Difficulty using Moneybookers, can anyone help?

[Beryl]

I am setting up an account with Money Bookers to tranfer money from my UK bank account to my French one.

However, when I try to upload funds, it tells me that that I have to transfer funds from my UK bank to the Money Booker bank in Paris in EUROS.

This kind of defeats the obect of using Money bookers,  if I have to pay my UK commission for changing sterling in to euros, I might as well get my UK bank to transfer the money straight into my French bank!

What am I doing wrong?

[Cjlaws]

I think you have to specify a currency for your Moneybookers account when you open it. It has to be in the currency of the country where you live. There is a difference between paying a commission on converting Sterling to Euros and paying bank charges on the transfer, which is where Moneybookers are much cheaper.

I hope that makes sense.

[adodson]

hi, we had the same problems with our account when we set it up.  we contacted moneybookers who gave us their english bank details.  so now we do a normal bacs transfer (sterling) from our english bank into their bank account.  once the money is uploaded to the moneybookers account we can withdraw it in euros to our french account.

 

hope this helps

[fulcrum]

Just out of interest. What guarantees can Moneybookers give you that your money is safe and secure whilst in their custody? What protection do customers have if they go bust.

[Juswundrin]

Not much.

"Moneybookers is regulated by the Financial Services Authority of the United Kingdom (FSA). FSA regulation means that Moneybookers must comply with a whole set of regulatory requirements regarding asset/liability and float management, consumer protection and risk prevention."

Whatever that means; unlike banks, they're certainly not covered by the FSA's guarantee to cover all of the first £2000, plus 90% of the next 30-odd thousand.

I'm happy to transfer spending money, and we used them for a few thousand to buy our car, but I'd never risk using them as a substitute for the currency house when, for example, buying a property.

[Beryl]

Thank you I will contact them.

I had been using a 'fixed contract' type of company where the exchange rate is set but you have to commit for 12 months. I would rather have the flexibility that Moneybookers appears to give...when I can just get my account working.