My card was taken by an ATM near my hotel in Dominica. Has this happened to anyone else? Solution?
If your card is stuck, don’t panic. Head to Roseau or Portsmouth main branches right away. Smaller ATMs in gas stations or hotels don’t keep cards, they usually shred them automatically. Carry at least one backup card and some Eastern Caribbean dollars. I’d suggest withdrawing at NBD main branch in Roseau during working hours - safest option. Also keep USD, because most hotels and dive shops will happily take that if you’re waiting on your card.
Not the best experience here. My Wise Visa was eaten by a Republic Bank ATM in Portsmouth on a Friday night. By Monday morning when I got to the branch, they told me the card had already been destroyed. I had to cancel and wait for a replacement back home. Dominica is very cash-reliant, so I had to borrow some EC dollars until I sorted myself out. Best advice: don’t withdraw late at night or on weekends.
This happened to me at the NBD ATM on Cork Street near Fort Young Hotel in Roseau. I used my Monzo Mastercard, and the machine froze then swallowed it. I went to the branch the next morning and they gave it back after checking my ID. Took about half an hour. Honestly, it was less stressful than I expected. If you stick to ATMs attached to the bigger branches in Roseau, recovery is usually not a problem.
In Dominica most ATMs are run by National Bank of Dominica (NBD) and Republic Bank. If your card got swallowed, your best shot is to visit the branch during opening hours with your passport. NBD in Roseau has staff that are used to dealing with this. They’ll either return the card the next business day or confirm it was destroyed. Always call the number on the ATM right away. Don’t count on smaller machines in villages returning foreign cards.