Warning about travel credit cards

A new warning about the hidden charges that holidaymakers from the UK face has been issued by the Post Office . It has recommended that people going abroad on holiday should check out which travel credit cards offer the best value overseas before they go abroad.

According to a new report, the importance of credit cards while on holiday has been highlighted by figures that show that UK travellers spent nearly GBP18 billion on debit and travel credit card purchases abroad in 2009. It was also found that holidaymakers withdrew GBP7.8 billion from cash machines when overseas.

With overseas credit card spending rising by 180 per cent over the last 10 years, the Post Office is encouraging UK travellers to do a range of quick and easy checks before they leave, to make sure they get the most value from their credit card, as well as to ensure they avoid high commission charges that that can be levied on travel credit cards.

The Post Office itself is provides a travel credit card that offers 0 per cent commission on overseas purchases, and has recently announced that it is getting rid of the cash advance fee when its travel credit card customers buy foreign currency through the Post Office. Other benefits from the Post Office’s travel credit card include 0 per cent on balance transfers for the first year and 0 per cent on new purchases for the first three months.