I really hope your card is stolen someday...

[Eevie]

Background: I work in a mall aquarium. Whenever a purchase is made by card, we are required to check for ID. No matter how small the purchase is. No ID? No sale. /end background

I'm working in the gift shop today and a man with a stroller comes the cash desk. His purchases include a HUGE $60 stuffed Green Sea Turtle, and a $20 glass jellyfish. After tax, almost $90. He tries to pay with a card and I ask for ID. But when I look, his name is not the one on the card, which had an EXTREMELY feminine name on it. Now normally this would be okay if the last names matched (as this tends to be the case with family running each others' cards), but nothing like that here. I immediately knew that this was going to be fun.

Me: (glancing between the drivers' license and card) "Uh, sir..."

SC: "Oh yeah, it's my wife's card. Sorry!"

Me: "Is she here? I'm afraid I won't be able run this card."

SC: (stares) "Are you kidding me?"

Me: " Sir, it's the rules. Your name and the name on the card don't match. I'm not allowed to run this."

SC: "You've got to be kidding me! Yes, that's her card, but the account is under my name, I make all the money! I can tell you everything about her! Her age, phone number, social security number, come on! This is ridiculous!"

Me: "I can call a manager is you like, sir. I mean, there's nothing I can do here."

SC: "I can call her and she can tell you that it's hers!"

Me: "Sir, unless she's here, then that wouldn't make a difference."

SC: "Fine, call a manager!"

*The Duty Manager (DM) is called and lucky for me, while it's a manager I'm not on the best terms with, he's one of my few managers that doesn't tolerate bullshit like this. Even better is how he never seems to show emotion which will often take all the fire out of an SC seeing as it's not the reaction they expect to get.*

I'll skip the next few sentences, mainly just my manager trying to find ways that the guy could use his card (which I had already tried) and eventually says exactly what I wanted to hear...

DM: "Sorry sir, I'm afraid we can't run this card."

SC: "ARE YOU F*%^$&@ SH*&%*# ME?!"

DM: "Sir, calm down. Do not use that language; there are children here."

SC: "This is so stupid! This is my wife's card! *holds up phone* Here this is her mother, she can confirm it for you!"

DM: "No sir, you can't do that."

SC: "I don't understand why you guys are refusing money!" *Looks at DM* Is there an ATM in this mall?

DM: "Down the hall, on the right."

*DM starts walking away when...*

SC: "Hold on, I got her on the phone! *Thrusts it at me* Here, talk to her, she'll tell you it's her card!"

I look past SC at my DM and see him wildly shaking his head "no" and mouthing the word. Yep, this outta be good.

Me: No, sir, I can't take that..."

SC: *whips around, towards my manager, arm extended with the phone in hand* "Here, take it. She'll tell you!"

*Manager refuses as well and this guy bolts back into the mall with the stroller, towards the ATM. I knew given how much of a fight he put up with us, I know I hadn't seen the last of him.*

Sure enough, ten minutes later, he's back. With five 20s. I rang him up, and throughout the transaction he's complaining about our system.

SC: "I don't understand why you guys won't take the money! You need to get rid of that stupid card rule. It's not like you're a security company!"

Yes, he said security company. How that had any relevance is lost on me.

Rather obvious stolen card. I hope his is stolen one day and he'll be pissed off that no one decided to check his ID. Seriously, if I'm making a gigantic purchase like he was, then I'd be more than happy to share my ID. Hell, it's more than welcome.

What's most ridiculous is throughout the entire exchange, he kept calling people on his phone to back him up. Come on, dude, you fucked up. Fight your own damn battles.

Till next time, everyone.

[KhirasHY]

I get that so much...along with people who want to pay with a credit card over the phone, and don't understand we need signed authorizations for that. They can't understand that, in a world of fraud, we're just not going to let them potentially screw us.

I hate these people.

Even better are the Power Combos: He has an ID, but no card. She has a card, but no ID! AAARRRGGGHHH!!!!

[Eevie]

Oh jeez. Don't even get me started. These would also be the same people who would scream to high heaven about purchases from their stolen cards. "Oh but, why didn't 't anyone ask for ID!?"

I had a good laugh about with some customers later who thanked me for checking for ID. They were almost crying by the time I told them about the "security company" bit. Definitely some cool people.

[Racket_Man]

Oh jeez. Don't even get me started. These would also be the same people who would scream to high heaven about purchases from their stolen cards. "Oh but, why didn't 't anyone ask for ID!?"

.

The reason most places DO NOT check ID is that it is against the merchant agreement with the CC company. check the fine print and you will see that in legalise language.

[Kittish]

The reason most places DO NOT check ID is that it is against the merchant agreement with the CC company. check the fine print and you will see that in legalise language.

Maybe off topic a bit but I'm gonna go out on a limb and guess there's a reason this is the policy of most CC companies. That reason? So if/when a customer disputes a charge the merchant will be liable. *shrug* Just my guess.

[otakuneko]

Maybe off topic a bit but I'm gonna go out on a limb and guess there's a reason this is the policy of most CC companies. That reason? So if/when a customer disputes a charge the merchant will be liable. *shrug* Just my guess.

Probably not, as the consequences of being found violating the merchant agreement could be far more damaging than being on the hook for fraudulent transactions, and fake IDs are prevalent enough I don't think checking ID would cause any sort of liability shift.

However, it's really a rather moot point in the OP's case since the SC in the OP willingly showed ID and the sale was denied based on that ID not matching the credit card, not the refusal to show ID. With the SC's attitude and the non-matching ID, the refusal is perfectly legit.

Also, as I pointed out before in another thread, while the merchant agreement does prohibit denying a sale based on refusal to present ID, it does not prohibit making a Code 10 call on it. Come to think of it I'm not sure why Eevie or Manager didn't make one on this customer...

For my part I'll show my ID anyway, even though I'd be right to refuse. I have my address and license number covered up (slips of paper and tape in the ID window), so they can't see any sensitive information. I've never had a cashier object to this.

[Sleepwalker]

The true trifecta is when they have no ID, their card actually has 'see id' written in the sig strip(yes, I know, that's invalid, bla bla), and then they get mad at you for asking for id. It goes beyond suck into 'am I on candid camera?'.

[BookstoreEscapee]

The true trifecta is when they have no ID, their card actually has 'see id' written in the sig strip(yes, I know, that's invalid, bla bla), and then they get mad at you for asking for id. It goes beyond suck into 'am I on candid camera?'.

I did that on one card as an experiment. In four years I think I got asked twice. And once I was asked why it said that, and I told her exactly why ("to see if anyone actually pays attention") and she just said "oh" and finished the transaction without actually asking for my ID.

[Captain Trips]

I always write "see id" next to my signature. I actually get a bit upset if they don't - more upset for higher-dollar purchases.

PLEASE check my ID. I want the added security, and the extra ten seconds it takes really won't make-or-break my day.

[Eevie]

Also, as I pointed out before in another thread, while the merchant agreement does prohibit denying a sale based on refusal to present ID, it does not prohibit making a Code 10 call on it. Come to think of it I'm not sure why Eevie or Manager didn't make one on this customer...

We were close. If he had gotten a little more aggressive, we would've (assuming Code 10 means police call in this case). But given the amount of families with young children, it's very much a last resort. Pretty much after my manager told him to calm down, his voice went down to slightly above normal volume. It was clear he was pissed, but not enough a threat to warrant that.

[Mytical]

I did that on one card as an experiment. In four years I think I got asked twice. And once I was asked why it said that, and I told her exactly why ("to see if anyone actually pays attention") and she just said "oh" and finished the transaction without actually asking for my ID.

*nods* I've had 'Check ID' on my card for years (I use debit/credit card from my bank because I do not want a regular credit card).. I think 8. I have been asked 1 time for my ID. 1 time in 8 years...

[partsgrunt]

... I intentionally "don't see" that on cards. After all, if they aren't signed, they aren't valid, and we're not supposed to accept them.

[prjkt]

This happened to me a few times:
"I can't accept this card, it's not signed"
*cust signs it* "now it is"
"Now I need ID"

Most people here are ok with that, I've only rarely asked a customer to re-sign so it looks like the signature on the card, even rarer still that they get upset (why would you get upset, it's for your protection?)

[otakuneko]

We were close. If he had gotten a little more aggressive, we would've (assuming Code 10 means police call in this case). But given the amount of families with young children, it's very much a last resort. Pretty much after my manager told him to calm down, his voice went down to slightly above normal volume. It was clear he was pissed, but not enough a threat to warrant that.

Close, but not police. You call Visa for example--not the issuing bank, directly to Visa--and they will determine next steps, up to and including alerting police. Visa has a whole section on how to handle this discreetly in one of their merchant guidebooks.

[Eevie]

Close, but not police. You call Visa for example--not the issuing bank, directly to Visa--and they will determine next steps, up to and including alerting police. Visa has a whole section on how to handle this discreetly in one of their merchant guidebooks.

Oh gotcha. Yeah, we're not allowed to do any of that. For the record, most of my managers are idiots who really don't give two shits about the customer's finances, they only want to make sure they're safe. I need to have an MiM thread for some of the bullshit I've had to put up with around my managers. I have quite the list.