elskel
Nomad
Posts: 449
Registered: 10-9-2006
Location: Laguna Beach & Pescadero BCS
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atm - bank of America debit cards
Hola: Does bank of America have any affiliation with a bank in Mexico? I thought I saw awhile back they did. If so are the fees less when using the B
of A card at this banks atm?
thanks brian
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bajaguy
Elite Nomad
Posts: 9247
Registered: 9-16-2003
Location: Carson City, NV/Ensenada - Baja Country Club
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Mood: must be 5 O'clock somewhere in Baja
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I believe that BofA has a working relationship with Scotia Inverlat and Santander Serfin. There should be no fee when you use your BofA ATM card at
these two banks
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bajabound2005
Ultra Nomad
Posts: 2760
Registered: 10-15-2005
Location: Punta Banda, BCN
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Mood: words cannot describe...
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santandir for sure has a relationship; but you might have to have a certain type of acct. When you're set up; no fees on either end!
[Edited on 10-29-2006 by bajabound2005]
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bajaguy
Elite Nomad
Posts: 9247
Registered: 9-16-2003
Location: Carson City, NV/Ensenada - Baja Country Club
Member Is Offline
Mood: must be 5 O'clock somewhere in Baja
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we used the Scotia ATM in the Commercial Mexicano last weekend. Withdrew 1000 pesos, was $93 out of our US bank and a $.93 cent service fee added.
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bill erhardt
Super Nomad
Posts: 1372
Registered: 4-2-2005
Location: Loreto, BCS
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I use my BOA debit card at Bancomer in Loreto. it is the only game in town. Bancomer charges a fee of 1%.
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toneart
Ultra Nomad
Posts: 4901
Registered: 7-23-2006
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Mood: Skeptical
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There is no ATM in Mulege. Santander is a B of A affiliate. Santander bank spoke to the community in October about putting one in, and possibly even a
small branch bank. Now that Bruce is leaving, we really need that. We have to go to Santa Rosalia which only has two banks; Bancomer and Banamex.
These are very poor options, not only because of the inconvenience of having to drive that distance, but also because the service there is
unacceptably poor. I know, I know! Mexico teaches you patience, but when it comes to the handling of money, they have to join the modern,international
banking world.
I closed my account at Bancomer because the lines are so long, and the bank officers you have to wait for to do almost everything before you can stand
in the teller lines, seem not to care. Their systems are archaic and s-l-o-o-o-w. They wouldn't even accept a Bank of America Cashier's Check that I
had brought to open the account. Travelers' checks are not an option. They are not honored in most business and you still have to go through the
hassel at the banks.
When I tried to use my B of A debit card in the Bancomer ATM, it would only give me 1500 pesos. When I went to the female bank officer to ask why the
restriction, she snapped, "the fault is with your bank, not ours." Upon returning to California, my B of A branch refuted that, saying that indeed, my
daily limit is $700.00 anywhere in the world. The Banamex ATM across the street from Bancomer in Santa Rosalia wouldn't even recognize my debit card
and would give me nothing.
Then the worst case scenario occurred when I brought cash down to clean up my casita and do repairs after the great flood from Hurricane John....I had
my truck broken into and lost $4000.00 cash....all the cash I had brought to try and restore my house. No, nobody saw me stash it. Needless to say, I
had to head for the border without being able to accomplish much. You may wonder why I was stupid enough to hide cash in my truck? What are the
options? Carry it on you in a money belt, hide it in your hotel room, or hide it in your vehicle? I had carried it for five sweaty days in my money
belt. It was so very hot while I was working in my house, that I decided to take a chance and hide it in a plastic baby wipes box, under lots of stuff
in the truck. The owner of Las Casitas Hotel,where I was staying, in the town of Mulege ,told me, "Park in front of the hotel. There are bright lights
and I have a night watchman, all night.. We never have problems here." There was no night watchman and I found out that there had been "problems"
there in the past. Reporting it to the police was a joke. The incident happened in the early morning hours of Saturday. When the hotel owner called
the police for me later on Saturday morning, they said they would come and take fingerprints. They never showed up. They are only 1 1/2 blocks away.
On Monday morning I went to the Policia Judiciales to make a report. I had to wait in line for 2 1/2 hours for the clerk to take my report. All the
while, the main cop there did not offer to talk to me. He was busy watching cartoons on TV. When the clerk finally did take my report, she had to keep
consulting with the Cartoon Cop. He finally listened to my story. He got very interested when he found out the amount. His eyes widened and he said,
"Mucho dinero!"When I asked for a copy of the report, they said I couldn't have one. They hadn't even entered the report into their computer. I
insisted on a copy and they reluctantly entered it into the computer and printed one out.
It would seem that there is a rico nuevo spending $100.00 bills like a drunken sailor. No such person, to my knowledge, has stood out.
This is a long story, but be very careful with your money in Mulege. People are watching your every move and they know you have cash to repair your
house. They know what you drive and where you are staying. They also know that if they look, they will find it.
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