COUNTING ON ATMS ABROAD HAS ADVANTAGES AND DRAWBACKS

Automatic Teller Machines have replaced traveler's checks as the currency source of choice for people on the go, both in the United States and overseas. Machines affiliated with either of the two major international card systems, MasterCard's Cirrus and Visa's Plus, now are strategically located at airports and street corners around the globe. Both companies have Web sites that list locations worldwide, although information available online varies dramatically from country to country, as do the number of ATM locations.  In addition to making foreign cash easy and convenient to obtain, ATM transactions are calculated at bank exchange rates, providing the best rates available. The cards make it as easy for a traveler to access marks in Munich as greenbacks in Green Bay, any time of day, any day of the year.

That's the theory. As is often the case, however, actual experience can be another matter.  While both Cirrus and Plus ad vertise the universality of their cards, both machine operation and banking regulations vary from country to country and bank to bank. For example, ATM machines in countries such as England only allow travelers access to funds from a primary account. If your primary ATM account is to your checking account, any cash stashed in a secondary money market or savings account will be out of reach, and there is no convenient way to transfer funds between accounts from afar. That's not a problem, if the traveler knows in advance and can make the necessary adjustments before leaving home. On the other hand, it can be a real problem if not discovered before you have a desperate yen for yen some Sunday morning in Tokyo. Also, although difficult to believe, there are still many places on the planet with no cash machines within a thousand miles.  And the amount of cash that can be withdrawn at one time or in any single 24-hour period also will be limited; the maximum may be determined both by a traveler's home bank and the bank that operates the machine. Systems also may have weekly ceilings limiting how much cash a cardholder can get. That amount may be as little as $100.  The cost of each transaction can also differ. While the exchange rates are usually excellent, the local bank may charge a fixed fee of up to $3 per transaction. So if you require only a few dollars of foreign currency, the fees can be usurious. And if you need a lot of money, you may have to make multiple transactions and pay a fee for each one. Furthermore, you probably won't find out about the fees until you get home and review your monthly statement.  And, of course, cards are always subject to being lost, stolen, demagnetized and eaten by the local ATM machine. Banking machines can be down, and computer systems can crash just when you need cash.  The bottom line? ATMs do make it easier and cheaper to get cash anywhere, but you'll never be confident your card will work until you get there and try to use it. And you also never really know how much cash you'll be able to get at one time or how often.  That's why smart travelers take and use their ATM cards wherever they go, and they always make sure to have other credit card and cash options available.  MasterCard/Cirrus ATMs online: www.mastercard.com/atm. For Visa/Plus: www.visa.com/cgi-bin/vee/pd/atm.

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