01/07/2008 - EURO IN THE MONEY THANKS TO PRE-PAID HOLIDAY CARD

Holidaymakers worried about how the credit crunch might cast a gloomy shadow over their summer holidays can afford to breathe a sigh of relief thanks to a new Euro card, which aims to make saving for and using holiday spending money much easier

The pre-paid Titanium MasterCard Holiday Cash Card from the Money Shop, one of the fastest growing foreign exchange retailers in the UK, is freely available in all Money Shop stores.

In the lead up to a holiday to a Euro Zone destination, consumers can load an amount of Euros onto the card without incurring any commission charges and at exchange rates you will find hard to beat. This amount can then be added to prior to departure and gives holidaymakers the ability to plan and budget their holiday spending in advance.

Millions of holidaymakers are facing a sharp rise in the cost of their summer break after the pound hit a new low against the Euro. A typical spend of £1,000 on a two week family holiday to Greece, France, Spain or Italy could increase by as much as £200. Food and drink prices have also increased rapidly meaning that holidaymakers really need to take more euros than they previously have done.

Around four million Brits spend the summer holiday in one of the eurozone countries, meaning the impact of the currency shift could put another £800m on top of our annual total spend.

The Money Shop Euro card uses CHIP and PIN technology and can be used fee free at millions of retail outlets throughout Europe and also enables ATM cash withdrawals at cash machines displaying the MasterCard logo. A minimal ATM withdrawal cost is the only charge incurred by using the euro card.

The Titanium Euro card is a secure and convenient alternative to travellers cheques, with added PIN protection for ATM cash withdrawals. Also, unlike travellers cheques, users can withdraw cash in the local currency from the ATMs - thus avoiding the need to have their passport with them when they want to get cash abroad.

Neil Surgenor, foreign exchange manager of The Money Shop, said: "The introduction of our Euro card is designed to make arranging and getting access to holiday spending money easy during this tough economic climate. It combines maximum security with the convenience of a debit or credit card. As the card is also pre-loaded with euros it also means that cardholders aren't at the mercy of exchange rate fluctuations or bank charges and thus out of pocket. What a relief to also come back from holiday and not to have to dread the arrival of the credit card statement!

"This time last year holiday makers could buy the Euro for around 1.45 to the pound. The current rate of around 1.25 represents a fall of around 16 per cent or to put it another way customers will need to take 16 to 20 per cent more holiday spending money this year. For example, if a customer took £500 spending money last year we would recommend that this year they would need to take £600 to account for the downswing."

In addition to the Euro card, the Money Shop offers as standard some of the best rates on the high street regularly beating the likes of the Post Office and Marks and Spencer. All currency is bought and sold commission free helping Money Shop customers holiday money go that little bit further.