Paying fees to access their own money abroad is the biggest gripe Brits have about their bank, a new survey has revealed.

ATM charges of up to £2 per withdrawal and less-than-favourable exchange rates when shopping overseas make using UK-issued plastic an expensive option for holidaymakers.

These hidden costs of travel were criticised by a staggering 57.6% of consumers, while the fact that banks are often closed when you need them was listed as the second major irritant (28.4%).

Paul Smith, managing director of prepaid MasterCard specialist EZPay Ltd, which commissioned the poll, said the results showed how savvy consumers were starting to get wise to bank fees.

“The big high street financial institutions happily promote the ease of using UK debit and credit cards abroad, but it is disingenuous to highlight convenience without talking about the exorbitant charges,” he said.

Just over one quarter of consumers said they had no complaints whatsoever about their bank (27%), though this figure is tempered slightly by the 3.9% who refuse to have an account at all. Also criticised was the way banks make it easy to slip in to the red and clock up charges, with 10.2% of consumers complaining they don’t trust themselves to live within their means and not get hit with overdraft charges.

With pre-paid cards, such as the Escape Travel Money card from EZPay, holidaymakers can avoid fees when spending or withdrawing cash overseas. Card holders load the card with cash in advance, meaning they are unable to spend money they don’t have and don’t lose their hard-earned cash in fees and charges.

For more information and to start saving money when travelling aboard please visit www.escapetravelmoneycard.com.