Can't pay with cash what is up with this

[audreyh1]

Restaurants in Canada pretty well all use remote card readers now. They bring the portable hand held machine to the table, you insert your card, add a tip (if you want), punch in your pin, and receipt comes out. Card never out of your hand.

I am still a little taken aback when in the US, that they still disappear with your card and bring paper slips back. Can’t last much longer?

This is so ingrained I dispair of it changing.

And I wonder what’s going to happen when signatures are no longer required in April 2018. Announced by everyone but VISA, I believe.

 

[Dawg52]

I saw 2 cars ahead of me at a fast food drive through pay by phone the other day. I do not have an app or desire to do this. If they don't want my cash I will pay by card. I have a hard time seeing cash going away in my neck of the woods anytime soon tho.

 

[meierlde]

Restaurants in Canada pretty well all use remote card readers now. They bring the portable hand held machine to the table, you insert your card, add a tip (if you want), punch in your pin, and receipt comes out. Card never out of your hand.

I am still a little taken aback when in the US, that they still disappear with your card and bring paper slips back. Can’t last much longer?

It depends on the class of the restaraunt. If it has a cashier/host person, then you walk up to the cashier to pay and swipe your card. Given that this also enables to go orders it seems to make sense to move in that direction. Also reduces the workload of the wait staff.

 

[braumeister]

Restaurants in Canada pretty well all use remote card readers now.

Yes, just like in Europe. I'm always glad to see that, and since I got a true Chip & PIN card I haven't even had to hassle with a signature at those places (although it never seemed to bother the servers). Progress!

 

[Meadbh]

+1
Years ago, I noticed that every time I had a credit card compromised it was shortly after using it at an unfamiliar restaurant. I concluded that it would be safer to never let the card out of my sight, so I made that a strict policy and started carrying enough cash to cover any restaurant meal.

That policy has worked well for me. In the years since I started (probably 6 or 7 now), I haven't had a single card compromise. I like cash.

In ye olde days before we had point of sale terminals brought to the restaurant table, I also worried about letting a server take my credit card. My solution was to walk to the payment station with my card, so it was never out of my sight. It may have interrupted a few good conversations at my table, but security won out over ambience.

 

[Music Lover]

Restaurants in Canada pretty well all use remote card readers now. They bring the portable hand held machine to the table, you insert your card, add a tip (if you want), punch in your pin, and receipt comes out. Card never out of your hand.

I am still a little taken aback when in the US, that they still disappear with your card and bring paper slips back. Can’t last much longer?

Remote card readers are even common on the beverage/snack carts on golf courses now.

 

[Chuckanut]

I am still a little taken aback when in the US, that they still disappear with your card and bring paper slips back. Can’t last much longer?

You over estimate the forward thinking of American banks. Believe it or not, only two of my chipped credit cards even allow me to enter a pin. And then the pin is often secondary to a signature. Thankfully, one does work with automated ticket machines overseas in places like train and bus stations. The rest are chip and signature only, no pin allowed.

They tell me this is for my convenience since I don't have to remember a pin. Yea, right. Apparently they think Americans are stupider and less capable than Canadians, Englishmen, French, Italians, Dutch, etc. etc. etc.....

 

[Chuckanut]

Discover card announced they were going to transition to chip-and-pin.

Discover Card Endorses Chip and PIN | NACS Online – Media – News Archive

April 26, 2016
​ARLINGTON, Va. – Last week, Discover Chairman and CEO David Nelms announced the company would begin migration to chip and PIN technology to secure credit card transactions in the United States.

I haven't heard any more about this since then.

 

[Cobra9777]

We use cash-back credit cards for everything, no matter how small. As a general rule I never have cash in my wallet and certainly no coins in my pocket. We used to get cash before heading to the ballpark for the parking fee. But now we pay ahead online and just show the attendant our prepaid parking ticket.

 

[ncbill]

https://www.msn.com/en-us/money/markets/cash-might-be-king-but-they-don’t-care/ar-BBHm7p0?ocid=edgsp

We will be seeing more of this I'm afraid. I like using cash.

Handling cash is a huge hassle for business owners.

I'd do the same had I a similar business in a large urban area.

 

[Alan]

We use cash-back credit cards for everything, no matter how small. As a general rule I never have cash in my wallet and certainly no coins in my pocket. We used to get cash before heading to the ballpark for the parking fee. But now we pay ahead online and just show the attendant our prepaid parking ticket.

My BIL calls coins in the pocket “shrapnel” and dumps them in charity boxes on occasions he collects any.

 

[Music Lover]

I understand the convenience of not using cash, and like most people I do most of my transactions electronically. But I don't want a totally cashless society where 100% control of my money is out of my hands.

 

[Danmar]

This is so ingrained I dispair of it changing.

And I wonder what’s going to happen when signatures are no longer required in April 2018. Announced by everyone but VISA, I believe.

You’ll wonder why it took so long a few months after it’s implemented.

 

[Danmar]

You over estimate the forward thinking of American banks. Believe it or not, only two of my chipped credit cards even allow me to enter a pin. And then the pin is often secondary to a signature. Thankfully, one does work with automated ticket machines overseas in places like train and bus stations. The rest are chip and signature only, no pin allowed.

They tell me this is for my convenience since I don't have to remember a pin. Yea, right. Apparently they think Americans are stupider and less capable than Canadians, Englishmen, French, Italians, Dutch, etc. etc. etc.....

Well let’s hope they see the light. Why do you think they are so slow to adapt?

 

[Danmar]

My BIL calls coins in the pocket “shrapnel” and dumps them in charity boxes on occasions he collects any.

I generally throw anything under a quarter away when no ones looking. Put the quarters and higher coins in a box for DW to use. Doesn’t happen much though as hardly ever use cash to buy anything. Biggest use is tips for car jockeys.

Eat out much too often to use cash. Would be going to ATM every couple of days. Besides I like the rewards points.

 

[Chuckanut]

Besides I like the rewards points.

+1

I figure I am paying for the reward points whether I accumulate them or not - Plus a few extras like doubling of the warranty, rental care insurance coverage, and in one case, trip cancellation insurance. Still if cash gave me a meaningful discount, I would use it much more often.

 

[street]

I hope I don't see the day we can't use it. I read and see things like this often.
https://www.msn.com/en-us/money/mar...gone-too-far/ar-BBJogIJ?li=BBnb7Kz&ocid=edgsp

 

[ExFlyBoy5]

I use very little cash...pretty much just for my haircut since they don't take CC. I like the cashback I get from the cards and I know *exactly* how much I spend in a given period.

I finally convinced my Dad to clean out his "cash stash" that he had in a safe for 20+ years, but only when I was able to illustrate how much he has "lost" due to inflation.

And speaking of using a safe...I would like to make note that most of the bills were quite "musty and dank" from sitting in the safe for so long (no climate control) and it took almost 2 hours to process all the bills at the bank (the automated counting machine wasn't being very effective). Moral of the story? If you are going to keep valuable PAPER in a safe...make sure there is a climate control device installed!

 

[YVRRocketSurgery]

I prefer using electronic payments to make it easier to track our spend. And it's pretty convenient in and around town with the infrastructure: portable credit card machines, tap and pay, etc. However, we also accept that we need to pay with cash a lot when we travel.

I know of one small restaurant chain in Vancouver that is electronic payment only: Marutama Ramen. Here's an article. They indicated 95% of customers were using credit card or smartphone payment apps so it was kind of a logical switch on top of avoiding accounting and security issues of using cash. If people's cards were rejected, they would accept cash but no change would be given since they would have not cash for a float and in another tv news segment, they said if they payment system went down, the meals would be free.

 

[Chuckanut]

The good thing about cash is that if a natural disaster knocks out power for a few days, often you can go to local stores and buy stuff you made need with cash.

What do travelers in Sweden do? Just pay with a CC or ATM card? That may generate a lot of fees.

 

[mh]

In Greece all they wanted was cash.

a huge part of their economy is under the table.

 

[gauss]

I always bring a bunch of $5s and $1s when I go out with a group of friends. We typically do not request individual checks and keep track of approx what we spend. A big tip usually ensues.

The $5s and $1s are always appreciated by everyone else so that they can get easy change for their ATM $20s.

I started doing all my entertainment purchases in cash last year as opposed to charging everything. I have a large amount of entertainment purchases. For entry into quicken, I just code all the ATM withdrawals as my entertainment category. This has simplified things significantly, but I no longer have the detailed financial diary that I use to have when using the CC -- so simplicity does have its costs.

-gauss

 

[gauss]

I wonder if the stores that don't take cash, are doing so because:
a) They are trying to reduce being a target for armed robbery either in the store or while making the bank deposit? or
b) Either the stores or credit companies want to collect more of your buying habits which can't be done when using cash, or
c) The are doing so because with cash, you can only buy what's in your wallet, limiting your purchases. With a CC, your buying is unlimited (up to the CC limit) causing more impulse buying, or
d) They don't want people who work under the radar as a cash-only worker as customers. Could it really be they are using it as discrimination in disguise? Nasty IMO.

I suspect that it could be as simple as the owner not wanting to waste the time everyday of counting the cash, travelling with the cash, going to the bank with cash etc. etc.

Occam's Razor perhaps?

-gauss

 

[LOL!]

I counted the change in a jar on my dresser that has been sitting there for years and years. $8.10 including Sacagawea, quarters, dimes, nickels, and pennies.

I took the coins in a plastic bag to Chipotle for lunch. To pay, I put the bag on the counter and said, "This is $8.10." They looked at me, then hefted up the bag to judge its weight, then rang it up without opening the bag nor counting it. Then they gave me 58 cents change from the till which I dumped into the tip jar.

 

[Sunset]

I find it interesting that I can see a fair number of online articles that take the opposite approach. They write about stores that don't accept credit cards. A couple of years ago, finally, Aldi started accepting credit cards. Previously, they only took cash and debit cards, maybe checks. I am not yet comfortable to use Google-pay, Android Pay, Samsung Pay or any of the other smart-phone pay apps.

I wonder if the stores that don't take cash, are doing so because:
a) They are trying to reduce being a target for armed robbery either in the store or while making the bank deposit? or
b) Either the stores or credit companies want to collect more of your buying habits which can't be done when using cash, or
c) The are doing so because with cash, you can only buy what's in your wallet, limiting your purchases. With a CC, your buying is unlimited (up to the CC limit) causing more impulse buying, or
d) They don't want people who work under the radar as a cash-only worker as customers. Could it really be they are using it as discrimination in disguise? Nasty IMO.

I think a big factor would be to eliminate employee theft. I was surprised to find a tiny dry cleaning drop off store front, went to the bank twice a day with about $2,000 each trip for deposit.
This is a single person run place.

It would be pretty easy for an employee to skim some off the top since there would be no supervision, when payments are in cash.