Valid Complaint?

[lacrosse_lady72]

a) it is against their agreements with credit card companies for merchants to require a minimum credit card purchase. It isn't a law, but they should not be doing that.
b) I just pumped $30 or $40 worth of gas outside using the same card - so now they refuse to process my $2.50 selection of soda and chips?
c) I was using the gas company card (a Sunoco card at a Sunoco station, if I recall). I know the cards are not administered by the same guy who owns the station - but would Sunoco be happy to hear a dealer is turning away a $2.50 sale to an otherwise regular Sunoco customer?
d) I understand merchants are hit with fees. So price it into the soda or chips - I don't care, I just want soda and chips - not a policy that says I can't use my Sunoco card to buy them.

This has happened about 3 times. In each case, I just said "well, I don't want more stuff, so if you don't accept the sale, that's fine...you get to put it away" and left the soda and chips at the register. I don't carry cash, and respect their right to run their business as they see fit. Not a big deal to me. It was just delicious irony that one of those times it caused the whole station to stall.

Next time, I'll do this:
say "OK, let me get more stuff" and go pick out some ice cream novelties. Then let them ring it up, and lets say it comes to $13.50. I'll say "sorry, I have a maximum charge limit of $10. Can you sell all this ice cream to me for $10?" They'll say no, and I'll walk out leaving ice cream on the counter. Policies are policies.


Who's policy is more sensible?

I should also mention that I asked for a void receipt only because she insisted that I needed to sign something to do with the voiding of the transaction...

So I simply asked for the thing to sign and her machine wouldn't print it. I stood there for quite some time, which is silly given that my transaction was rejected and I therefore hadn't paid anything. But I did eventually just leave.

I'm all for a business' right to do as it pleases and accept cash or cards or wampum. But credit card purchase minimums aren't within their rights - they relinquish that right when they agree to take the cards.

It doesn't matter to me what the policy is either from the card company or the gas station. It's the fact that you took it out on some cashier as your own form of amusement... I mean really??? Do you think she makes up the rules? Do you think making fun of her during an obviously stressful time is something decent people do?

 

[domesticking]

It doesn't matter to me what the policy is either from the card company or the gas station. It's the fact that you took it out on some cashier as your own form of amusement... I mean really??? Do you think she makes up the rules? Do you think making fun of her during an obviously stressful time is something decent people do?

Plus, doing it 3 times! Sure, maybe you don't know the first time, but the 3rd time? THAT'S how you get your jollies?

Oh, I love the part about --- 'Fine, then you put the stuff away'.

Woooo. He showed them.

I mean, everybody has to stand for something, but really, THAT'S your *thing*?

I have too much to do to get my panties in a bunch over a MINOR policy at the corner gas station. If you really want your chips and soda from that place, you'll bring cash or you'll buy a couple more things. How can that possibly cause such a hitch in your day?

 

[summerlady]

a) it is against their agreements with credit card companies for merchants to require a minimum credit card purchase. It isn't a law, but they should not be doing that.
b) I just pumped $30 or $40 worth of gas outside using the same card - so now they refuse to process my $2.50 selection of soda and chips?
c) I was using the gas company card (a Sunoco card at a Sunoco station, if I recall). I know the cards are not administered by the same guy who owns the station - but would Sunoco be happy to hear a dealer is turning away a $2.50 sale to an otherwise regular Sunoco customer?
d) I understand merchants are hit with fees. So price it into the soda or chips - I don't care, I just want soda and chips - not a policy that says I can't use my Sunoco card to buy them.

This has happened about 3 times. In each case, I just said "well, I don't want more stuff, so if you don't accept the sale, that's fine...you get to put it away" and left the soda and chips at the register. I don't carry cash, and respect their right to run their business as they see fit. Not a big deal to me. It was just delicious irony that one of those times it caused the whole station to stall.

Next time, I'll do this:
say "OK, let me get more stuff" and go pick out some ice cream novelties. Then let them ring it up, and lets say it comes to $13.50. I'll say "sorry, I have a maximum charge limit of $10. Can you sell all this ice cream to me for $10?" They'll say no, and I'll walk out leaving ice cream on the counter. Policies are policies.


Who's policy is more sensible?

Oh, who cares?! Nice that you appointed yourself as overseer to credit card companies. Sheesh. Again, I feel bad for you, you wanted those chips and soda for $2.50 and you didn't get them. If you know the policy, and you know that you're going to want a snack, throw a couple of bucks in your pocket. I'm done. This is ridiculous and I'm annoyed with myself for being aggravated by your nasty attitude toward working people and if I had been one of the people waiting in the backed up line that you caused, I'd be thinking what a nitwit you were.

 

[Thumper_ehhhhh]

I still cant beleive this is going. This is what I did when the toonies first came out in Canada. I put every single one in a jar for 6 months. We then had enough cash to pay for our fuel to Disney and back home again. Guess what we did the same thing for the next trip. We are heading down in 4 weeks guess what? again I have enough toonies for the trip again. Do not look at this as a bad thing look at it as a way to save cash without knowing you are. Its amazing how fast the pot of money grows and you dont miss a few coils a week.

 

[ProgressCity]

I mentioned this thread to my sister. She is a CM and a trainer for new CMs. She said that she was not surprised that the CM did not know what the coins were. If the girl was an ICP (International College Program) CM, they often don't know US money when they arrive. They have to learn US currency and how to make change the Disney way (yes, there is a special way they are supposed to give change) in a matter of two days training. The new coins have not been included in the training. Even if the girl was not an ICP, it is very possible that she had never seen the coin before. My sister said that she just heard in a meeting last week that they are supposed to start pushing the coins as change. Please realize that she is a trainer and therefore included in meetings that most CMs do not attend.

As far as she remembers, nothing was sent out to most CMs about the coins or Disney's involvement in trying to circulate them.

She also said that all the OP needed to do was ask to see a manager. The managers are always available to the guests. The manager would have explained to the CM about the coin. It would have been a win-win situation. The OP would have been able to use the coins and the CM would have learned a valuable piece of information. As it is, the OP is bent out of shape and the CM is still clueless.

When it comes to communicating things to front line cast, Disney is not the best or quickest. I've also never been with a company where communication is so disjointed. Cast in one area of a park may never know what's going on in other areas, so the CM not knowing about Disney pushing the coins is not surprising at all.

 

[ProgressCity]

Interesting!

So not only did she not know a key component of her job (what money looks like), but she was going flat out against what might still be policy to take what you suspect is counterfeit?

Here is the definition of counterfeit from dictionary.com "made in imitation so as to be passed off fraudulently or deceptively as genuine; not genuine; forged: counterfeit dollar bills." It's not that the coin looked counterfeit, it's that it didn't look like U.S. currency that this CM was familiar with.

If I'm a CM and you try to pay with Monopoly money I'm not going to take it because it's not counterfeit; it's not currency and it's not made to deceptively look like currency. You can't suspect something is counterfeit if you do not have any knowledge of the item being counterfeited. If there were no $1 president coins that are legal tender, which is clearly the assumption the CM was working under, she couldn't take it and then tell her manager, "I thought it was a counterfeit $1 bill."

 

[domesticking]

I still cant beleive this is going. This is what I did when the toonies first came out in Canada. I put every single one in a jar for 6 months. We then had enough cash to pay for our fuel to Disney and back home again. Guess what we did the same thing for the next trip. We are heading down in 4 weeks guess what? again I have enough toonies for the trip again. Do not look at this as a bad thing look at it as a way to save cash without knowing you are. Its amazing how fast the pot of money grows and you dont miss a few coils a week.

What are toonies?

 

[jayandstacey]

It doesn't matter to me what the policy is either from the card company or the gas station. It's the fact that you took it out on some cashier as your own form of amusement... I mean really??? Do you think she makes up the rules? Do you think making fun of her during an obviously stressful time is something decent people do?

Where did I make fun?

And what would you do?

I went to Sunoco, pumped $30 in gas with my Sunoco card. I went inside, grabbed a soda and chips, went to pay with my Sunoco card. I'm told I need to buy $5 worth - there's no sign indicating this policy, so it wasn't like I purposely chose less than $5 worth. I didn't make fun of her, I simply declined to buy more. The fact that the station went 'tilt' wasn't my fault, and I was very polite throughout - my beef isn't with the clerk, but with the policy. But i wasn't about to buy more than i needed, and didn't have cash.

What would YOU do? Buy more? What more could I have done?

I didn't start into the gas station seeking an absurd scenario. It just ended up that way.

And $5 mins are my thing. This is

 

[jayandstacey]

Plus, doing it 3 times! Sure, maybe you don't know the first time, but the 3rd time? THAT'S how you get your jollies?

Oh, I love the part about --- 'Fine, then you put the stuff away'.

Woooo. He showed them.

I mean, everybody has to stand for something, but really, THAT'S your *thing*?

I have too much to do to get my panties in a bunch over a MINOR policy at the corner gas station. If you really want your chips and soda from that place, you'll bring cash or you'll buy a couple more things. How can that possibly cause such a hitch in your day?

It was at 3 different stations. The fact is that I drive alot and have a habit of buying a soda and chips when I buy gas. And I rarely carry cash.

The one time the station went tilt, and I felt bad for the clerk but felt quite good about whatever the owner would lose over the hiccup.

I'm not seeking out these situations - in each case I haven't been back to that station. But I'm sorry, I'm not going to buy twice what I need because I fear giving the clerk more work. And I have no way of knowing the policy ahead of time - because it isn't posted - because the station owner would lose their ability to take credit cards if they did.

It is simply a ploy to get yu to buy more stuff. That simple. Why am I the bad guy for not playing into it?

I've owned a small company, I know the rules, I know the costs, I know the dumb games. Petty policies get petty responses followed by a vote with my feet. Not a big deal, but I'll do the same thing everytime.

 

[jayandstacey]

Is IBTL appropriate here?

 

[Csaks]

What are toonies?

The Canadian nick name for our two dollar coin, to go with the loonie. The one dollar version which got the name for the Loon on the front.

 

[doconeill]

What are toonies?

Canadian $2 coins. The $1 coin is nicknamed the "loonie", as the reverse bears the image of the common loon, a bird. Toonie is a play on that, reflecting the value.

 

[doconeill]

On the subject of minimum credit card purchases, I know that the Mastercard and Visa at least forbid (or used to) minimum amounts, but I believe that some credit card processors tack a minimum or fixed fee on each transaction - thus the merchant loses a bigger percentage of the sale on a smaller purchase. But like the CM, the clerk at the gas station is often not aware of the real rules, and is only following the rules as they've been told by the owner/manager.

American Express has different rules - I'm not sure the minimum purchase restrictions are the same. When I worked retail, we didn't take Amex because of the minimum fees, except for certain rather large ticket items. I don't think its true any more though...especially since Amex has been pushing the RFID payments which are generally of smaller amounts.

I know at least some of the gas stations I frequent offer a "Pay Inside With Credit" option, which is an obvious simple solution instead of getting the poor clerk flustered. And a complain to Visa/Mastercard apprising them of the situation at that location would help rectify the situation.

 

[JasonsPrincess]

1) To the OP, I would've said something at town hall. No its not a big issue, but if Disney is giving these coins out in other areas then everyone that works with a register needs to be made aware these are legit American coins. For us that see them it may be common sense, but for those who don't see them often, they just don't know and need to be made aware. Not in a rude way , just kinda in an FYI way. For others that think it wasn't a big deal, I have to think of, what if you did not happen to have $100 with you. Then her not accepting the coins would have lead to no rice krispy for you or having to hit up an atm which might also mean atm fee's.

2) to the person that gets his giggles by causing issues at the gas station? Seriously? If you have a problem with the policy then you need to take it straight to the highest source be it management/owner. There is no excuse making an employees life difficult MULTIPLE TIMES b/c you have a problem with a policy that they have no control over and cannot change. They are simply just doing their job. To you it may seem like no big deal for them to overlook the rule, but to a harsh boss it could lead to termination. why should someone break the policy just to appease you and risk being fired?

 

[jayandstacey]

I know at least some of the gas stations I frequent offer a "Pay Inside With Credit" option, which is an obvious simple solution instead of getting the poor clerk flustered. And a complain to Visa/Mastercard apprising them of the situation at that location would help rectify the situation.

Not sure how that would help or what you mean. In my examples, the pump purchase was always OK, it was when I went inside to make a separate food purchase. The card was accepted at the pump and something like $30 in gas was purchased, then I went inside and a $2.50 purchase is met with a policy rejection.

And yeah, I know the clerk is simpy following directions, and that the clerk may lack many advantages I may have. And I thought about calling the card company, but...eh...whatever. There's always another station.

 

[jayandstacey]

2) to the person that gets his giggles by causing issues at the gas station? Seriously? If you have a problem with the policy then you need to take it straight to the highest source be it management/owner. There is no excuse making an employees life difficult MULTIPLE TIMES b/c you have a problem with a policy that they have no control over and cannot change. They are simply just doing their job. To you it may seem like no big deal for them to overlook the rule, but to a harsh boss it could lead to termination. why should someone break the policy just to appease you and risk being fired?

3 times in 3 different stations, never multiple times in the same place or to the same people. In fact, in 3 different states. I was never impolite and never asked them to break policy or overlook their rule, and the rule was never posted for me to see before choosing my drink and chips. Once told, I followed the policy precisely, accepted the fact that the policy prevented them from completing my purchase and simply walked away from the transaction. In each case I left the goods for them to re-stock and in one case the whole station seemed to go into meltdown - but I didn't do anything but follow their policy.

Is it my job to buy $2.50 worth of more stuff I don't want because they tell me my chosen $2.50 worth isn't enough? And when I say "OK, then I guess I won't be buying today" - does it become my job to put the stuff back on the shelf???? I took it off, fully intending to buy it, and having just purchased $30worth of gas out at the pump.

Seriously? What would you have done?

I have yet to have anyone tell me the BETTER approach.

To go back to the OP of this thread, it would be like I put my souvenier down and said, "well, if the coin isn't acceptable, then I guess I won't be buying today" and walked off. The OP had a $100 bill in his pocket. In each case at these stations, I did NOT have cash.

Am I to
- buy more stuff to bring me up to their policy?
- say "sorry" and go take everything back to the shelves?
- try to talk them into accepting a $2.50 purchase?

What is so bad about walking away?

 

[robinb]

The only way that Americans will accept the dollar coins is for the mint to stop printing dollar bills. I personally think it's the right thing to do because coins last much longer than bills.

Speaking of which ... my DH's family is from Canada and his aunt & uncle and one of his cousins still lives there. He has been to Canada dozens of time and has a collection of Canadian money. We went to Ottawa for a bar mitzvah and my DH brought along his money collection for the trip. I hit the Canadian ATM . We were at the end of our trip and we were buying 2 dozen Canadian bagels from the Ottawa Bagel Ship (don't make fun of Canadian bagels, they are the best!) and I was a few dollars short. So, my dear husband pulls out TWO $2 bills. The look on the cashier's faces was priceless! The older one said something like "Wow! I haven't seen any of those in a long time!" and the younger one said "I've never seen one!". I don't know if they were still legal tender, but I know the younger cashier bought them from the till so it turned out OK .

 

[eastcarolinafan]

3 times in 3 different stations, never multiple times in the same place or to the same people. In fact, in 3 different states. I was never impolite and never asked them to break policy or overlook their rule, and the rule was never posted for me to see before choosing my drink and chips. Once told, I followed the policy precisely, accepted the fact that the policy prevented them from completing my purchase and simply walked away from the transaction. In each case I left the goods for them to re-stock and in one case the whole station seemed to go into meltdown - but I didn't do anything but follow their policy.

Is it my job to buy $2.50 worth of more stuff I don't want because they tell me my chosen $2.50 worth isn't enough? And when I say "OK, then I guess I won't be buying today" - does it become my job to put the stuff back on the shelf???? I took it off, fully intending to buy it, and having just purchased $30worth of gas out at the pump.

Seriously? What would you have done?

I have yet to have anyone tell me the BETTER approach.

To go back to the OP of this thread, it would be like I put my souvenier down and said, "well, if the coin isn't acceptable, then I guess I won't be buying today" and walked off. The OP had a $100 bill in his pocket. In each case at these stations, I did NOT have cash.

Am I to
- buy more stuff to bring me up to their policy?
- say "sorry" and go take everything back to the shelves?
- try to talk them into accepting a $2.50 purchase?

What is so bad about walking away?

Ok, I know I haven't been prowling these boards a long time, but in the short time I have been hanging around, this is the first time I've ever seen what I consider to be a ridiculous complaint by the first poster get hijacked by an even more ridiculous post by a respondent.

Nothing is so bad about walking away. But just walk away, man. You make it sound like you were Davey taking down Goliath.

 

[jayandstacey]

Ok, I know I haven't been prowling these boards a long time, but in the short time I have been hanging around, this is the first time I've ever seen what I consider to be a ridiculous complaint by the first poster get hijacked by an even more ridiculous post by a respondent.

Nothing is so bad about walking away. But just walk away, man. You make it sound like you were Davey taking down Goliath.

hehehe - nope, just davey taking down this thread.

I hear ya. The only reason I remember it is the fact that the first station just went into a tailspin. The whole thing happened so fast -

"That'll be $2.50"
"OK" I hand over the card I just used for gas
"sorry, minimum charge $5"
"uh, OK" I think for a sec...no cash...don't really want anything else...don't really need a soda and chips anyway, should be watching my weight...why doesn't my $30 purchase count...
"uh, OK, then I'll just pass on this stuff. Thanks anyway"
"well, I'll need to void it and you'll need to sign the void slip"
"OK, whatever"
"hmmm... this will take a second"
"OK, not sure why I'd need to sign a void slip when I never paid, but OK"
"Hmmm...this isn't working right"
....
"Oh man, the machine is jammed - Bob, how do I cancel the sale and get a void slip - shoot - now it's shutting everything down - Hello? is your daddy there? Can you get him, we have an emergency down at the station, all the card machines are down. yes, wake him up its the middle of the day..."

Maybe the failure was a coincidence. Who knows.

I didn't kirk out or anything - the poor clerk did though - and I'll admit to having a chuckle not at the clerk's expense but at the owner's.

I'm honored that I've taken the thread to a new level of rediculousness. The coins were getting old

 

[luvthemouse71]

Are you serious? What good does it do to have US currency that you can't use in the US? These people are in the retail business, it's their business to know US currency..

Yup. But these days, many of the cashiers can't do simple math either and rely on the cash register to figure stuff out..it's sad really.