Warning over travel money charges

21/09/11

By Sarah Tawton

The Office of Fair Trading (OFT) has been urged to launch an investigation into the cost of foreign currency.

Consumer Focus estimates that travellers pay around £1 billion to exchange money every year.

The watchdog has issued a super-complaint to the OFT about the complex charges on spending money overseas.

The group believes charges for using credit or debit cards abroad are too complex, and criticised the poor quality of information given to holidaymakers.

It wants to see an end to misleading phrases such as "0% commission" and "competitive exchange rates".

The group called on fair trading officials to help travellers distinguish between necessary charges and those which are unfair.

"Converting £500 into euros can cost from under £10 to over £30 depending on where you switch your money," said Consumer Focus chief executive Mike O'Connor.

He added: "This is a huge difference for essentially providing the same service and typically banks offer the worst deals."