Don't Get Let the ATM Mug You

We've all felt the pinch: While away from home, you had to--gasp!--get money from an ATM at a bank not your own. You accept the $2.50 fee that bank charges you to use its machine. But you didn't think about the $2 fee you rown bank will slap on you for making a transaction at a foreign bank. And ATMs at hotels, restaurants, cruise ships and casinos sometimes charge as much as $7 per transaction. Ouch. Whenever possible, use your own bank's ATM. But if you're in the middle of nowhere and the only ATM available is at Joe's Bank, try this: At the grocery store, drugstore or other point of sale places, when you pay with your debit card, always choose the cash back option. There's no fee for that money.