Legalized theft and I was almost a victim.

Miscellaneous and Personal Stuff I Must Share
1

My step daughter Sarah is getting married this weekend. The soon to be son-in-law’s mother is flying in today from California and I was asked just before quitting time at work if I would pick her up at Sea-Tac Airport. My wife and Sarah were running late and I was closer to the airport anyway.

The flight was due to arrive at 3:15 pm and that is the time I arrived. I pulled into the parking garage and found a spot near the Alaska Airlines terminal. I went into the airport and while waiting, decided to get something to drink. To my horror, I had only one dollar bill and some change. Parking was $4 minimum. And I did not want to ask the future in-law to pay for the parking. I had forgot I gave my wife a 20 this morning before I left work. Nearby I found an ATM and attempted to withdraw $20.

A sign on the machine stated that I could be charged for using it but did not state an amount. I swiped my card, entered my PIN, entered $20 then I got a serious shock. On the screen I was asked to agree to pay $5.50 for the transaction. WTF??? I hit the cancel transaction button and decided to look for another ATM, possibly even one for my bank.

I looked at the map sign and sure enough, my bank had a small branch in the airport. Only problem, it was located in an area only ticketed passengers could access. Before 9/11, a person could wonder the airport to their hearts content. Now, unless you have an airline ticket, your are limited to the airline counter and baggage pickup areas only. I attempted to go to the branch anyway but was denied entry. Crap.

The flight I was waiting for was announced as arrived so I went to the baggage claim area. I was looking for a blonde, early 50’s, a little on the chunky side. That is what the FSIL said she looked like 4 years ago, the last time he saw her. The crowd arrived and I saw someone that fit the bill. I asked the woman if she was Marla Walls, she said no, but a very slim redhead a few feet away said she was.

After meeting someone only 5 minutes earlier, is it tacky to ask them for a favor? She smiled at me, said it sounds like we are going to have some fun this weekend, then she asked me what my wife would say. I told her she would probably be okay with it and might even thank you. Then I asked to borrow $5 for parking. I explained the ATM problem and she offered to pay for the parking.

It still bunched my shorts though that a company can charge $5.50 for you to get some of your money.

2

$5.50?! :eek: If I withdrew my accounts contents I’d be left with $2.50

Lend a kid some change sir?

3

**USD 5.50?!! **

That has got to be the most expensive ATM I have ever heard of! Even the ones in Toronto airport only charge CAD 2.50, and that’s still quite a bit more than the usual price for third-party ATMs…

If that airport’s made a exclusive deal allowing only those ripoff ATMs, it’s a prime target for, at the very least, some investigative journalism.

4

The highest I’ve seen is $1.50 CDN. But everything in an airport is ridiculously overpriced.

5

This is why I am appreciative of laws in certain cities which say that no entity doing business in the airport is permitted to charge more because of their captive audience. They must limit themselves to “street prices” as determined by the elected officials which oversee the airport authority.

This is also why I’m appreciative of being a member of an airline credit union, which means that I can actually cash checks at the ticket counter, if push comes to shove, in every major airport in the US and some in Europe.

6

Definitely the most expensive ATM fee I’ve ever heard of…I hope some redneck idjit hooks the machine up to his truck and hits the gas.
As an aside:

The kid hasn’t seen his mommy in four years? And describes her like that?
I’d be in big trouble.

7

Sounds to me like the old captive audience trick; the chances are that anybody using the ATM at the airport will not be doing so out of convenience and (as in your case) would find it quite difficult, if not impossible, to actually leave and go elsewhere. It sucks.

8

Hell, the one in the scary basement of the Niteclub 9:30 charges $4. Sometimes that’s as much as the damn tickets to get in!

9

Story is that the ATM in the St. James, a topless bar in Houston, charges $9.95 for each transaction. Not that I’D know for sure, of course.

I’m guessing that the airport ATM mentioned by the OP was not bank-owned. Bank-owned machines that I’ve used at other airports seem mostly to charge $1.50.

10

Chevy Chase ATMs, which outnumber all others in public spaces here, charge $2.00.

I’d be in favor of legislation to limit fees to 50 cents.

11

Thank you bank of america!

Your service might suck, your debit cards may only work 25% of the time. But by god, every 50 feet you have an atm.

12

I saw one that was $7.50.

It was in a ummmm…nightclub of sorts.

I agree there ought to be a limit on the fee they can charge. I’m surprised enough people haven’t complained about the airport ATM to get it changed. As tlw said, there are often laws against airport gouging.

13

Minnesota put a limit on the amount that can be charged, IIRC. I think it varies from state to state. Several of the Airports I’ve been to accept credit cards to pay for parking. This totally isn’t advertised. Look for the little Visa sticker on the ramp booth, you’ll be suprised how many have them.

14

The ATM that ripped me off the most was at a concert a month or two ago. The fee was only $2.50 (on top of shared-ATM bnk fees), but I thought “Well, I’ll outsmart this, and withdraw $80-then the damage will be lessened!” So I proceed, and when the time comes to get my money, the machine whirrs, spits out a 20, and whirrs for about 5 minutes more before telling me that its out of money, and still going to charge me the 2.50 for not giving me all my money. The missing $60 was credited to my account, but still, if I’d known that there was only 20 left, I woulda left it. Thats almost 15% overhead on that withdrawal! :mad:

15

I’d fight this one…

You agreed to pay a fee of $2.50 for the withdrawal of $80 from your account.

You didn’t GET $80.00 from your account, hence you should not have to pay the service fee.

Just my $.02 worth.

16

I finally got around to switching my bank account to the bank where I work… the benefits outweigh the pain-in-the-assness of switching banks. Or so I thought.

Last week I went online to buy airline tickets, hotel and rental car for our Thanksgiving trip… The bill came to just over $1000 and my credit card number was denied.

Turns out that my “bank card” has a one-purchase limit of $500. This information, according to the teller I spoke to within an hour, was contained in the envelope with my credit card. But! I can request an extension of that amount. I request a limit of $2000 for a one-time purchase. The teller said he couldn’t make the decision and that the manager would call me. The next day I get a call from the teller. They’ll only raise it $1000 because the branch is liable if my card is stolen and someone charges to it. If it were a real credit card, Visa would be liable.

A co-worker who was a teller says this is BS… I’m too busy to figure it out right now. But I’m steamed anyway!!

Stupid bank.