This is sound advice and is one reason why I still hold on to my Amex Gold card. Sometimes I would also consider using it for the final settlement rather than just authorisation/blocks. I may get a 3% hit but on the Amex PRG I get 2% back for non-GBP spend and the great thing about Amex is that it is 100% DCC proof - so it protects you in places like India where even 5* hotels will commonly try to run DCC scams on guests.
I also use it when booking flights for the extra protection I get that NFH refers to.
This is so true. If American Express can successfully prohibit DCC, then why can’t Visa and MasterCard? It’s a disingenuous practice that benefits only the merchant and merchant’s acquirer, not the consumer or card network.
While DCC is rare with Amex, there are reports floating around that they changed legal agreements around 2017 and I know at least one case from a friend who had a dispute with Wells Fargo and Amex about DCC. Wells Fargo eventually refunded a couple of dollars.
Washington Post:
It’s important to note that DCC transactions currently apply almost exclusively to MasterCard and Visa. If you use an American Express card, your life is simpler and in some cases cheaper. AmEx is a closed system, without all the intervening banks and processors. The company adds a flat 2 percent currency conversion fee to overseas transactions and, aside from one merchant account, has “not had demand from merchants or cardholders for DCC,” said spokeswoman Christine Elliott. (Discover Card doesn’t add a fee for any foreign transactions, but is accepted in very few countries outside the United States.)