When did doing business with the Post Office become so difficult...

[Deleted User][Deleted User] Posts: 12,190
Forum Member
✭✭
So I wonder into my local main branch post office around the corner from my place of work... as per usual I queued for 10 minutes eventually arriving at a counter here is the conversation...

Me: "hello I'd like to buy some Euros please" :)
Her: "Are you paying by card?"
Me: "Yes I am" :)
Her: " Do you have your passport with you?"
Me: "No I don't, I've never been asked before" :(
Her: "Well whoever it was shouldn't have sold you any!"
Me: "well, I'll be sure to mention that to the Postmaster in [jabs Home town] next time I'm in the post office" *rolleyes*
Her: "yes you should!"
Me: "well can I withdraw the cash and pay in cash?" :confused:
Her: "yes you can....insert the card"
me: "Its been rejected?" :confused:
her: "Oh! we don't accept that card!
me: "Er... Its Santander? " :confused:
Her: "well we don't accept those cards for giving cash!"

So, she knows she's totally trumped me now and I leave with my tail between my legs Euroless....
Outside the post office, I find a money machine and withdraw some cash, rejoin the queue and eventually find myself opposite the same women.... this time she happily sells me a quantity of Euros; So In passing I ask...

"What's the difference in me paying by card or cash?" :o
" I don't really know.... I think its to do with money laundering or terrorism or something"
"oh is it? because crims and terrorists would never use cash would they?!" *rolleyes*

Looks at me like I'd just asked her to give me a hand job. I smile and leave but not before I exact revenge by refusing to accept the 3 50 Euro notes she was offering me!
mwaahahahahahahaha! I am pure eeevillll!

pah... stoopid Post Office (Tm)
«1

Comments

  • riceutenriceuten Posts: 5,876
    Forum Member
    Justabloke wrote: »
    So I wonder into my local main branch post office around the corner from my place of work... as per usual I queued for 10 minutes eventually arriving at a counter here is the conversation...

    Me: "hello I'd like to buy some Euros please" :)
    Her: "Are you paying by card?"
    Me: "Yes I am" :)
    Her: " Do you have your passport with you?"
    Me: "No I don't, I've never been asked before" :(
    Her: "Well whoever it was shouldn't have sold you any!"
    Me: "well, I'll be sure to mention that to the Postmaster in [jabs Home town] next time I'm in the post office" *rolleyes*
    Her: "yes you should!"
    Me: "well can I withdraw the cash and pay in cash?" :confused:
    Her: "yes you can....insert the card"
    me: "Its been rejected?" :confused:
    her: "Oh! we don't accept that card!
    me: "Er... Its Santander? " :confused:
    Her: "well we don't accept those cards for giving cash!"

    So, she knows she's totally trumped me now and I leave with my tail between my legs Euroless....
    Outside the post office, I find a money machine and withdraw some cash, rejoin the queue and eventually find myself opposite the same women.... this time she happily sells me a quantity of Euros; So In passing I ask...

    "What's the difference in me paying by card or cash?" :o
    " I don't really know.... I think its to do with money laundering or terrorism or something"
    "oh is it? because crims and terrorists would never use cash would they?!" *rolleyes*

    Looks at me like I'd just asked her to give me a hand job. I smile and leave but not before I exact revenge by refusing to accept the 3 50 Euro notes she was offering me!
    mwaahahahahahahaha! I am pure eeevillll!

    pah... stoopid Post Office (Tm)
    M and S in Huntingdon also refused to let me change Euros (even in cash!) unless I brought ID or my passport along. Thomas Cook didn't care.

    To be fair, this is fairly common abroad, but usually only in countries where you are supposed only to import/export a certain amount of currency.
  • [Deleted User][Deleted User] Posts: 12,190
    Forum Member
    ✭✭
    riceuten wrote: »
    M and S in Huntingdon also refused to let me change Euros (even in cash!) unless I brought ID or my passport along. Thomas Cook didn't care.

    To be fair, this is fairly common abroad, but usually only in countries where you are supposed only to import/export a certain amount of currency.

    In most European countries there is an obligation to carry ID, there is no such obligation here in the UK and as we've seen the policy isn't uniformly applied.
  • LostFoolLostFool Posts: 90,623
    Forum Member
    ✭✭✭
    I don't see why anyone would want to buy Euros at the Post Office given the shocking exchange rate they offer. Just wait until you get to Euroland, pop your card into the first cash machine you see and you'll get a much better rate.
  • [Deleted User][Deleted User] Posts: 12,190
    Forum Member
    ✭✭
    LostFool wrote: »
    I don't see why anyone would want to buy Euros at the Post Office given the shocking exchange rate they offer. Just wait until you get to Euroland, pop your card into the first cash machine you see and you'll get a much better rate.

    yes and a bank charge with every transaction that mostly negates the slightly better rate. I use my card abroad if I have to but I always like to have cash with me as I arrive.
    Your mileage may vary.
  • sarahj1986sarahj1986 Posts: 11,305
    Forum Member
    ✭✭
    Thomas Cook have been doing this for years its why I never buy currency using my cards because its such a faf

    I would say its to do with money laundering although I was surprised the cashier didn't know, surely they've been asked the question before so knowing why is important to answer the question.
  • [Deleted User][Deleted User] Posts: 12,190
    Forum Member
    ✭✭
    sarahj1986 wrote: »
    Thomas Cook have been doing this for years its why I never buy currency using my cards because its such a faf

    I would say its to do with money laundering although I was surprised the cashier didn't know, surely they've been asked the question before so knowing why is important to answer the question.

    But it strikes me that its safer to pay with a card... a transaction that would be completely logged in several places.

    Anyway, my point was that I had never been asked before even in the post office, yet I'm told its been like this for years

    hey ho... it just made a small transaction tedious for no good reason.
  • denzldenzl Posts: 871
    Forum Member
    ✭✭
    Have you only just noticed, and it's not just the Post Office but the Royal Mail generally think they can make mistakes and mess things up for the public without providing an easy route to compensate people when things inevitably go wrong. Has anyone ever tried to get compo off RM in Salford, it's a nightmare, you loose the will to live and give up, and don't ever expect to speak to another human being if you try and phone them....... but that's another 10 horror stories....
  • [Deleted User][Deleted User] Posts: 12,190
    Forum Member
    ✭✭
    They really do seem to work hard at not fulfilling their most basic functions... They're almost as bad as Yodel but that's another world of pain entirely.....
  • sarahj1986sarahj1986 Posts: 11,305
    Forum Member
    ✭✭
    Justabloke wrote: »
    But it strikes me that its safer to pay with a card... a transaction that would be completely logged in several places.

    Anyway, my point was that I had never been asked before even in the post office, yet I'm told its been like this for years

    hey ho... it just made a small transaction tedious for no good reason.

    oh I agree it does make it more tedious. But if I buy currency normally its £200/£300 each month or whenever so I draw it out and pay for it straight away, suits me ok. If I needed higher amounts like £500+ etc then I would use my card.
  • [Deleted User][Deleted User] Posts: 12,190
    Forum Member
    ✭✭
    sarahj1986 wrote: »
    oh I agree it does make it more tedious. But if I buy currency normally its £200/£300 each month or whenever so I draw it out and pay for it straight away, suits me ok. If I needed higher amounts like £500+ etc then I would use my card.

    Its even more laughable that she wouldn't sell me currency because I had no Id but would let me use the self same card to withdraw cash... oh yes all very secure that...
  • riceutenriceuten Posts: 5,876
    Forum Member
    Justabloke wrote: »
    Its even more laughable that she wouldn't sell me currency because I had no Id but would let me use the self same card to withdraw cash... oh yes all very secure that...
    Some places won't even allow you to do that, either.

    Personally, I use CaxtonFX and FairFX cards for Euros, both give the best rates, no loading, and no credit check (as they are loadable and don't allow you to go into debt). The Post Office and Thomas Cook do something similar.
  • [Deleted User][Deleted User] Posts: 12,190
    Forum Member
    ✭✭
    riceuten wrote: »
    Some places won't even allow you to do that, either.

    Personally, I use CaxtonFX and FairFX cards for Euros, both give the best rates, no loading, and no credit check (as they are loadable and don't allow you to go into debt). The Post Office and Thomas Cook do something similar.

    yeah.. I've got a card but I like to have some cash as well... not loads juts a couple of hundred that can be stashed around a couple of places. Just in case.
  • riceutenriceuten Posts: 5,876
    Forum Member
    Justabloke wrote: »
    yeah.. I've got a card but I like to have some cash as well... not loads juts a couple of hundred that can be stashed around a couple of places. Just in case.
    I usually have a float of around €50-100 to tide me over, saved from the previous trip. I know people who will exchange ALL their holiday money in one go, at a dreadful rate and then whinge when it gets nicked, also all in one go :-(

    I recognise some places aren't that easy to do this, but I have rarely had hassles with foreign ATMs and yet I know people who would never, ever go near one, for fear of having to use it in Spanish (or whatever). It detects the nationality of the card and offers a choice of appropriate languages, IMHE.
  • [Deleted User][Deleted User] Posts: 12,190
    Forum Member
    ✭✭
    riceuten wrote: »
    I usually have a float of around €50-100 to tide me over, saved from the previous trip. I know people who will exchange ALL their holiday money in one go, at a dreadful rate and then whinge when it gets nicked, also all in one go :-(

    I recognise some places aren't that easy to do this, but I have rarely had hassles with foreign ATMs and yet I know people who would never, ever go near one, for fear of having to use it in Spanish (or whatever). It detects the nationality of the card and offers a choice of appropriate languages, IMHE.

    I was in Spain one year and found my Santandar issued debit card wouldn't work in most of the machines I found... oh... how I laughed.
  • stud u likestud u like Posts: 42,100
    Forum Member
    LostFool wrote: »
    I don't see why anyone would want to buy Euros at the Post Office given the shocking exchange rate they offer. Just wait until you get to Euroland, pop your card into the first cash machine you see and you'll get a much better rate.

    This does not always work to a satisfactory conclusion. It has been to known to eat cards and not give them back leading to no money for a week.

    So I would not trust that method. Get travellers cheques, much easier!
  • LostFoolLostFool Posts: 90,623
    Forum Member
    ✭✭✭
    This does not always work to a satisfactory conclusion. It has been to known to eat cards and not give them back leading to no money for a week.

    So I would not trust that method. Get travellers cheques, much easier!

    Travellers Cheques? Are you a refugee from the 20th Century? I didn't realise that people still used them these days. I'd imagine most shops and restaurants wouldn't know what to do one and they are totally useless when the banks are closed.

    Plastic is fine as long as you have a backup card from another bank. In that last 20 years I've had one card declined by a cash machine when travelling but it was just a matter of using another one.
  • [Deleted User][Deleted User] Posts: 12,190
    Forum Member
    ✭✭
    This does not always work to a satisfactory conclusion. It has been to known to eat cards and not give them back leading to no money for a week.

    So I would not trust that method. Get travellers cheques, much easier!

    Travelers cheques in Europe are even more of a hassle these days...
  • puffenstuffpuffenstuff Posts: 1,069
    Forum Member
    ✭✭✭
    hmmmmmm i dont have a passport or a driving licence and my youngest is going on a school trip to Spain in March and I need to change 200 quid into euros in the next week or so.... where is the best place to head to change the money over so i dont get refused or hassled , many thanks
  • LostFoolLostFool Posts: 90,623
    Forum Member
    ✭✭✭
    hmmmmmm i dont have a passport or a driving licence and my youngest is going on a school trip to Spain in March and I need to change 200 quid into euros in the next week or so.... where is the best place to head to change the money over so i dont get refused or hassled , many thanks

    Travel Money comparison tool: http://travelmoney.moneysavingexpert.com/

    You can order from a lot of dealers for delivery at home so there will be no way they can do an ID check.
  • stud u likestud u like Posts: 42,100
    Forum Member
    LostFool wrote: »
    Travellers Cheques? Are you a refugee from the 20th Century? I didn't realise that people still used them these days. I'd imagine most shops and restaurants wouldn't know what to do one and they are totally useless when the banks are closed.

    Plastic is fine as long as you have a backup card from another bank. In that last 20 years I've had one card declined by a cash machine when travelling but it was just a matter of using another one.

    I don't spend them in shops. I cash them in when I need them at the hotel.
  • soulboy77soulboy77 Posts: 24,396
    Forum Member
    ✭✭✭
    I had a similar experience. Just wanted 30 Euros to send to my Nephew for his birthday. Luckily I had some other ID that was acceptable on me but who carries their passport with them when going shopping up the High Street? Then I had to pay for the currency and airmail stamps separately with a card, which ended up being three transactions because they forgot this initially and had to void it - what a palava!
  • cnbcwatchercnbcwatcher Posts: 56,681
    Forum Member
    Justabloke wrote: »
    Travelers cheques in Europe are even more of a hassle these days...

    Why? I thought they didn't exist any more.
  • albertdalbertd Posts: 14,341
    Forum Member
    ✭✭
    I don't know why, but apparently the Santander cards which don't work in Post Offices are only from branches which were previously Abbey National, at least that is what Santander told me when I asked.
  • [Deleted User][Deleted User] Posts: 3,606
    Forum Member
    ✭✭✭
    I won't even attempt going to the post office given that all my attempts to just buy a STAMP go thus:

    Me: "Hi, I need to buy a stamp to Southern Ireland"
    PO: "Do you go to Ireland much? Would you like to buy some foreign currency?
    Me: "No thanks"
    PO: "Is this going to the DVLA? Would you like to pay for your car tax here? Get some car insurance? Apply for a car loan?"
    Me: "Just give me the stamp I asked for and no-one gets hurt"
    PO: "Have you considered applying for a credit card?"
    Me: "I'm going now. Away from you"

    Ditto Boots, WH Smiths, the Body Shop. Stop this psychotic degree of cross-selling!
  • [Deleted User][Deleted User] Posts: 12,190
    Forum Member
    ✭✭
    albertd wrote: »
    I don't know why, but apparently the Santander cards which don't work in Post Offices are only from branches which were previously Abbey National, at least that is what Santander told me when I asked.

    Yes, she said something about its only the ones that were previously Abbey cards... which if it is the case is even more bollocks... so much for joined up systems eh?
Sign In or Register to comment.