malmo, London, Paris, Berlin, Lisbon, Madrid. No clue if these are hotbeds of fraud.
> 
> BTW, I just payed my Madrid hotel bill and checked into the Barajas Airport Hilton with the same card and so far so good. :whoopie: *OTOH, who knows about tomorrow?:*ignore:
> 
> Cheers



And that is the MOST irritating thing, isn't it? Credit cards are supposed to provide some level of peace of mind and that is not what is happening anymore. Aggravating.

To add my tale to the pile... I was at WalMart and I was staging the rental property for sale (it sold, yeah, but another nightmare) so I did have a larger than usual bill... $500. My BofA card was declined. I never have a balance on it and my credit line is rather large. Ok, so I paid with another card (it was still embarrassing).

When I called BOA they said it was unusally high amount (but I've charged over $350 before) and if I want to charge that much I should call them first. Call them first? Like when I am in line at WalMart and I realize I may be over $X amount? And I can give them personal idenitfying info in front of everyone else in line? At WalMart? Ummm, no thanks, I'll just give my business to someone else. Unless they can also allow me to stay up after my bedtime and have a sugary snack. I do understand where they are coming from but geez.


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## Carolinian (Nov 30, 2011)

One of my cards issued by a credit union will not work in Romania unless I specifically set it up with them to work there and agree to take any charge originating in Romania.  However, there is no problem using it is Greece, which has a much worse record of credit card fraud than Romania. My other cards work fine in Romania including a card from a different credit union.

I have also had problems with some LCC airlines websites and using CapOne, particularly WizzAir.  Indeed sometimes it is so bad that any Visa card I try with Wizz comes up declined, but CapOne is the worst. But CapOne does work with Wizz sometimes.  The problem there is that their card charges are processed through Verified by Visa, and every time I call the bank about one of those declines, the charge never reached the bank.  It got declined by Verified by Visa before it ever got there.  They use a different service for Mastercard, and that always works, but it really irriates me to pay the 3% junk fee associated with my Mastercards. My low or no fee cards are all Visa.


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## pedro47 (Nov 30, 2011)

Can we use our Capital One card in the Middle East and feel safe ?  

We need to write down the 1-800# for customer service and kept it in a safe place to call if we encounter any problem ?  Correct.

How far in advance do we need call to notify Capital One that we are traveling in the Middle East ?


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## Luanne (Nov 30, 2011)

pedro47 said:


> How far in advance do we need call to notify Capital One that we are traveling in the Middle East ?



You don't even have to call.  You can set it up yourself online.  Just go into your account, go to Customer Service, then under Service Requests you'll find a link to Set Travel Notifications.


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## robcrusoe (Nov 30, 2011)

x3 skier said:


> I have had a Cap One card for many years to avoid the foreign exchange fees. But, on my last three European trips in the past year, even though I have been diligent about notifications, I have gotten email notices about potential frauds. This necessitates a collect call back to Cap One to Katmandu or wherever their call center is located to speak to a non-native English speaking "Peggy" in order to tell them, "Yes, those are my charges".
> 
> I always ask "Don't you know I am traveling?" and they say yes but we want to make sure. Escalation to "Peggy's boss" results in the sane BS about making sure. I had even got an email thanking me for the notification after I had left The States and had made the charges they questioned.
> 
> ...


c'mon don't they just fudge their exchange rates to make it up?


am1 said:


> Capital One is fine in Canada, Mexico and Panama.  3 points on every travel dollar.


*points*, points really have no meaning until you reference what a point is worth in exchange for something


x3 skier said:


> I pay in full every month. Whenever I call there is NO rationale given to me for the "suspicious activity" that triggers this annoyance. It's not as though I am buying a Bently or a Ferrari. The biggest charges have been a couple of hundred for hotels or tickets for the train and the smallest is to top up my Euro phone for 10 quid or so.
> 
> If they would just tell me what trips the wire, I would fix it.
> 
> Since they have been non responsive, it hits the shredder tomorrow when I get back from Spain. At least I think they are non responsive since I usually have to go through two or more representatives before I get one that is semi intelligible. Maybe "Peggy" explained somewhere along the line and I missed it.


If they tell you what trips the wire then everyone knows and their 'system' has no value at all


x3 skier said:


> Some credit unions do not charge the fee. AMEX Platinum also has waived the fee but it is a cool $450 a year. Since it includes both AA and DL airport clubs and I pay that much for each one very year, I will likely get that one.
> 
> Cheers


c'mon don't they just fudge their exchange rates to make it up?


rickandcindy23 said:


> I was annoyed by Capital One recently for the same reason.  I went to buy groceries at our local store and had my card turned down.  Groceries?  Really?  It was the only card I took with me, and I did not appreciate the way the gal looked at me after the card was rejected.  I said, "That cannot be right," and she handed me some little piece of paper with the reason for the block of the card (couldn't read it, it was so small).  Then she rolled her eyes at me.  Apparently she was annoyed, but not as annoyed as I was, I promise you that.
> 
> I called Capital One when I got home, and because I charged $4,000 in MF's that day, it was enough to flag the account.  They gave me a $20 account credit for the inconvenience, which was a nice gesture.


that's amazing!


pedro47 said:


> Can we use our Capital One card in the Middle East and feel safe ?
> 
> We need to write down the 1-800# for customer service and kept it in a safe place to call if we encounter any problem ?  Correct.
> 
> How far in advance do we need call to notify Capital One that we are traveling in the Middle East ?


don't write down the 800#  write down the actual long distance# with area code !


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## x3 skier (Nov 30, 2011)

Luanne said:


> You don't even have to call.  You can set it up yourself online.  Just go into your account, go to Customer Service, then under Service Requests you'll find a link to Set Travel Notifications.



And if you tell them by phone or on the net or via carrier pigeon, it doesn't seem to matter. They still send you notes to call them or freeze your card for some obscure reason. :hysterical: 

Cheers


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## x3 skier (Nov 30, 2011)

*Seems it is only Cap One in my case*

BTW, I have had an AMEX since 1966 and never have had a problem using all over North, Central and South America and Europe. Same with a Chase and Citi card although they are not as long term in use.

Cheers


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## Luanne (Nov 30, 2011)

x3 skier said:


> And if you tell them by phone or on the net or via carrier pigeon, it doesn't seem to matter. They still send you notes to call them or freeze your card for some obscure reason. :hysterical:
> 
> Cheers



I've only had one problem with that since I placed a long term note on my account.  I got the Capital One card mostly for my dd to use while at school in Canada.  I was contacted once, soon after I got the card, but not since then.


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## pedro47 (Dec 1, 2011)

Thanks everyone for your replies !!!


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## 4Reliefnow (Dec 10, 2011)

*Cannot Rely on Capital One Card Overseas*

My wife always notifies Capital One when we are traveling.  She gives them dates and countries.  Then as soon as we leave home they CANCEL THE CARD.  They do not send us e-mails or call to verify, they cancel the card.  The last time that happened my wife was in Tahiti and it was a major inconvenience.  Capital One called me on my cell phone (I gotta work to pay the bills) and asked about the charges.  I verified my wife is in Tahiti and the jewelry store is exactly what she planned ot do.  They told me other charges triggered a fraud alert and they canceled the card.

Just for a change, we did not tell Capital One about a driving trip to Pennsylvania, Delaware, Maryland, and DC.
No problems with that trip.

I have told Capital One that somebody inside is probably selling the travel notices to fraud group or the company is canceling at the first suspicious hint to avoid risk.  Tough luck for the card holder who's card doesn't work out of the country.

My wife and I have put Capital One on double secret probation.  They cancel a card while we are out of the country and they are SO FIRED!


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## Timeshare Von (Dec 11, 2011)

Admittedly, I don't travel out of the US as much as many of you . . . but I've never had any issues, to include my most recent trip (alone) to Kenya & Tanzania.  (My DH was still here in Wisconsin using his card on the account while I was over there for two weeks, using mine.)

I did advise them in advance of my trip, and the destinations I anticipated using my card (including London while in transit) and they did everything right.

I hope others have equally good service from them.


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## x3 skier (Dec 11, 2011)

Timeshare Von said:


> I hope others have equally good service from them.



If only that were true.  

Cheers


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## Luanne (Dec 11, 2011)

x3 skier said:


> If only that were true.
> 
> Cheers



As posted before, I've had no problems..........so far.


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## magiroux (Dec 18, 2011)

4Reliefnow said:


> My wife always notifies Capital One when we are traveling.  She gives them dates and countries.  Then as soon as we leave home they CANCEL THE CARD.  They do not send us e-mails or call to verify, they cancel the card.  The last time that happened my wife was in Tahiti and it was a major inconvenience.  Capital One called me on my cell phone (I gotta work to pay the bills) and asked about the charges.  I verified my wife is in Tahiti and the jewelry store is exactly what she planned ot do.  They told me other charges triggered a fraud alert and they canceled the card.
> 
> Just for a change, we did not tell Capital One about a driving trip to Pennsylvania, Delaware, Maryland, and DC.
> No problems with that trip.
> ...



I think you may be onto something here.

I rec'd an email yesterday saying I had authorized travel. I hadn't.

It seems that authorizing a SA Levy payment is processed as travel, but I had done that and the transaction went through about a month ago. It diodn't make sense but I just told them that the transaction went through and nothing else is authorized. 

I get a call at 3:45AM from fraud confirming a "travel transaction" of $6000.00 that had been made out if SA. It ends up being a charge from Telemoneycenter in Jeddah. From what I can tell from Google it is a Western Union  type company based in the Middle East. 

I think I am just cancelling this card.


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