Hi everyone. I am getting pissed off that I can't hardly buy anything with cash or cheque anymore. I can't see why I should need a credit card to reserve a hotel room or to hire a car.
Are there any pressure groups that I can join that are campaiging for the right to be able to buy something without the need for a credit card?
I can, if you run up a huge mini bar and restaurant bill, or run off (well OK drive off) with the car, they have no come back if you paid in cash - unless you are willing to leave a large cash deposit every time you check in or rent a car? And if you paid with cheque it might bounce (and some will), so thats another cost they have to bear, plus dealing with the security aspects of holding large amounts of cash deposits.
I bet you are that irritating woman at the checkout who faffs about paying by cheque and then uses her debit card as a guarantee for it.
anything with
Because when you hire a car or check into a hotel they put a large "reserve" on your credit card, in case you damage the car/run up a huge bar bill/steal the towels etc. They don't usually object to you settling the bill in cash, but they need the credit card reserve for this purpose. The alternative would be for you to leave a large cash deposit equivalent to the reserve they put on your card.
I wonder if she's related to the woman they they've just interviewed on R5 who's taking BT to court for charging her extra for not paying by Direct Debit.
Her excuse "because I don't want to hand my bank details to a company"!
tim
And, as we know, it wasn't possible for hotels or car hire firms to operate before credit cards were invented.
Matti
As far as car hire firms are concerned, you may well be right.
tim
Ah - a youngster!
Matti
Actually it's rather interesting.
Credit cards: 1890s (depending on how you define the credit card) Car Hire: 1916
Matti
Did you have a point?
Yes - one that's obvious to everyone else, I think.
Matti
I don't have a credit card. A British bank debit card is just as good in these situations (well a proper one is i.e. Visa Delta rather than Switch). I have never been refused.
That said if you don't want to give out credit / debit card details then don't. A hotel might ask that you call the night before or the day you arrive to make sure you are actually going to show up.
I have also arrived at a hotel where my accommodation and meal was being paid for by work. They asked for a credit card for "extras" and I just said there wouldn't be any and that was accepted without further comment.
There's a lot of competition in hotels and car hire. Make it work for you.
[...]
Why "excuse" and not "reason"?
"Andy Pandy" wrote
But if you haven't authorised a specific transaction, then if they tried to "draw" on that reserve, you can claim you didn't authorise it -- the CC co would need to refund. Having a receipt for (eg) "0.01" won't help them to claim (eg) 200 !!
should
Car hire firms could operate before the introduction of seat belts. Now they are a requirement. Hotels could operate before the the introduction of smoke alarms/fire safety features. Now they are a requirement. Times change, requirements change. What was your point?
"Andy Pandy" wrote
A *legal* requirement, yes.
"Andy Pandy" wrote
Another *legal* requirement, yes.
"Andy Pandy" wrote
But it's *not* a legal requirement to take a credit card when booking a hotel or car hire!
"Andy Pandy" wrote
Perhaps the point is that there's a difference between a (current)
*legal* requirement and a company *policy* "requirement" ?
Legal requirements change, company requirements change, customer requirements change. So what?
There was once a time before Mr Crapper's wonderful invention when hotels didn't have flushable toilets. Now most hotel patrons would regard them as a fundamental requirement, and take their availability for granted.
In the same way, hotels now often regard a customer credit card swipe as a fundamental requirement. So what if they didn't in the past?
Thats not the point. They *could* operate on cash, just like I could walk 10 miles to work and back again every day, but since they invented the car, I choose not to, just as they choose not to use cash.
Did you ever read the small print of what you signed when you check in?
And car hire T&C's tend to have a condition such as "we reserve the right to charge the credit card you used for payment with any damage to the car...". Many people have been caught by this and haven't been able to get money back *even when* they claim the damage wasn't done by them.
Some car hire companies will take cash, particularly smaller ones abroad, and I always try to pay in cash if possible.
"Tumbleweed" wrote
Yep, it was just a CC receipt for 0.01...
The hotel's T&C can require payment for extras (this is separate to the CC receipt), but they would need to ask for that, and it could be paid using a different method. The CC co would need to make the refund if requested, as they had no authority to pay it.
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