There are a few things in life quite as disgraceful as being charged to take your own money out of an ATM.
But while you might think a couple of quid in the UK is pretty galling, New Yorkers are having to pay 'crazy' amounts to access their accounts.
An increasing number of shops and restaurants are card only, but in some neighbourhoods in the Big Apple cash is still king.
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Plenty of people, however, realise this fact all too late, usually when the bill comes, and they're left racing around the streets looking for a hole in the wall.
Unlucky locals stung by the charge fees have reported having to pay $17 at an ATM 46 Mott Street, between Bayard and Pell.
But that's nothing compared to what Seattle tourist Solessia Loyal had to fork out.
She was in town to see her daughter and had gone out to celebrate her birthday last week.
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After being warned about the $17 charge on Mott Street, she went to another machine and tried to take out $200, only to see just $80 come out.
Ms Loyal joked later that 'it would have been a cheaper hit' if she'd just taken the $17 hit.
A lawyer from Manhattan, who didn't want to be named, told the New York Post that he was eating out when he needed to get some money for the bill.
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The 45-year-old went round the corner and tried to take some cash out, but said: "I saw the fee was $17 and I hit 'decline'."
Speaking about the charges, another tourist, Heather Stone, from St. Louis, said she couldn't believe it.
"They are out of their f***ing minds!.
"You expect things to be expensive in New York but to be charged for your own money in this economy is crazy."
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Wellington Chen, who is the director of the Chinatown Business Improvement District, warned tourists about the charges, telling them to go to banks.
Mr Chen said: "There are at least 30 banks in Chinatown. Every major corner has one.
"I highly encourage customers to use these banks and avoid the exorbitant fees."
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A spokesperson for New York's Department of Financial Services said there are no exact rules around ATM charges and that it's only when there is evidence of 'deceptive conduct' that the body would get involved.
It said: "For example, if the ATM was charging fees without disclosing it to the user."
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Dominic Smithers