We can AGREE to DIS-AGREE... I'll I keep my license in my wallet... IF VISA/MC/AMEX/DISCOVERCARD MADE IT A REQUIREMENT...I WOULD HAVE TO GO ALONG WITH IT...OR GIVE UP THE CREDIT CARDS...
PERSONAL INFORMATION Merchants may ask you to provide a phone number, home address, or other personal information on credit card sales slips. This practice not only violates your privacy, but American Express, MasterCard, and Visa prohibit requiring it as a condition of sale. There is no need for merchants to obtain phone numbers or other personal information from customers. Once they have correctly processed the bank card transaction (gotten an authorization number and made sure the signatures match), they are guaranteed to receive payment. Just to help clarify. It is NOT illegal for a privately owned company to ask you for any sort of id they want to. As noted above it's against procedures of Visa, Master Card, et al. But that's not against the law. It IS against the law for a Gov't agency to refuse you service unless you supply your SSN. I think that's where the confusion comes from.
If there is a QUESTION about the card or signature or you have a WOMAN WITH A NAME ON THE CARD OF FRED~~~FINE...but to just WITH-OUT "PROBABLE CAUSE" ask 100% of the people for ID...JUST BECAUSE...I WON'T ACCEPT THAT...
The laws relate to RECORDING information such as addresses, phone numbers and the like. A few years back, Radio Shack, for example, was particularly aggressive about requiring IDs for credit card purchases so that they could update their MARKETING databases. Think about minimum wage clerks having your credit card numbers, expiration dates and ALL of the information on your drivers license. I remember some cases of identity theft were directly linked to this practice in the late 80s. This issue has resurfaced recently with the mag stripes on drivers licenses in some states.
I just telephoned American Express and asked them if it is against their policy for a merchant to request photo ID. They said (direct quote): "Absolutely not. About 3% of our merchants require photo ID. It is strictly up to them." We see stuff like what Butch quoted all over the net, but that's just garbage. It's not Butch's fault -- it's a common belief, and it's stated in very official-sounding sentences by so-called experts all the time. However, it's an urban legend. It's just untrue. Maybe it was true at one time, I don't know. The real deal is this: It doesn't violate any VISA, MasterCard, or American Express policy for a merchant to request a photo ID. Neither does it violate "The LAW" (as the title of this thread puts it, lol). George, if you're going to refuse to provide a photo ID, at least know that it's your personal policy and isn't grounded in any law or credit card company term of service. Doc
Yup. That's always been my thought process, too. I've even been known to gently ask the cashier to please actually LOOK at the card she's taking, because as far as she knows, it might not be mine. I have noticed lately, though, that a lot more of the people taking my cards have actually done as I asked and asked for ID.
OK...YOU GET ALL YOUR BUDDIES TOGETHER TO MAKE A LAW THAT "ID REQUIRED" AT ALL BUSINESSES THAT ACCEPT CREDIT CARDS...and I will get out of the credit card business 100%...
George, the point is that there is no law which prevents a merchant from asking for your ID. There's also no law requiring that they do it. Bottom line: there is no law. It's just up to them. Doc
I just quoted from the link you guy's posted. Requesting reasonable id may not be against their "procedure", but it would make sense to me that Visa, Master card et al, wouldn't want the merchant to over do it. After all the CC company already has all the information necessry to get ahold of you if there's a problem so there's really no need for the Merchant to "over do it" by requiring a Urine, Stool Sample and Finger Prints with your purchase. I'm with Doc anyway. I see no problem providing id with my card.
I agree with that! Imagine this: You're with a date at a very upscale restaurant. You present your AmEx Platinum Card at the end of a wonderful time. The waiter then says, "Sorry, sir, can I see your driver's license?" ::groan:: Sure, they can do it, but that's surely one of those transcendant-wannabe moments -- escape your skin and channel to Pluto ASAP. Doc
Slightly O.T., but still related.. Just read today in the SF Bay area news..a 19 y/o employed by Home Depot in Pleasanton,CA was arrested for writing down customer cc#'s & info, then using that info to make over $30k in "gift card" charges....So the potential is always there for identity theft as well as fraud being perpetrated on the customer with or without additional I.D.
Then the Discover to go card is just a waste of time, imho - ya stick it on your keychain, possibly becuase you don't want to have to carry your purse/wallet with you when you go somewhere. So what is the point of whipping out your keys with the Discover card on it, and then being asked for ID? Kind of ruins the whole selling point of the card, no? Ozzy.
I've posted about this before and never got much of a response, so I started taking it up with the offenders (stores/restaurants) individually. Have actually had some limited success with changes being made to the receipt! Many stores and restaurants print your card # on the receipt AND YOUR FREAKIN' NAME! I can see the last 4 digits of your card or similar, but that's no different than losing your card, imho. Unless your Joe Smith, in NY, NY, where there could be 100's of you... if you've got a not-so-run-of the mill last name and live in a small place, what's the problem with a thief opening up the phone book (or an internet search), finding your address, and goin' to town on the internet with your card - while your card is still in your wallet??!! I like that some e-tailers now ask for the CIC # (is that what's it's called??) - the 3 digit number on the back of your card for added security. That's wonderful. But I'll never understand why on earth more people don't complain about all that info on your receipt - many people just throw their receipts away when they get gas and pay at the pump - or leave their receipt on the table at a restaurant - that's just an open invitation to someone using your card! (yeah, I'm a little passionate about this topic.. sorry to rant!) Ozzy.
It's staggering how many merchants will run your credit card without even looking at the card to see what the name is on it. Even if it's a policy with the merchant to check, the policy will be routinely ignored by employees. Fewer are those clerks that will actually compare your signature with the card. I used to work as a cashier in Iowa. I compared signatures on *every* credit card transaction. If the slip signature deviated too much from the card signature, I would ask for photo ID. If the name did not match, or the gender, or if the card said "check ID". I would ask for photo ID. Many of the people who had written "Check ID" on their credit cards would tell me: "Y'know, I wrote that on the card, and you're the first person who's actually asked me to see my ID in 6 months." I would actually *look* at the ID, too. One lady tried to pass a stolen check by using stick-on letters on her driver's license to make her name and address match the check. It wasn't obvious at a glance, but the letters were just slightly uneven, so I asked the lady to take the ID out from the plastic window of her wallet so I could get a better look. She refused (twice). I insisted (courteously). She yanked the check out of my hand, and walked out of the store *fast*, abandoning her cart. I wasn't able to catch her because I was trained to not to openly accuse anyone of dishonesty, and I didn't have time to get a manager or security before she left the store. Iowa ID's used to have SSN as DL# regularly. When I last lived there, it was optional to have a non-SSN DL#. Personally, I don't remember a single SSN I looked at on an ID. I only had to enter an SSN when the check-system requested a DL (and the DL# was SSN). However, I did have a workplace hobby of seeing if I could guess a person's state-of-origin by the first three digits of their SSN. Personally, I would allow clerks to see photo ID upon request. They're usually trained to do it - protecting you and themselves from a fraudulent transaction when they do so. I would not let them photocopy it or give out a telephone number, though. -ingenue
What about Wal-Mart in my area, I've busted them 3 times this year for asking me for ID...they even have the nerve to have signs posted up saying they REQUIRE ID for EVERY SALE with a credit card...I dont think so...one day I took my camera into the store, and was harassed by store security, I told the manager what I was doing, and showed him my letters from VISA/MC saying a merchant may ONLY request photo ID if there was some reason to suspect fraud, or the authorization machine requested it...but WALMART thinks they are above that policy... They request ID BEFORE they try to authorize the sale, and before they compare signatures...I DONT THINK SO....needless to say, the Sheriffs department was called b/c I was taking pictures of everything to send to VISA/MC, and I politely explained to the Sheriff what I was doing, and showed my proof, and was allowed to continue...guess what...they "POLICY" mysteriously changed overnight... So when a merchant arbitrarily asks for ID, HE CANNOT, he has to have a reason, PERIOD...I almost sought a TRO over this...b/c some crook at the cash register could easily copy or remember the ID#'s on the PHOTO ID...and that would cause all sorts of problems.
NO "PROBABLE CAUSE" TO ASK FOR ID~~~"we ask everybody"<------WRONG!!! I'm glad I'm NOT the only one on the side of NO ID unless "PROBABLE CAUSE"
I also don't mind if someone asks for ID. It actually makes me feel better if the cashier asks for ID, or at least checks the signatures. I once made a purchase at Target ... the lady in the Electronics Dept. flipped the card over and didn't think that the signatures matched, so she asked for my driver's license. I didn't mind at all. I can see why some people would think it's a hassle to pull out your driver's license. However, in these days of thieves and jerks trying to take you for every penny you have, I don't mind. I can also see why some people would be upset over showing the license because the number could be copied ... that would cause problems. However, I still don't mind showing it. I do think, however, that if your picture is on the front of the card that they should NOT ask for your driver's license, unless there is a huge change in your appearance.
