Currency exchange at the Post Office. Why do they do this?

[PinataHeeHaw]

I tend to get my holiday money at the same Post Office and have done about three or four times now.

I ask to pay on debit card and they say it's best to do a transaction where it looks like I've drawn the money out, rather than pay chip and pin or contactless. I get my money regardless and have stopped being suspicious now but why would they do this?

Is there a fee passed onto you or you get a better exchange rate one way? Either that or it's cheaper/more profitable for them but no difference to you? You should ask.

I wonder if they avoid the card fees this way. The currency I receive i think is the same either way.

Sorry I didn't understand. How do they want you to pay rather than by debit card? I usually get my foreign currency from Sainsbury's and always use my debit card.

God I didn’t even realise this was a thing anymore…sorry missing point of the thread entirely. I just use revolut when abroad now.

It could be to do with a cash advance fee charged by your card provider but I thought that usually applies to credit cards rather than debit cards.

There’s a bit about fees on their website:

www.postoffice.co.uk/help-support/travel-money

I think they have to see ID if you buy currency with a card, so maybe it's quicker and creates less admin if they can bypass that step. Are they asking you for ID? If not, I don't know!

It's because traditionally if you withdrew cash on a credit card you would pay a fee to your card provider, but if you bought a product (like foreign currency) they would have to pay the fee.

Many credit cards still charge the cash advance fee to the user and it's easier for businesses like the Post Office to assume every card transaction will come with a fee to them so they want to ensure if there is a charge, you pay it.