What percentage of businesses try to rip you off in Argentina?

[SecretShopper]

Now, I'm the type of person where it will take a lot for something or someone to make me upset. This is simply because I enjoy my life and I ignore things that I don't consider important. But one thing that definitely annoys me is people trying to steal my money. Now this is worldwide phenomenon of business literally attempting to steal your money however they can. Based on my travels, here are my top offenders:

1. MEXICO - Mexico is number 1 by a looooooooong shot. There is no other country in the world that tries to rip you off at every step like Mexico does. Workers are literally trained to do it. Examples:
   • Every bar, restaurant, club, whatever (OK not every one of obviously) - A lot of places have 2 separate card readers, one for locals and one for tourist that will charge in dollar at the conveniently horrible exchange rate and a 15 percent fee to do the conversion. My cards have no international exchange fees and uses the real conversion rates, so I don't go for this. My response.. "La otra machina"... after they try to explain that because my card is American and they have to use this machine, my response changes to "La otra puta machina." After enough time in a location people start to remember me and stop trying it.
   • Taxis - Mexico taxis don't use meters and lots of areas don't have Uber. Enough said lol. But it's not as bad for me because I'm fluent in Spanish and don't have the worst gringo accent. But talking to others. Nightmare for them. Paying 5x more easily.
   • Basically everyone other industry.. rental cars, boat trips, you name it.
2. The European Union countries - This is mostly based around them trying to charge you in dollars with your card. The machines they use will ask which currency to pay in. They always to get you to pay in dollars with slick wording or whatever. TIP: no matter what they say, if a receipt shows dollars, even if it also shows the local currency, they charged you in dollars at a very bad conversion rate and other fees. Also, the biggest scum of the earth taxis are in the EU. Simply avoid them.

I'm actually realizing how long it would take to complete this post... so I'm going to stop and just ask what is it like in Argentina? I've only been there for like 4 days out of my life lol.

 

[jlynch]

What you talk about is dynamic currency conversion (DCC) and it happens everywhere there are foreign tourists in (airports/hotels/restaurants/tour &activity providers) and should be banned! The margin, typically 5-6 per cent sometimes more, is split between the trader and their provider it seems. https://www.investopedia.com/dynamic-currency-conversion-dcc-term-4769305

 

[antipodean]

That card function is available to merchants literally everywhere on earth and noticed whenever you are spending in a currency different to that your card is set in. It also exists in the USA and hotels there often promote it. Don't be a dumb tourist and you'll be fine anywhere on earth for that one.
In Argentina you must go one step further however and never use a foreign card or you'll pay at official rate and thus 50-80% more than you would have if paying in cash or local funds received via WU/ CCL/ Blue etc. It's not a scam, it's the government rules (on second thoughts...)

I don't find many businesses in Argentina try to rip you off as a business model per-se... like I feel in many other places around the world that are more centred on tourism or bargaining. Here they are just terribly lazy or incompetent when it comes to fixing problems or doing as they say they will do. Often the "I can't be bothered" attitudes of employees mean they try and slip something to you that is not what you paid for hoping you won't notice - but they are not doing that for money. You complain long and loud enough and you get your money back or problem solved - but be prepared for a clash of egos.

Perhaps however, like anywhere, many handymen and mechanics will inflate problems to make more money.

Taxis are also generally pretty honest, if not a little abrasive in their demeanour. Of course like anywhere in the world, even the USA, look like a tourist and someone will always be waiting to take you for a ride.

The biggest issue I have living here are actually big companies and service providers offering one thing and delivering another - leaving you with almost no recourse other than cutting the service and going without since there is little or no choice in the market.

 

[Redpossum]

I find that when I move to a new neighborhood, everyone at first charges me the invisible "impuesto yanqui", because they think we are all dipped in silver ("bañado en plata") or something. After a few months of being a regular, that stops.

I do have to watch the clerks at the Carrefour when getting my change. They will try that business of forgetting the hundreds. Like if I buy something for 230 pesos and give them a 500 peso note. They will give me back 70 pesos and tell me to have a nice day. Usually if I just stare at them and keep holding out my hand they suddenly remember.

 

[SecretShopper]

What you talk about is dynamic currency conversion (DCC) and it happens everywhere there are foreign tourists in (airports/hotels/restaurants/tour &activity providers) and should be banned! The margin, typically 5-6 per cent sometimes more, is split between the trader and their provider it seems. https://www.investopedia.com/dynamic-currency-conversion-dcc-term-4769305

I always pay in the currency of the country that I am in. And I make sure I can see the machines they are using so that they don't select anything to do a conversion. But it is quite annoying to also be on the lookout for it.

 

[SecretShopper]

That card function is available to merchants literally everywhere on earth and noticed whenever you are spending in a currency different to that your card is set in. It also exists in the USA and hotels there often promote it. Don't be a dumb tourist and you'll be fine anywhere on earth for that one.
In Argentina you must go one step further however and never use a foreign card or you'll pay at official rate and thus 50-80% more than you would have if paying in cash or local funds received via WU/ CCL/ Blue etc. It's not a scam, it's the government rules (on second thoughts...)

I don't find many businesses in Argentina try to rip you off as a business model per-se... like I feel in many other places around the world that are more centred on tourism or bargaining. Here they are just terribly lazy or incompetent when it comes to fixing problems or doing as they say they will do. Often the "I can't be bothered" attitudes of employees mean they try and slip something to you that is not what you paid for hoping you won't notice - but they are not doing that for money. You complain long and loud enough and you get your money back or problem solved - but be prepared for a clash of egos.

Perhaps however, like anywhere, many handymen and mechanics will inflate problems to make more money.

Taxis are also generally pretty honest, if not a little abrasive in their demeanour. Of course like anywhere in the world, even the USA, look like a tourist and someone will always be waiting to take you for a ride.

The biggest issue I have living here are actually big companies and service providers offering one thing and delivering another - leaving you with almost no recourse other than cutting the service and going without since there is little or no choice in the market.

Trust me, I know that it exists in the US. That's true even if you are not a tourist. Just a couple days ago here in Miami at a restaurant I got into it with the staff for assuming I was leaving an 18 dollar tip on a 22 dollar tap. They were fighting to not give me back change.

 

[¡Sencillamente yo!]

Trust me, I know that it exists in the US. That's true even if you are not a tourist. Just a couple days ago here in Miami at a restaurant I got into it with the staff for assuming I was leaving an 18 dollar tip on a 22 dollar tap. They were fighting to not give me back change.

All this can be sidestepped if you use cash. (Not practical all the time, but no one can turn your bank notes into a higher value and make you responsible for the higher charge.)

 

[Ronnie Hotdogs]

Taxi drivers used to drive you round and round if you didn’t know your way.
They’d also take a 100 pesos note and swap it for a fake and give you back the fake and keep the good one. Back when the pesos was worth 0.25 dollars!

Other than that can’t really say I’ve been ripped off? Maybe I don’t look and sound like I’m fresh off the boat.

 

[Iznogud]

Getting sick of Cablevision.
Image quality sucks. Decent enough for a 28' TTL (tube) but not for any flat screen bigger than that. Air (free) signal is much much better, WTF with that?
Advertising. Too much.

Fibertel has gotten the bad habit of going belly up on holidays or the night before.

The worst, for the past couple of years our @fibertel.com.ar has been bouncing off mails to hotmail and live.com The fibertel server serving us was, is, remains and will likely continue to be blacklisted. The person at the other end of rhe line, somewhere in Cordoba, is either unaware of the issue -you don't say, Sherlock!- or is actively working on it and it will be ironed out at soonest.

Iz

 

[SecretShopper]

All this can be sidestepped if you use cash. (Not practical all the time, but no one can turn your bank notes into a higher value and make you responsible for the higher charge.)

This was cash lol