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Myth No. 3: Merchants may require identification, such as a driver's license, when you pay with a credit card.
Merchants' agreements with Visa, MasterCard, American Express and Discover specifically forbid them from requiring identification. Your signature is supposed to be enough.
Furthermore, merchants' contracts with Visa and MasterCard are supposed to prevent them from even asking for ID. American Express and Discover don't prohibit asking but strongly discourage it.
Pretty weird in these times, don't you think?
This is true but I still see many stores with signs that require minimum purchases. Maybe I'll challenge one of these merchants.A friend of mine who had his own retail business used to require a minimum purchase for CC transactions. One day he received a letter from Visa or MC (don't remember which one) that he needed to stop that practice. Instead, he (stupidly, IMO) chose to stop taking CCs altogether.I reported a restaurant across the street from where I work for requiring a $15 minimum on CC transactions. Shortly after that, the Visa and MC logos disappeared from their front window.Merchants are not allowed to make their own rules or set their own policies when it comes to these things.
@Anonymous wrote:
Just show them the license...BUT, put your thumb over your address while you hold on to it.
The merchant or whoever never says "give it to me, place it in my hand"....but we always do for some stupid reason. Your address is not on your credit card so they do not need to see it.
I agree, it does put us at a greater risk for ID theft.
Ex: I have a grocery store that I go to all the time and there is a particular checker there that is talkative and seemingly not a threat to my security. We always use to make small talk because I go in there and see him all the time and I'm talkative also...UNTIL.... I was entering my phone number into the debit/CC machine (so I could access the store's "club card savings") ....and he was saying my full 10-digit number aloud as I was typing it in....without even looking! He had memorized my phone number! He said "sorry, just a habit". I was pissed and never went to his line again....told the manager too. He was trying to be clever but he came off as creepy and very scary. Never talked to him again.
So someone can see your address and memorize it....ecspecially after seeing it a number of times
Just don't show them your address and YOU HOLD ONTO IT if and when they ask to see I.D..
(except a cop of course)
Message Edited by Jubeyy on 06-25-2008 12:09 AM
Message Edited by Jubeyy on 06-25-2008 12:11 AM