I work as a shift lead at a local restaurant with a drive-thru. There’s been some concern about credit card fraud recently, so management has asked us to check IDs if something seems like it might be amiss, but they’re also not particularly strict since the restaurant is rather small.
Mostly, we ask if the back has “See ID” in place of a signature or if the card name doesn’t fit the customer’s gender; in the latter case, management is all right with assuming the customer is the holder’s spouse, sibling, etc., as we get a lot of orders for families. It’s worth noting that, to my knowledge, this has not yet caused problems.
One evening, a middle-aged woman pulls up to the window to pay with a masculine name on the card. I’m changing the names here, so we’ll go with “Fred”.
Me: “All right, could I ask for some ID?”
The woman immediately flips from pleasant to hostile.
Customer: “You’re really gonna make me do this?”
Me: “Er, yes, please? Management has asked us to check for security reasons.”
She eventually hands over an ID, still glaring daggers at me. I glance over it and am met with her face over the words, “Fred [Matching Last Name].” Same face, same name. The rest isn’t my business. I run the payment, give her back the cards, and politely let her know her order will be up shortly. Apparently, though, additional information is warranted at high volume.
Customer: “MY NAME IS LINDA!”
I get how that could be awkward on the receiving end, but I really don’t care what you call yourself. I want to do my job and go home. With any luck, I’ll never see you again anyway.
