BANKING AND MONEY

Important Note: Checks from home--whether personal or certified--are virtually useless in England. They can only be deposited into your personal account in an English bank and they take SIX weeks to clear. Do not plan to use American checks in England!

When you arrive in Birmingham, we will assist you in opening a local bank account. A local bank account is essential, because you will be depositing your food checks into it. Checks in England cannot be cashed; they can only be deposited into an account. With your account you will receive a "Cashpoint" card which you can use to withdraw cash from automatic tellers all over Britain.

The best way to put your money into a local account is to bring your money in traveler's checks, in British pounds. (You can get traveler's checks in pounds at AAA offices.) You may want some traveller's checks in dollars for travel in Europe.

We strongly encourage you to have a debit card from your bank account in the U.S. The easiest way for your parents to get money to you is for them to deposit it in your U.S. account and for you to withdraw it using your debit card. Credit cards (Visa and Mastercard) are also useful, but of course, someone has to pay the credit card bills.

Caution: Find out what service charges your debit or credit card might have. Some charge a percentage on every purchase made in foreign currency and/or a currency conversion fee. Some debit cards do not charge these fees. Notify your bank that you will be using the card abroad. A lot of banks will suspend services abroad to protect your identity.

To withdraw money at a PLUS or CIRRUS ATM, you need a personal identification number (PIN). If your PIN is longer than four digits, you will need to get a new number. Foreign machines don't accept the longer codes. Also, if your PIN has a letter in it, check for the corresponding numbers before departure, as foreign ATMs usually display digits only.

You will need money in British pounds as soon as you arrive in England. You will be able to cash traveller's checks and to use ATM machines in the Birmingham airport. In general, if you are exchanging dollars for pounds, it is wise to avoid small transactions, since the banks charge a fee per transaction. You will need your deposit money(about £30) and incidental money to get started.

How much is a pound worth in dollars? The exchange rates fluctuate daily, but recently the pound has been worth about $1.85. You can check on the latest exchange rate on the web at www.xe.net/currency. You will find a description of British coins and bills in the last section of the Handbook.

Many countries in Europe (France, Germany, Spain, Italy, etc., but not Britain) use a common currency, called the Euro (pronounced yoor-oh. The symbol is €.) This makes traveling between countries much easier, because you don't have to exchange your money every time you go from one country to another.