By Miguel Cervantes
Sources: Visa Security, Visa User Blog, Mexico Diario, The News
If you use a credit card to pay for
restaurant and/or hotel charges protect yourself and be sure and if your
charges are being submitted to Visa/MC in pesos (which they should be) or in US
currency.
During a visit to Cabo in mid-June
2014, I noticed that several restaurant and hotel receipts showed the total
price in pesos and dollars. How nice - I thought the dollar conversion was a
courtesy. Not true. Some, if not all hotels and larger restaurants are
submitting their receipts to Visa in dollars using their chosen exchange rate
instead of the daily official rate of exchange.
Ex. Dinner for three at Panchos
Restaurant in Cabo San Lucas came to a total of $1866.60 pesos including
tax of $257.46 pesos. The receipt also showed "Total USD: $154.26".
When I reviewed my Visa charges I
found that the restaurant had submitted $154.26 in total charges instead of the
peso amount. As a result, instead of being charged the correct $1866.60 peso to
U.S. dollar currency rates, the restaurant charged their own exchange rate.
If Panchos restaurant used the proper conversion
(by submitting the charges to Visa in pesos), the charges would have been
$143.70. The hotel (Casa Cascadas and the on-site restaurant) did the same -
used their own exchange rate and submitted the resulting charges in USD.
I have notified Visa of this
practice. Visa claimed to be unaware of hotels, restaurants and some
professional services providers were doing this and said foreign countries
should be submitting charges in their respective currencies. Visa will then
determine the correct conversion rate. Buyers in Cabo, beware!
Ed - This is called Dynamic
Currency Conversion and is found in lots of places. It's rarely a good deal for
the consumer. People should pretty much always choose local currency for credit
card charges. If local currency is not offered, don't sign the slip - write
"local currency not offered" and dispute the charge with your cc
company when you get home.
Tags :cabo news, cabo san lucas news, cabo credit card fraud,
cabo visa card fraud, Cabo restaurant credit card fraud, Casa Cascadas, Cabo, pancho's restaurant, visa card mexico, the news, mexico news expose, los cabos news, mexico tourism, mexico tourism news, cabo free press, cabo vacation, visa credit card, visa bank card mexico, mexican vacation, los cabos vacation, mexico news expose', dental tourism news today, medical and dental tourim news, ada journal, dental departures, fun trips alive
