wales@ucla-cs.UUCP (01/31/86)
A few days ago, I posted a message regarding Chevron's new charge slips with the "dealer is required to retain carbon" notice. I called Chevron's consumer relations people at (800) 642-2462 x6413. (This number might be good only for California; I was given it by the regular Chevron account information number, (800) 642-0262.) I was told that the latest Chevron charge slips had only two paper parts -- the customer copy and the company copy. The carbon, I was informed, was to be kept by the dealer as his own record, in place of a third paper part. Hence, if I had taken and destroyed the carbon, the dealer would have been left with no record of the transaction. (I realize that this description conflicts to some extent with article <106@ucdavis.UUCP> by Steve Ehrhardt <ucdavis!ccrse>; I am simply reporting what I was told by Chevron and have no explanation for the apparent discrepancy.) I stated, in the strongest possible terms I could muster and still remain civil, that in this time of increased consumer awareness about the potential for abuse of charge-slip carbons, I felt Chevron's new charge slips were a massively ill-advised public relations measure and would inevitably reflect badly on both Chevron and its dealers. The Chevron operator assured me that my comments would be passed on to her supervisor. She also said that I was not the only person to have complained about this same issue; that Chevron was urging its dealers to be sensitive to customers in handling questions or complaints about the policy; and that the charge slip format might be modified in the future (but she could not say for sure that this would happen, nor when it would if it did). In any event, I always keep my own copies of all charge slips and com- pare them carefully with the monthly statements. -- Rich Wales // UCLA Computer Science Department // +1 213-825-5683 3531 Boelter Hall // Los Angeles, California 90024 // USA ARPA: wales@LOCUS.UCLA.EDU -or- wales@UCLA-LOCUS.ARPA UUCP: ...!(ucbvax,ihnp4)!ucla-cs!wales
andrew@hammer.UUCP (Andrew Klossner) (02/06/86)
[]
"I was told that the latest Chevron charge slips had only two
paper parts -- the customer copy and the company copy. The
carbon, I was informed, was to be kept by the dealer as his own
record, in place of a third paper part. Hence, if I had taken
and destroyed the carbon, the dealer would have been left with
no record of the transaction.
"I stated, in the strongest possible terms I could muster and
still remain civil, that in this time of increased consumer
awareness about the potential for abuse of charge-slip carbons,
I felt Chevron's new charge slips were a massively ill-advised
public relations measure and would inevitably reflect badly on
both Chevron and its dealers."
Your outrage seems misplaced.
Garden variety forms have three parts and two carbons. One part goes
to you, one part goes to the bank for reimbursement, and one part goes
into the merchant's file. [As a mail-order merchant, I have merchant
copies dating back to 1981.] The carbons get discarded and may be
retrieved by a thief, and herein lies the concern.
As you explain it, Chevron forms have three parts, one of which happens
to be the carbon. Nothing gets thrown away. What difference does it
make whether the merchant's file copy is black-on-white or
white-on-black? Where is the potential for abuse?
-=- Andrew Klossner (decvax!tektronix!tekecs!andrew) [UUCP]
(tekecs!andrew.tektronix@csnet-relay) [ARPA]