Holidaymakers are being offered less than one dollar in exchange for a pound as sterling continues to struggle against other currencies.
Travellers heading to the USA and Europe have seen the value of holiday spending money diminishing as the pound plunges in fear of a no-deal Brexit.
The shocking low rate was being offered on Friday morning, by a Moneycorp exchange facility at Gatwick Airport's North terminal, where one pound bought just $0.9885, excluding fees.
This is despite the exchange market rate at the time of $1.22 for every £1, reports MoneySavingExpert.com.
Deputy editor Guy Anker said: "Airport rates are almost always hideous which is why we always say never, never, never, never buy from there.
"But this takes the biscuit as you’re being charged a 20 per cent premium on the real rate. If you need cash in any currency before you go, it’s always best to compare rates online instead."
The same airport exchange outlet was also offering just 0.89 euros for a pound - but according to MoneySavingexpert.com, that is not the worst rate that has been reported.
The firm responded with Pauline Maguire, head of retail at Moneycorp, commenting: "The reason for our higher airport rates are the significant extra costs associated with operating there – from ground rent and additional security, to the cost of staffing the bureaux for customers on early and late flights.
"However we can promise that we work hard to offer rates that are competitive against our peers and vary only by the exchange rate and the higher costs of offering this service from a particular location.
"An easy and more cost-effective way for customers to buy travel money is to pre-order online and collect at the airport.
"We always encourage our customers to do this, and increasing numbers of people are planning ahead in this way.
"We’re seeing up to 50 per cent of transactions coming from reserve and collect customers at some of our airport bureaux. Our online reserve and collect rates are always highly competitive."
