Stupid Credit Card Trick

[Rob562]

Visa Travel Money is a gift card, nothing to special about it. As there's no name on them there's not much you can do but run them through and hope they don't get rejected so the guest doesn't get pissed off.

I've gotten a number of different types of those types of gift cards lately and from different companies, not just Visa. Apparently some of the Brazilian tour groups now issue them to their members.

I've bought pre-paid Mastercard-logo gift cards through the company that owns some malls in my area (Simon Malls) for use specifically for my Disney trips.
The first time, I ordered through their website and it came personalized with my name, and I was able to use a second message line on the card to put "Disney Trip 2003".

By the next trip, I had learned that you could get the pre-paid cards directly from the guest services desk at the mall and save the $5 processing fee. But it turns out those cards are *not* customized, and they just come pre-imprinted with "Simon Mall Customer" on them.

Needless to say, I was called "Simon" a few times and "Mr. Customer" at least once on that trip...

-Rob

[drcorey]

I've bought pre-paid Mastercard-logo gift cards through the company that owns some malls in my area (Simon Malls) for use specifically for my Disney trips.
The first time, I ordered through their website and it came personalized with my name, and I was able to use a second message line on the card to put "Disney Trip 2003".

By the next trip, I had learned that you could get the pre-paid cards directly from the guest services desk at the mall and save the $5 processing fee. But it turns out those cards are *not* customized, and they just come pre-imprinted with "Simon Mall Customer" on them.

Needless to say, I was called "Simon" a few times and "Mr. Customer" at least once on that trip...

-Rob

yeah, I had one one that said Gift Card on it.
you wouldn't believe how many asked for ID to use it.

[accioetoile]

I had someone who came through my line recently, who has a rebate card from AT&T. They come printed with your name right on the front. The woman wanted to use hers, but she hadn't signed the back, and I asked to see an ID. The name didn't match up, so I told her she couldn't use it, and she flipped out on me. How am I supposed to know that they put your maiden name instead of your married name on it, or whatever it was? I'm still not going to accept it.

[Alyssa3467]

Actually, one might think that asking for ID would be a natural and smart way to deter credit card fraud (regardless of the fact that - in most states and provinces - a driver's license is a shitty way to determine someone's identity) but actually by the terms of merchant agreement with credit card issuers, stores are NOT allowed to force you to present ID in addition to your credit card!!

(http://consumerist.com/consumer/privacy ... 332516.php)

Funny, huh?

If the back of the card is not signed, we are required to ask for ID. "Check page 29 of the Visa merchant agreement" as the post says. ;)

Just curious, how do you imprint them? Do you have the old-style carbon paper with addressograph roller thing (which should still be part of the power outage kit)? Or do you do what some pizza delivery places do and put the card under a piece of thermal receipt tape and rub it with the side of a pen?

Some people use carbonless paper with the roller thing. I typically use the pizza delivery method, but with a box cutter or a gift card rather than a pen.

[Alyssa3467]

Thread necro time!

Totally still the case SRT. We are to ask for a State or gov't ID.Try this though when guests have photo on CC. They usually go ballistic. :mad: If I see my transaction going to the yell/argue zone, I'll take the CC photo ID. Anything to keep The Magic & peace.

Visa (and presumably MasterCard, AmEx, and the rest) has loosened its policy on identification to allow photos on the cards themselves to count as identification. I don't like that one bit, and still ask "Do you have identification, such as a passport or driver license?" (I used to say "government issued identification," instead of just "identification," but too many people got confused) when the picture is lower than my threshold of acceptance.

In other news, I had two women try to make a purchase yesterday with a credit card that had a man's name on it. I asked for identification, and one of the women said that it was her husband's card. After I said he has to be present, she said that he was in Afghanistan, and proceeded to show me her military dependent's ID. I then told her that I was sitting off the coast of Pakistan for 2 months during Operation Enduring Freedom, but that didn't mean that my (hypothetical) husband was allowed to use my credit card.

I really wish I could've said "Let me call the credit card authorizer and see what they say" and called it in as a Code 10. :twisted:

[Cheshire Figment]

But the DD-1173 does have the husband's name on it. So the picture matches her and the name on card matches the cardholder.

[Alyssa3467]

I am aware. That shows that she is an eligible dependent, and has certain privledges associated with that (such as commissary access), but not that she has authorization to use his credit card.

[Main Streeter]

But the DD-1173 does have the husband's name on it. So the picture matches her and the name on card matches the cardholder.

I'd never take this cc. Would not want to risk it. Freud comes to mind.

[Mayonnaise]

Sometimes a cigar is just a cigar.

8^P

[MouseKiss]

Sometimes a cigar is just a cigar.

8^P

As long as there is no mother complex. ;)