To Give Credit Where Debit Is Due, Part 5
(I am a customer in this story, standing next in line while the person ahead is being attended to.)
Cashier: “Okay, sir. Your total is [amount].”
Customer: “Fine.”
(The customer pauses and doesn’t move to get his wallet.)
Cashier: “Sir. Cash or credit?”
Customer: “What?”
Cashier: “I’m sorry. Are you paying with cash, check, or credit card today?”
Customer: “What do you mean?”
Cashier: “For your groceries, how would you like to pay for them?”
Customer: “I don’t get it. I only have a debit card.”
Cashier: “That’s fine. We accept debit as well. Just slide it through the machine here.”
Customer: “But it’s asking for a credit card. I don’t carry credit cards. People steal those all the time.”
Cashier: “Sir, the machine will take both credit and debit. I you just follow the prompts…”
Customer: “I don’t know. It’s asking for a credit card. I refuse to use one.”
Cashier: “I can 100% guarantee you, sir, that the machine will read your debit card. After you swipe your card, select ‘debit’ and you’ll be done.”
Customer: *motions to his groceries* “I can’t pay for these with a debit card. What kind of a business is this that doesn’t accept debit?”
Me: “Sir, I don’t mean to interrupt, but I shop here weekly. They do accept debit cards. Open your eyes and read the machine prompt. It clearly has a DEBIT option.”
Customer: “It says credit. I don’t have credit!”
Me: “It’s that green button on the right labeled DEBIT. If you can’t see it, then I don’t think anyone here can help you.”
(At this point the customer walks out and leaves eight full bags of groceries behind, muttering how confused he was that the store didn’t accept debit cards. The cashier has to load the bags into a cart and wait on another associate before ringing me up.)
Me: “That probably happens way more often than it really should.”
Cashier: “We have a pool going to see how high we can hit in a week. So far I’m at five and it’s only Wednesday.”
Related:
To Give Credit Where Debit Is Due, Part 4
To Give Credit Where Debit Is Due, Part 3
To Give Credit Where Debit Is Due, Part 2
To Give Credit Where Debit Is Due
Question of the Week
Tell us your story about a customer who couldn't understand the most simple concept.
