Paying Storage Fees to French Facility
Between trips this year I'm going to leave my van in France. The storage facility require a deposit and have forwarded their bank details (Releve d'identite bancaire)
I've never transferred money abroad before and would appreciate some advice.
I have a Visa card that is commission free which I would like to pay with. I have looked at Western Union and it appears that would be possible. However before I go ahead, is there a better alternative or anything else I should consider?
Phoning the card details directly to the storage company isn't an option
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Has your bank given you any advice? I’d start with them.
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If you've been given account details it'll need to be bank transfer. This maybe possible online with your bank, if you do online banking. If not you'll need to get it done in the bank and whatever way they'll be charge. I believe its the CHAPS system.
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Jim, a) Look at Wise.com formerly Transferwise for money transfer
b) How will you insure your caravan while it is there? This Club’s insurance won’t cover that.
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Not sure about credit card payments, but I’ve sent money via online banking (HSBC) overseas in the recent past and it was very straightforward as long as you have all the necessary information.
You’ll need the recipients details - account name, SWIFT/BIC code (bank identifier), IBAN (bank account number), address of the bank and person you’re sending money to. The storage facility will be able to provide all of that - presumably on the Releve d'identite bancaire? You can choose what currency to pay in and the charge (I think) was about £5.
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I think the OP may be quids in as regards insurance. From memory as the van will be registered in France it is a fraction of what we have to pay in the UK.
Colin
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From my banking memory, which is now almost thirty years old, CHAPS is only UK based and SWIFT is what is used for international payments. ISTR seeing a tariff a while back with CHAPS payments being about £30. Can't remember what SWIFT payments cost these days.
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I have sent large sums to Australia using HiFx which I believe is now XE (which also has a well known app for currency exchange rate checking). As usual, the exchange rate is better the bigger the transaction.
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As it’s not going to be for a large amount use your credit card - the exchange rate won’t be the best but at least it’s secure. Using your bank will incur additional charges, as a percentage greater than a poor exchange rate.
as an aside, here in Spain I have encountered a problem with some retailers, when accepting an online payment, they have rejected the card as having not been issued in Spain!
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My UK pension is paid into a UK account. Every now and again I transfer funds from that account to mine here in Germany. So long as the transaction is done in Euros I don't pay any charges to Lloyds Bank and a flat rate of €10 per transaction to my German bank regardless of the amount transferred. If the payment is in pounds sterling the charges are the other way round (from memory, £9.50 to Lloyds and nothing at this end).
I do it all online.
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I would pay a small overseas bill by logging into to my local NatWest account and making the payment on line or via their app - Natwest charges no fee to do that, but as Lutz has said the receiving bank might do so. I do it all banking and payments on line too.
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Just a thought….assuming storage facility is able and willing, why not cut out the faff and use PayPal?
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As the OP has a Visa Card that is commission free that is the easiest and probably the cheapest route to take. However he says that phoning card details through is not an option (strange!); have you asked the storage company? You may therefore have to use the Bank Transfer system, a small price to pay considering the fuel savings you will be making by not towing; either are straight forward. The OP should check that his van will be covered for insurance whilst it is left in storage in France; my policy would not cover the caravan in this instance. When we lived in France we regularly transferred money and used TORfX (there are other companies) but these were usually for largish amounts. Nowadays we travel almost cash free just a having a small amount of cash for coffees and market purchases etc. and using our commission free card for nearly everything.
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Thanks for the heads up AD. Haven't been to Spain for a number of years; but no problem would get cash from an ATM if necessary - assuming the site discount is more than the commission on drawing cash! There are a few sites in ACSI that are cash only.
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Site owners wanting cash? Can it be to do with reducing their own income tax and VAT payments? Surely not!
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PS . Years ago we first met an old lady who ran a thriving camping business in a big orchard behind her farmhouse down the west coast of France. When we arrived she wrote our name and arrival date in a hard backed notebook - stay as long as you like and pay me when you leave - the usual, trusting, relaxed French system.
Except there were two identical hard backed notebooks - one for the accountant and the taxman to see, and the other for them not to see. And whenever we were leaving and knocked on her door to pay she could never remember which of her two books she had written us in, and had to search them both, page by page, to find us. And she took payments in cash and wrote the amount in one of her notebooks.
It sounds as though some sites in Spain are perhaps operating on similar lines.
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