Excuse me, is the ATM not working?
BAHN-ko-mat — three syllables, stress on first. In Italy 'bancomat' refers to both ATM machines and debit card payments.
Use when you want to pay by debit card and the terminal seems to be having issues, or when asking about a nearby ATM if you need cash.
In Italy, 'bancomat' has two meanings: 1) the ATM machine itself, and 2) debit card payment. So 'pago con il bancomat' means 'I pay by debit card', not necessarily at an ATM. This dual usage can confuse foreign visitors.
C'è un bancomat nelle vicinanze?
Is there an ATM nearby?
Asking for the location of an ATM machine.
Posso pagare con il bancomat?
Can I pay by debit card?
Asking to pay by debit (not credit) card.
Il POS accetta bancomat stranieri?
Does the terminal accept foreign debit cards?
Checking international card compatibility.
'Il POS è guasto' (the terminal is broken) is a notorious phrase in Italy — sometimes genuine, sometimes used to discourage card payments. Italian banking infrastructure in cities is very reliable; in rural areas, older POS machines can genuinely malfunction. Having some cash as backup is always wise.