A dispute at the currency exchange: short-changed, wrong rate, no receipt — who to call and how to get your money back

A dispute with an exchange bureau has one cruel feature: it is a cash transaction, and nearly all your bargaining power evaporates the moment you step away from the window. So the instructions start not with 'where to complain' but with what to do in thirty seconds at the counter. Then — scenario by scenario.

Why is everything decided at the counter?

Three habits win nine disputes out of ten before they start. First: ask for the final figure — 'how much do I get in hand for my £500' — and photograph it on the board or on paper BEFORE handing over money. Second: count what you receive without stepping away, in front of the cashier, note by note — 'I'll count at home' does not work, a departed customer's claim is unprovable, and short-changing is built on exactly that. Third: always take the receipt — in a dispute it becomes the key document: outlet, time, amount, rate. If something does not add up — do not leave: demand a recount or a reversal of the transaction on the spot and ask for the manager.

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Short-changed — what do you do?

Caught at the counter, a recount in front of the cashier settles it immediately: they either top it up or cancel the whole transaction. Noticed later — the odds drop, but not to zero: write a formal complaint to the outlet's legal entity (the company name is on the receipt or by the entrance; details are free on Companies House) with the exact time, till number and amount, and ask them to reconcile the till for the shift and review the CCTV — chain operators have both, and a till discrepancy shows up in reconciliation. Refusal or 14 days of silence — an online money claim: for sums up to £300 the fee is just £35, recovered from the loser. If you believe the short-changing was deliberate — report to the police on 101 in parallel: systematic short-changing is not a service dispute but fraud.

Exchanged at the wrong rate?

The rate in the window is a public offer, and a transaction at a worse rate than advertised is classic misleading of a consumer. On the spot: photograph the board, photograph the receipt, demand a recalculation at the advertised rate or a cancellation. If that fails — two moves. A written complaint to the legal entity demanding the difference (attach both photos — the case is self-evident). And a call to the Citizens Advice consumer helpline, 0808 223 1133 (free, Mon-Fri 9am-5pm): individuals cannot report to Trading Standards directly — the helpline advisers pass cases to the inspectors, and 'one rate in the window, another on the receipt' is exactly the kind of simple, provable practice they act on.

No receipt?

Before the deal it is simple: no receipt — no transaction, walk away. After the fact — record the outlet (photo of the sign, address, time), and if you paid by card, keep the statement: it replaces the receipt as proof of amount and time. Then check the outlet against HMRC's open supervised register, as we showed in the bureau catalogue: legal outlets issue receipts by default, and a 'receipt-free' till is a typical sign of an unregistered business — worth reporting to HMRC via their form, which can be done anonymously and works.

Handed a counterfeit note?

The worst scenario, and one to handle carefully. Above all — do not try to spend it: passing a note you know or believe to be counterfeit is an offence carrying up to 10 years under the Forgery and Counterfeiting Act 1981. There is no compensation for counterfeits — the Bank of England does not exchange them. The right route is the police: they will complete an NCO-1 form, give you a receipt and an incident number, and send the note for examination to the NCA and the Bank of England. This is where the bureau's receipt turns to gold: it ties the counterfeit to a specific outlet and turns your loss into a case against it. A tip-off about an outlet passing fakes can be made anonymously to Crimestoppers: 0800 555 111. How to check notes as you receive them — clear windows, holograms, polymer — is in our banknotes guide.

The cheat sheet: who to call and where to write

Keep the escalation order. At the counter: recount, manager, cancellation. Citizens Advice consumer helpline — 0808 223 1133, free, Mon-Fri 9am-5pm: advice plus referral to Trading Standards. Police — 101 (deliberate short-changing, counterfeits; for a fake note — the NCO-1 form and an incident number). Crimestoppers, anonymously — 0800 555 111. HMRC — the online form for unregistered exchange businesses. The endgame — a written complaint to the legal entity with a 14-day deadline and an online money claim: up to £300 the fee is £35, up to £500 — £50, ultimately paid by the loser. And remember the first rule from the ONLYWAY.NEWS catalogue: one minute checking an outlet against the register before the deal saves weeks of disputes after it.