ark@alice.UUCP (Andrew Koenig) (07/10/85)
It seems to me that I've been in an increasing number of situations recently where someone has insisted that I do something I find obnoxious, and where their power to do so has rested in the fact that almost no other people stick up for their rights. Example: a restaurant that refused to accept a traveler's check unless I showed them my driver's license. Example: have you ever read a lease for an apartment? Carefully? Example: when we bought our house, the water company wanted to be paid a year in advance! (they bill quarterly) Example: these days, when you pay for something with a credit card, the merchant will probably insist that you supply your name, address, and phone number. I used to get angry at companies that treat customers as criminals. Now I also get angry at all the people who make it possible: the customers who act like sheep and will apparently put up with any kind of silliness.
mcal@ihuxb.UUCP (Mike Clifford) (07/11/85)
> It seems to me that I've been in an increasing number of situations > recently where someone has insisted that I do something I find > obnoxious, and where their power to do so has rested in the fact > that almost no other people stick up for their rights. > Example: a restaurant that refused to accept a traveler's check > unless I showed them my driver's license. I would like to know that if someone stole my traveler's cheques, they would have a tough time cashing them because they would need to identify themselves with a personal photo-bearing driver's license. > Example: have you ever read a lease for an apartment? Carefully? Have you ever owned property that you allowed others to use? > Example: when we bought our house, the water company wanted to be > paid a year in advance! (they bill quarterly) This sounds unreasonable. > Example: these days, when you pay for something with a credit card, > the merchant will probably insist that you supply your name, address, > and phone number. Again, this is to detect the use of stolen cards. > I used to get angry at companies that treat customers as criminals. > Now I also get angry at all the people who make it possible: the > customers who act like sheep and will apparently put up with any > kind of silliness. I don't think it is silliness and I "put up" with it because I think it helps lower the cost of crime. Mike Clifford
ark@alice.UUCP (Andrew Koenig) (07/12/85)
>> Example: a restaurant that refused to accept a traveler's check >> unless I showed them my driver's license. > I would like to know that if someone stole my traveler's cheques, they > would have a tough time cashing them because they would need to identify > themselves with a personal photo-bearing driver's license. >> Example: these days, when you pay for something with a credit card, >> the merchant will probably insist that you supply your name, address, >> and phone number. > Again, this is to detect the use of stolen cards. Bull. When I buy traveler's checks, I am supposed to sign them as soon as I get them. When I use them, I am supposed to sign them a second time in the presence of the person accepting them. A traveler's check with the same signature on it in two places is negotiable. Someone who is capable of accurately forging a signature while someone else watches is also capable of forging a driver's license. And do you really think that someone who has stolen a credit card will give a real address and phone number when using it? Merchants don't try to verify the information, they just demand it.
franka@mmintl.UUCP (Frank Adams) (07/23/85)
In article <3965@alice.UUCP> ark@alice.UUCP (Andrew Koenig) writes: >It seems to me that I've been in an increasing number of situations >recently where someone has insisted that I do something I find >obnoxious, and where their power to do so has rested in the fact >that almost no other people stick up for their rights. > [...] > >Example: these days, when you pay for something with a credit card, >the merchant will probably insist that you supply your name, address, >and phone number. I asked a merchant the other day why she asked for this information (in this case, phone number only). The answer was a bit complex, but what it came down to is the following: if the bank which issued the credit card refuses the charge, the merchant is not told who the card is issued to. Thus, she wants a way to get in touch with you if something goes wrong. This could include forgetting to sign the form, forgetting to imprint the card number, or an error filling in the form, as well as the cardholder being over the limit. It does not, of course, help if the card has been stolen.